Among the laser headlights and performance data recorders, BMW introduced a new autonomous gadget called ActiveAssist at this year’s International CES. It can perform an emergency lane change, it can tackle a slalom course and it holds a perfect line on a track. In other words, it’ll make amateurs look cool when they’re driving.
ActiveAssist is still in its prototype stages, but BMW fitted it onto the 2015 M235i to showcase just what it can do on a wet track. By using the car’s existing electric steering and stability control sensors, the system basically monitors what’s going on using the car’s grip levels. If it detects understeer or oversteer, it reacts by altering the car’s brake and steering input to adjust its trajectory.
It’ll help you be an ace track hooligan, even if the only track experience you’ve had is through Forza Motorsport video games. It’ll shave seconds off your autocross time, even if all you’ve done before is mow down pylons. It’ll even help you drift, even if you’re not as talented as Ken Block himself. And there’s the rub: ActiveAssist takes the fun out of driving, especially when it’s BMW we’re talking about, an automaker that prides itself on being the ultimate “driving” machine.
I wonder whose ego will be damaged if the system fails and the car crashes … Even if ActiveAssist makes amateurs look cool, it’s still a very innovative piece of technology in its own right.
“Look mom! No hands!”
Handout, BMW
