Ford announced on Monday that it is entering the software game more deeply by making its hands-free driving technology, BlueCruise, standard in many of its upcoming vehicles. To put it another way, the Detroit automaker’s Teslaization continues.
Except for the Mustang Mach-E, Ford historically only offered hands-off driving technology as an option with the purchase of a new vehicle.
Ford says it will incorporate the hands-free technology into “500,000 vehicles in North America for the 2024 model year across Ford and Lincoln,” including the F-150 Lightning, F-150, Expedition, Lincoln Navigator, and Nautilus.
The advantage is that automobile customers will not have to decide ahead of time if they want to test out BlueCruise. And the disadvantage is that this functionality is not cheap.
If you buy a new vehicle and pay for access upfront, Ford claims it will charge you “$2,100 for three years at the time of order.” Alternatively, the corporation will provide free trials before charging $800 per year or $75 monthly. The service appears to be like Tesla’s driver-assist subscriptions.
While Ford is late to the game, its subscription is at least slightly less expensive.
