Mercedes Approved To Sell Partially Autonomous Cars In California Beating Tesla

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Mercedes-Benz has achieved watershed approval from the California Department of Motor Vehicles. The German automaker will now be able to sell Level 3 autonomous vehicles to the state’s residents.

The moment is a big one for autonomous vehicles, as this is the first time that an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) that does not require constant driver engagement has been approved for sale in America’s biggest automotive market.

Mercedes’ “DRIVE PILOT” Level 3 autonomous system differs from systems like Tesla’s Autopilot (a Level 2 system) in that drivers can legally take both their hands and eyes off the road while the vehicle is in motion.

Read: Mercedes Becomes First Automaker To Get Approval For Level 3 Autonomy In The U.S.

Whereas Autopilot and FSD (officially a Level 2+ system) require the driver to be in control of the car at all times, people in the driver’s seat of “DRIVE PILOT” equipped vehicles will be allowed to take their eyes off the road while it is in use, allowing them to read a book or play a video game on their vehicle’s infotainment system.

There are still limitations on the system, though. In any Level 3 autonomous vehicle, the driver must always be able to take over control of the car, so they can’t fall asleep at the wheel. The California DMV has also introduced its own limitations, reports Reuters. That includes the system only being available in daylight hours, at speeds not exceeding 40 mph (64 km/h), and only on certain highways. So it could help during your commute, but likely won’t be a replacement for a red eye flight.

That said, it will work on the interstate highway that connects California and Nevada, where the system has also been approved for sale. Owners will also be able to use DRIVE PILOT on highways in the Bay Area, Central Valley, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Diego for now.

“Mercedes-Benz DRIVE PILOT is the world’s only SAE Level 3 system with internationally valid type approval,” said Markus Schafer,  chief technology officer at Mercedes. ” It builds on a very robust foundation, setting new industry standards. DRIVE PILOT uses a highly sophisticated vehicle architecture based on redundancy with a multitude of sensors enabling comfortable and safe conditionally automated driving. The certification by the authorities in California and in Nevada once again confirms that redundancy is the safe and thus the right approach.”

In the past, Mercedes has said that it will take legal liability for accidents involving DRIVE PILOT. The automaker has also included a number of safety measures that it hopes will prevent drivers from abusing the system.

Mercedes says it is seeking approval from every U.S. state’s regulatory body, even those that don’t directly restrict autonomous technology, before rolling out the system on their roads. That’s part of a careful approach it hopes will help it gain the public’s trust. Mercedes DRIVE PILOT is available on the S-Class and the all-electric EQS.