Stephen Boulter, the project manager of the XF line, told Mashable he believes semi-autonomous technology is dangerous because it has a tendency to give motorists a “false sense of security.” Consequently, Jaguar’s automatic braking feature slows the new 2016 XF (pictured) down if it detects that a collision is imminent, but it’s not programmed to bring the car to a complete stop. Boulter has ruled out automatic steering — a feature offered on a vast majority of the XF’s competitors — for the same reason.
“We have the same hardware as Tesla. To do Autopilot, all you need is electric power steering — you don’t need an EV.” conceded the executive. “If something happens [with Autopilot], it could set the technology back a decade,” he warned.
Instead, Jaguar is focusing on bringing a fully autonomous car to the market in a safe and timely manner. Boulter announced that the British car maker will soon begin testing autonomous cars on the roads around its headquarters in Gaydon, England, though he stopped short of disclosing when the model will be ready to hit showrooms.
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