Volvo XC40
Just how useful are the XC40’S semi-autonomous functions?
Semi-autonomous kit tested and rated
MILEAGE 2990 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To see if the XC40 has the substance in daily use to match its eye-catching style and if its showroom success is justified
Our long-term XC40 is fitted with all of Volvo’s semi-autonomous driving systems, creating a perfect showcase for the many years of development Volvo has undertaken in the self-driving sphere. Its early investment has paid off, with the company securing trial deals for fully autonomous XC90S with firms such as Uber.
UK trials of fully autonomous cars will start on the inner lane of some motorways next year, before a predicted widespread introduction in 2021. But for now, we have our humble XC40, which does lots of fancy stuff by itself, even if we can’t read a book behind the wheel quite yet…
One early Sunday morning, I decided to test the systems to their full extent on a drive from London to the country via some motorway. With few cars on the road, it felt like a good opportunity to try these features.
Full Propilot on the XC40 is easily activated on the steering wheel, and when it’s in play, a green steering wheel appears in the instrument cluster. That means it can accelerate, brake, keep in lane and steer in lane all by itself. On motorways, it’s faultless, although if you’re in the fast lane close to a hard concrete barrier, it can be nerve-wracking. I think the XC40 sometimes places itself a little bit further to one side of the lane than I would – which isn’t wrong but is disconcerting. It’s likely only a centimetre or two, but when you’re ceding control, it can feel a lot.
If you take your hand off the wheel, the car makes a sound to remind you to put your hands back on.
So on motorways, it’s fine. Dual carriageways? Also fine. Normal B-roads? Not fine. Which is to be expected because these systems aren’t yet designed for those roads. With a clearly marked lane on only one side of the car, it went into panic mode. There was quite a lot of drifting (not the back-end kind) before the car wisely decided that it would stop the semi-autonomous system running altogether.
There are plenty of other systems, but I’ll focus on two. I see the argument for both of them and am pleased they exist but find them frustrating to deal with. One is Cross-traffic Assist. Example: I reverse out of my nan’s drive slowly. I can see a car coming from my left and I’ve anticipated that in the very slow speed in which I’m reversing. But the car doesn’t know, so it brakes abruptly, alarming me unnecessarily. I get a similar reaction from the emergency braking function. I know there is a small island ahead of me in the middle of the road and already plan to move around it, but the car doesn’t know so it makes loud sounds and sometimes brakes.
It’s easy to criticise such systems – which have the same annoyances on all cars that offer them – but this is the price of progress. Ultimately, they will make our roads a safer place.