Ford Joins The League Of Self-Driving Car Ford Fusion Readies For Californian Roads

by Benson Agoha | Technology

* Self-driving Ford Fusions are coming to California next year.
(Credit: Ars Technica).

Ford is about to begin testing its own Self-Driving Cars in the new year, after it applied to join the league of testers in California.

Others already testing in the easily crowding field include traditional auto production companies like Honda, Nissan,Volks Wagen's Audi arm, BMW and Tesla among a widening list. It also includes auto parts makers like Bosch and Delphi as well as tech companies like Cruise Automation and Google)

The Ford Fusions are to be moved to California next year for the tests, after the green light was given to the automaker to test where others are testing.

According to a report by the Industry Week, Ford has officially enrolled in the California Autonomous Vehicle Testing Program and will begin with self-driving Ford Fusion Hybrid sedans.

Ford is reported to have more than 100 researchers, engineers, and scientists already working in its research center in and around Silicon Valley. The researchers, who also collaborate with universities, specialize in technologies that help cars “see” or sense what is around them and safely navigate.

According to Ars Technica, Ford is the 11th group to obtain the California driving license for its autonomous cars.

Ford CEO Mark Fields said: “Our Palo Alto team has grown significantly this year, using research and innovation to explore and develop future mobility solutions.” 

No time frame has, however, been given.

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, Fields predicted fully autonomous cars would be on U.S. roads by 2020, but declined to say whether his company would be among the first to market.

Tesla's new Model X is fitted with a new autopilot that can drive on its own, but testers have so far not been fully acclimatized with the feature yet.