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Mercedes Wins Race Against Tesla for Level 3 Autonomy Approval

28 points by Pamar 5y ago

mytailorisrich 5y ago
Honda launched what was announced as a level 3 sedan in March in Japan [1] [1] https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Honda-launches-world-s-first-level-3-self-driving-car https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Honda-launches-...
aitchnyu 5y ago
As an Indian driver, I'm worried about bumpers and mirrors getting cameras and other electronics which makes scrapes much more expensive. My car has electronic mirrors which fold forward if something overtaking from behind gets too close. Ill be scared of driving a car with cameras on the mirrors.
- Lanolderen 5y ago
  Take a look at the Honda E mirrors. Hopefully we get something like that since they stick out less than normal mirrors. Don't know what a replacement costs though. I'm honestly much more worried about the price of headlights nowadays.
  - Grazester 5y ago
    My model vehicle with cameras and heaters in the mirror and your regular HID headlights cost nearly the same $600-$700 depending on the oem retailer website (not dealer). If this was the smart headlights that angled in the newer model of my vehicle then it would have been $1000 plus.
    - voakbasda 5y ago
      My last headlight cost me $30 for my ‘83 Toyota pickup. Seriously, screw every single automaker today. They have zero respect for their customers by making parts that expensive to replace. Does usury have a analogy for physical items?
ButtSpark69 5y ago
The juicy bits: "it can get confusing to understand what’s so special about a Mercedes system that only operates on certain stretches of Germany’s Autobahn network, and only up to 60 km/h (37 mph)." "but it can’t perform lane changes indecently"
- mgrund 5y ago
  The lane change quote is to describe a level 2 system by contrast, which implies this system can do lane change. Full quote: “Right now every other car claiming to have advanced autonomous features is currently only at Level 2 at the most, which means the car can stop steer and brake in certain conditions, but it can’t perform lane changes indecently and the driver can’t remove his hands from the wheel for extended periods.” But yes, speed limit reduces usefulness to congested traffic situations as also noted in the article.
wallaBBB 5y ago
I'm guessing Mercedes' push in this field is mostly because of their truck segment. The added BOM increase and potential fat margins on real FSD would be an easy sell in the truck segment.
- foepys 5y ago
  Very likely. 60km/h is the maximum speed a truck above 7.5t is allowed drive on German roads that aren't highways.
- wallaBBB 5y ago
  Now I'm a bit puzzled: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/10/daimler-truck-unit-spinoff-starts-trading-on-the-frankfurt-exchange.html https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/10/daimler-truck-unit-spinoff-s... But I guess tech was still shared during development.
DarthNebo 5y ago
What we really need is a side-by-side comparison of hardware in the loop simulations & actual ADAS equipped cars, for all levels of autonomy with human drivers for the same situation. Safety boards of all countries should have autonomous cars and drivers react to real-life accidents and show how each would perform, thereby instilling confidence in public minds and making them aware of human driver lapses as well. Driving safely needs to be about both - rules to be followed and how to react in adverse situations, the latter of which is never tested rigorously when giving out driving licences.

28 points by Pamar 5y ago

Honda launched what was announced as a level 3 sedan in March in Japan [1] [1] https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Honda-launches-world-s-first-level-3-self-driving-car https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Honda-launches-...

aitchnyu 5y ago

As an Indian driver, I'm worried about bumpers and mirrors getting cameras and other electronics which makes scrapes much more expensive. My car has electronic mirrors which fold forward if something overtaking from behind gets too close. Ill be scared of driving a car with cameras on the mirrors.

Lanolderen 5y ago
Take a look at the Honda E mirrors. Hopefully we get something like that since they stick out less than normal mirrors. Don't know what a replacement costs though. I'm honestly much more worried about the price of headlights nowadays.
- Grazester 5y ago
  My model vehicle with cameras and heaters in the mirror and your regular HID headlights cost nearly the same $600-$700 depending on the oem retailer website (not dealer). If this was the smart headlights that angled in the newer model of my vehicle then it would have been $1000 plus.
  - voakbasda 5y ago
    My last headlight cost me $30 for my ‘83 Toyota pickup. Seriously, screw every single automaker today. They have zero respect for their customers by making parts that expensive to replace. Does usury have a analogy for physical items?

ButtSpark69 5y ago

The juicy bits: "it can get confusing to understand what’s so special about a Mercedes system that only operates on certain stretches of Germany’s Autobahn network, and only up to 60 km/h (37 mph)." "but it can’t perform lane changes indecently"

mgrund 5y ago
The lane change quote is to describe a level 2 system by contrast, which implies this system can do lane change. Full quote: “Right now every other car claiming to have advanced autonomous features is currently only at Level 2 at the most, which means the car can stop steer and brake in certain conditions, but it can’t perform lane changes indecently and the driver can’t remove his hands from the wheel for extended periods.” But yes, speed limit reduces usefulness to congested traffic situations as also noted in the article.

wallaBBB 5y ago

I'm guessing Mercedes' push in this field is mostly because of their truck segment. The added BOM increase and potential fat margins on real FSD would be an easy sell in the truck segment.

foepys 5y ago
Very likely. 60km/h is the maximum speed a truck above 7.5t is allowed drive on German roads that aren't highways.
wallaBBB 5y ago
Now I'm a bit puzzled: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/10/daimler-truck-unit-spinoff-starts-trading-on-the-frankfurt-exchange.html https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/10/daimler-truck-unit-spinoff-s... But I guess tech was still shared during development.

DarthNebo 5y ago

What we really need is a side-by-side comparison of hardware in the loop simulations & actual ADAS equipped cars, for all levels of autonomy with human drivers for the same situation. Safety boards of all countries should have autonomous cars and drivers react to real-life accidents and show how each would perform, thereby instilling confidence in public minds and making them aware of human driver lapses as well. Driving safely needs to be about both - rules to be followed and how to react in adverse situations, the latter of which is never tested rigorously when giving out driving licences.