NHTSA Expands Investigation Into Ford’s BlueCruise Hands-Free TechNHTSA Expands Investigation Into Ford’s BlueCruise Hands-Free Tech

Federal road safety regulators have escalated their investigation into Ford’s BlueCruise tech.

The “hands-off” driver assistance solution was already being looked at by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) following a couple of fatal incidents involving Ford Mustang Mach E models fitted with the technology.

Now the NHTSA has confirmed that the initial probe, which began in April last year, has been upgraded into a full-blown Engineering Analysis (EA) – essentially one step away from a vehicle recall.

BlueCruise is available on a select range of Ford and Lincoln models and operates on 97% of controlled access highways across the United States and Canada, assisting with steering, braking and acceleration, plus allowing maneuvers such as lane changes. But drivers must be ready to take control of the car if necessary at all times, and a camera monitors if they are paying attention.

The crashes in question took place in San Antonio, Texas and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On both occasions, a Ford Mustang Mach E which was operating BlueCruise ran into a stationary vehicle. One person was killed in Pennsylvania and two in Texas.

Cameras and radar-sensing tech are supposed to allow BlueCruise-equipped cars to detect and classify objects ahead. But, in documents posted on the NHTSA website, the agency said its investigation had identified “limitations in the detection of stationary vehicles in certain conditions.”

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These limitations include the “potential for false detection of stationary objects at long distances” when the Ford is traveling in excess of 62 mph. The NHTSA also said: “System performance may be limited when there is poor visibility due to insufficient illumination.”

The documents went on to reveal that crash analysis prompted by the initial probe had unearthed four additional “frontal collisions” where a Ford impacted a slow-moving or stopped car (or other stationary object), and in two of these a BlueCruise-equipped Mustang Mach E was involved.

The NHTSA concluded: “Based on analysis, system limitations relating to the detection of stationary vehicles while traveling at highway speeds and in nighttime lighting conditions appear to be factors in collisions under investigation and several apparently similar near-miss, non-crash reports.”

The EA will now look much more closely at the tech, with the NHTSA performing vehicle evaluations, reviewing additional technical information and analysing more crashes and near-misses.

Following the EA, should it be determined that action is necessary from Ford, a recall would be required with an estimated 129,222 Mustang Mach E models from 2021 to 2024 likely to be affected.

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