Tesla’s Autopilot a ‘distant second’ to GM’s Super Cruise system in Consumer Reports testing

FutureBoy

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Tesla’s Autopilot a ‘distant second’ to GM’s Super Cruise system in Consumer Reports testing


PUBLISHED WED, OCT 28 20209:40 AM EDTUPDATED WED, OCT 28 20208:43 PM EDT

Michael Wayland@MIKEWAYLAND

KEY POINTS
  • GM’s Super Cruise topped Consumer Reports testing of active driver-assist systems, leaving Tesla’s Autopilot “a distant second.”
  • Super Cruise on a Cadillac CT6 sedan scored 69 out of 100 points, while Tesla’s Autopilot on a Model Y was second at 57 points.
  • This is the second time Super Cruise has topped Consumer Reports’ testing of active driver-assist systems.

Tesla Cybertruck Tesla’s Autopilot a ‘distant second’ to GM’s Super Cruise system in Consumer Reports testing 05486353-1538593527862cadillac-ct6-super-cruise-01

A steering wheel light bar and cluster icons indicates the status of Super Cruise™ and will prompt the driver to return their attention to the road ahead if the system detects driver attention has turned away from the road too long.
Source: General Motors

General Motors’ Super Cruise system topped Consumer Reports testing of assisted driving technology, leaving Tesla’s Autopilot “a distant second,” the consumer research nonprofit reported Wednesday.

Super Cruise on a Cadillac CT6 sedan scored 69 out of 100 points in Consumer Reports’ testing. Tesla’s Autopilot on a Model Y was second at 57, followed by Ford Motor’s Co-pilot 360 system at 52 and Audi’s Pre-sense at 48. Consumer Reports evaluated 17 systems as part of its testing.

The emerging technologies were ranked based on their capabilities and performance, ease of use, safety, and driver monitoring and engagement. All of the systems, despite some of their names, require drivers to maintain attention to the road.

The programs are meant to help relieve driver fatigue and stress. They can provide convenience and safety for drivers by controlling driver functions such as acceleration and braking and keeping the vehicle in its lane.

GM Super Cruise tops Tesla in Consumer Reports’ automated driving tech tests



GM’s Super Cruise allows hands-free driving on more than 200,000 miles of pre-mapped highways in the U.S. and Canada, while other systems such as Autopilot offer greater capabilities but require drivers to “check-in” by touching the steering wheel.

The main differences between Super Cruise and Autopilot include a driver-facing infrared camera to monitor attentiveness and the pre-mapped roads that work with onboard radar, sensors and cameras to drive the vehicle.

This is the second time Super Cruise has topped Consumer Reports’ testing of such systems. In 2018, the GM system topped Autopilot as well as other systems from Nissan Motor and Volvo in the first-ever rankings of such systems by Consumer Reports.

Why Tesla Full Self-Driving and robotaxis are taking so long



GM has said it will expand Super Cruise to 22 vehicles by 2023, including a next-generation system with greater capabilities on the Cadillac Escalade SUV and recently unveiled GMC Hummer EV pickup.

The Autopilot system tested by Consumer Reports was not the so-called Full-Self Driving Capability update the automaker began beta testing this month. Consumer Reports previously called the system a misnomer as it offers “cutting edge, even cool” updates but it’s not fully self-driving.

Correction: Consumer Reports’ comments about Tesla’s Full-Self Driving Capability system were not about the company’s most recent update.
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FutureBoy

FutureBoy

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I have a couple thoughts on this article.

First is that it looks like Consumer Reports is taking issue with the difference between the name "AutoPilot" and the current (pre-FSD Beta) abilities. I agree that the abilities do not live up to the full capabilities assumed by the name. But this is a feature that is improving constantly and I as a user am not expecting the full functionality to be there yet. But that is just me. Based on some of the comments I have seen here in this group, it seems that some users do take issue with this disparity.

Second issue for Consumer Reports is that GM is more actively tracking the attention of the driver and making sure that they are paying attention to the road. I do see this as a safety issue that for the moment is probably an advantage of the GM system. But based on some work by outsiders it does look like Tesla is working to do better driver monitoring.



Long term, I'd expect Tesla FSD to improve to the point that there would be no need for the "driver" to be paying any attention at all. Once that happens, I believe the approach of Tesla will be vindicated.

Given the above issues, I'm actually kind of glad that GM currently gets a higher score. I think this gives Tesla a bit more time of running under the radar as an inferior product. During this time period, Tesla will continue to improve FSD by leaps and bounds. Meanwhile, most of the other companies out there will probably be lulled into believing that they are still doing OK. Sometime soon though FSD will have improved to the point that few if any other company will be able to accomplish anything near what FSD will be able to do.

The danger though will be in how many accidents happen in the meantime. The danger will be that if there are too many accidents, government will step in and slow everything down with further regulation.
 

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Distant, they say, as it only scored 12 points less out of 70. As the score leader doesn't have a UI that displays obstacles or even tell you what obstacles it is worried about.

I don't know what systems they tested, and I'm sure they're not perfect, but... I've tried the Subaru and Mazda offerings and Super Cruise doesn't have a UI I would consider minimum so how does it keep winning?

-Crissa

Again with the name 'autopilot'? Have they ever used autopilot on any other vehicle?

This is the same complaint, word for word, from the EU score. Is it the same tests?
 

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Every time I hear about this I feel like it's a joke. GM's system is superior because it's only available during low-risk, pre-mapped highway driving environments. It's estimated to be available on less than 1% of the roads in USA. Of course they can make it "flawless" in such circumstances! Look at Waymo, perfect in certain environments, but take it out of its element and it's far from perfect.

Next, it's rated higher for having a superior nanny system. I think autopilot is annoying enough, asking me to engage the wheel every 10 seconds even when my hand is resting on it (not enough torque applied at times). It's a realistic amount of time though, as a lot can happen and lots of distance covered in that time. But with FSD being so adaptable and always looking for dangers, I would consider that a far superior overall safety feature.

Yes, AP can be activated in areas that aren't ideal conditions. But safety features aren't meant to keep you safe in perfect environments, they're meant to keep you safe in ANY environment. We don't just wear seatbelts on certain roads, we were them everywhere. Why? Because an accident can happen anywhere!

Tell me one person who realistically likes the idea of advanced safely features only being available on less than 1% of roads and that have multiple layers of nagging/hoops in order to even use them, all while not telling you how they work and leaving it up to you to figure it out on your own. Tesla AP/FSD is hands down, heads and shoulders, leaps and bounds above their retail competition. Period. It's not perfect, but waaay better than any other vehicle's safety system I've ever seen, researched, or heard of!
 

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The Tesla auto-whatever system is clearly the Cadillac of all currently available such systems.
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