Ford Builds a Self-Parking Car. Sort Of.

When that writer first started driving, he’d ensure that all his first dates involved parallel parking. “How did a nice boy from the suburbs memorize to park like that?” the girls would wonder. “I guess it’s just a natural talent,” he’d reply, trying desperately not to get road rash on the wheels of his mom’s old Volvo.

The era of teen parking phenoms may be coming to an end, as Ford
announcedits Active Parking Assist may soon become optional on cars all through the lineup. The system will debut on the already technology-laden 2010 Lincoln MKS and MKT as an option available in mid-2009. The key to its rapid debut? Unlike
Lexus’ all-inclusive system, Active Parking Assist only controls the steering of the car through sensors and the electronic capability steering system. The driver is still responsible for the gas and brake, which means poorly-trained parkers will still have to send their meaningful others onto the sidewalk to shout, “You’ve got plenty of room! Back! Back! Wait, wait… Stop! Stop!”

We hope that different self-parking modes become available to suit the character of Ford’s various cars. For instance, Town Cars equipped with landau roofs could automatically take up three spaces at Denny’s, while the Crown Vic Police Interceptor could, without driver input, shut off the headlights and open the doors before the car comes to a full stop.

Ford welcomes the Lexus comparison, probably considering the LS460’s optional Advance Parking Guidance System became the laughingstock of the automotive blogosphere. Ford’s own press release calls Active Parking Assist a “major leap forward” from Lexus’

camera-based system, mostly considering Ford’s system is a lot simpler. considering the Ford system doesn’t control the gas and brake, it can park on a slope and requires less prep moment to actually find a space. Drivers can additionally take by the steering duties whether they start having a panic attack after ceding control to a computer.

Ford estimates that by 2012, 90% of its cars will be fitted with electronic ability steering, which paves the way for more technology like Active Parking Assist. “As we use advanced technology like Electric capability Assisted Steering to
improve the fuel efficiency across our vehicle lineup, we have the
opportunity to introduce new consolation and convenience innovations like
Active Parking Assist,” according to Ford chief chassis and steering engineeer Ali Jammoul. “This is technology not for
the sake of technology, but technology designed to meet the needs and
wants of customers.”

In addition to Active Parking Assist, the MKS and MKT feature the Blind Spot info System (Volvo-developed BLIS — which we think should be standard equipment on everyone
else’scar) and the very handy Cross Traffic ready (which helps mere mortals avoid getting T-Boned when backing blindly out of a parking space amoung two massive SUVs). Here in Autopia, we don’t intellect the additional help — it turns out that our post-pubescent parallel parking prowess wasn’t nearly ample to save those doomed first dates.

Image by
Ford Motor Company.

Original post by Keith Barry