Nissan CEO Announces Plans For Autonomous Cars By 2020

Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn says Nissan will have cars that are equipped with autonomous driving technology by 2020. He explained the Japanese automaker is on track to meet its goal of having vehicles with this technology ready by that time, but the company acknowledges getting approval from regulators around the world remains a massive challenge in making these cars available to consumers.

“Starting from late next year, we plan to offer what internally we are calling the ‘Traffic Jam Pilot,’ a feature that allows the car to drive autonomously and safely in heavy, stop-and-go traffic,” Ghosn wrote in a post on his LinkedIn profile. “This eventually will be offered across a wide range of our Nissan, Infinity and Renault vehicles.”

In 2018, Nissan is expected to widely introduce the technology, which will allow a car “to autonomously negotiate hazards and change lanes.” Subsequently, by 2020, the automaker plans to introduce vehicles that can drive without human intervention in “nearly all situations, including complex city driving.”

Ghosn made reference to consumer market studies, which he says illustrate people want autonomous driving technology to be included in future cars, especially younger drivers. However, in addition to regulatory hurdles that must be overcome, he explained the need for roads to be prepared for autonomous cars, with proper striping and signage. He also raised the issue about the need for governments and legal systems to determine how liability will work in situations where autonomous cars are involved in accidents.

In addition to interest in autonomous technology, Ghosn also said market studies with consumers show that they want connectivity and zero, or very low, emissions in future cars. He explained that his definition of connectivity is accessing the Internet, seeing movies, and duplicating in the car the experiences that a person has at home or in the office. Regarding emissions, Ghosn says that Nissan is banking on electric cars rather than other zero-emissions technologies, at least in the near future.

Nissan’s CEO explained that the company sees autonomous vehicles as increasing the pleasure of driving, and a completely driverless car is not the automaker’s primary goal. Instead, he says that the company is working on technology that will assist or enhance driving, although the automaker may eventually end up offering a fully driverless car.

“That is the car of the future,” said Ghosn. “But he consumer is more conservative. That makes us cautious.”

Nissan’s statements come during a time when many automakers, as well as companies outside of the auto industry, are working on driverless car initiatives. Google is one company that is at the forefront of this technology, and the company recently announced that its self-driving cars will hit public roads in California this summer. “Each prototype’s speed is capped at a neighborhood-friendly 25mph, and during this next phase of our project we’ll have safety drivers aboard with a removable steering wheel, accelerator pedal, and brake pedal that allow them to take over driving if needed,” wrote Google in a blog post.

Will Google’s cars actually make it to California roads this summer? Will Nissan’s plans for assisted driving technology continue, or will completely driverless options become standard by the time the automaker’s vehicles become available in 2020? It’s an exciting time to watch the continuing development of these technologies, and speculation about when driverless cars will become common on our public roads differs greatly throughout the auto industry.