Cadillac Super Cruise is basically very fancy cruise control, and it works well. We hopped behind the wheel of a Cadillac CT6 fitted with the tech, and put it to work.
How’d it do? Click play and see for yourself!
[Disclaimer: Cadillac tossed us the keys to its Super Cruise-equipped CT6 and included a tank of fuel.]
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I have ADHD, so this is an option I would not (and should not) ever use. Semi-autonomous systems remove a level of engagement that is almost a necessity for me. I don’t even use normal cruise control, and prefer manual transmissions just so my right hand and left foot have something to do. Super Cruise might be able to track the direction of my eyes, but it wouldn’t catch my brain wandering off.
But this does beg the question… if you can’t do anything else while you sit there letting the car drive itself, what’s the point of the feature?
Semi-autonomous systems where the computer normally runs things and the human only jumps in when the computer can’t handle it are notorious for causing trouble: the human mind should be either i>in control or i>not involved at all. Allowing the human to mentally disconnect (even if their eyes are still on the road) and then suddenly asking them to jump in while needing to be fully aware of the traffic situation is asking for trouble.
Similar situations happen in aircraft where the auto pilot is in control and then suddenly isn’t, it takes quite a while for the human mind to get up to speed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asiana_Airlines_Flight_214 is an example where the autopilot didn’t handle the situation (due to an incorrect setting) and the pilots didn’t take corrective action until it was too late. And they had more time than a driver on a busy road would have.
Exactly. It gets way too boring. That’s my problem with high level 2 setups.
Jeff, doesn’t Super Cruise scan around you and change lanes for you if you tap the turn signal stalk?
Nope. Only Tesla Autopilot does that. With Super Cruise you have to handle the one changes
I got a 5-min test in a Super Cruise-equipped CT6 (separate note, I look forward to when depreciation starts taking its toll on those), and I was impressed with the system, but I found the act of activating it a little distracting. I’m sure part of it is just being a first time user, and you’d get used to it quickly enough, but trying to drive the car while checking in that the system tells you it’s content all prerequisites have been met seems like the potential for problems. I don’t know if they could set it up this way, but it might be better if you just set the cruise at the point you want, and then wait for the car to tell you it’s taken over.
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