Currently reading: Volvo opts against fully autonomous cars in urban areas
Volvo's plans for self-driving systems will focus on autopilot for "situations where it’s not really fun to drive"

Volvo has no plans to introduce fully autonomous cars in urban areas in the future, saying it believes the partial system it is close to bringing to market is preferable. 

“We have no ambition to have a car that could drive in urban environments from A to B,” company CEO Håkan Samuelsson said at the unveiling of the new 40-series concepts recently. “If you’re a normal consumer, is that really what you are dreaming about? We believe more that in a situation where it’s not really fun to drive, you can switch on the autopilot and then sit back and do something else, using that time more productively. That is the product we are developing.”

Volvo will begin a wide-scale trial of its Intellisafe Autopilot next year, with 100 Volvo XC90s equipped with the system being driven on Swedish roads. The company also recently announced that it will be testing the system in the UK next year with a smaller programme in London.

While other manufacturers have said drivers will retain at least partial responsibility for anything that happens when the car is in charge, Samuelsson also said Volvo is determined to stand behind its system. “If you want to be in that market, you have to take that liability,” said Samuelsson. “If you’re not ready to do that then you must do something else. Volvo would not market something you can switch on and then relax if it’s not a redundant system which is absolutely safe and secure.” 

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Mike Duff

Mike Duff
Title: Contributing editor

Mike has been writing about cars for more than 25 years, having defected from radio journalism to follow his passion. He has been a contributor to Autocar since 2004, and is a former editor of the Autocar website. 

Mike joined Autocar full-time in 2007, first as features editor before taking the reins at autocar.co.uk. Being in charge of the video strategy at the time saw him create our long running “will it drift?” series. For which he apologies.

He specialises in adventurous drive stories, many in unlikely places. He once drove to Serbia to visit the Zastava factory, took a £1500 Mercedes W124 E-Class to Berlin to meet some of its taxi siblings and did Scotland’s North Coast 500 in a Porsche Boxster during a winter storm. He also seems to be a hypercar magnet, having driven such exotics as the Koenigsegg One:1, Lamborghini SCV12, Lotus Evija and Pagani Huayra R.

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androo 14 July 2016

is that [fully autonomous car] the system you're dreaming of?

Well yes it is actually. But I'm happy to buy one from somebody other than Volvo.
Deputy 14 July 2016

Can I control the car in front?

Great news for us that like driving but hate commuting. However, can I force the car in front into autonomous mode when it's being driven at 38mph along a 60mph A road......?
xxxx 14 July 2016

At last

Been saying it for a while now and it's nice that a company have finally come out and said "no plans to introduce fully autonomous " - music to my ears. Of course the real reason is a truly autonomous car, in the sense the press and Google spout on about, won't be technical possible for at least another 25 years, it will still be neither be totally autonomous, safe or affordable. So please can the press stop going on and on about it and as to the people who said it will be a solution to the dangers of driving - Goodbye
androo 14 July 2016

xxxx wrote:

xxxx wrote:

Been saying it for a while now and it's nice that a company have finally come out and said "no plans to introduce fully autonomous " - music to my ears. Of course the real reason is a truly autonomous car, in the sense the press and Google spout on about, won't be technical possible for at least another 25 years, it will still be neither be totally autonomous, safe or affordable. So please can the press stop going on and on about it and as to the people who said it will be a solution to the dangers of driving - Goodbye

The people who 'rejoice' that a couple of Teslas crashed while in Autopilot mode think that's the end for autonomous cars. It isn't. It's just one of the natural stages. It's actually a great set of data for Tesla every time one of their cars crashes (tragic as a deaath is) and all other Teslas will become safer every time it happens. When a human crashes a car, other humans learn nothing. That's why two million a year a killed.

Remember, plane crashes have never even nearly meant the end of aeroplanes, even when hundreds die all at once. And for every one autonomous car that crashes, tens of thousands of human-driven cars also crash. Humans can't be trusted to drive cars. They can't even be trusted to drive Teslas on Autopilot and obey the rules about keeping their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel. Full and compulsory autonomy is the logical future for cars and these tiny setbacks will make not one jot of difference to that.

xxxx 14 July 2016

No-one rejoices when people die, please be respectful

androo wrote:
xxxx wrote:

Been saying it for a while now and it's nice that a company have finally come out and said "no plans to introduce fully autonomous " - music to my ears. Of course the real reason is a truly autonomous car, in the sense the press and Google spout on about, won't be technical possible for at least another 25 years, it will still be neither be totally autonomous, safe or affordable. So please can the press stop going on and on about it and as to the people who said it will be a solution to the dangers of driving - Goodbye

The people who 'rejoice' that a couple of Teslas crashed while in Autopilot mode think that's the end for autonomous cars. It isn't. It's just one of the natural stages. It's actually a great set of data for Tesla every time one of their cars crashes (tragic as a deaath is) and all other Teslas will become safer every time it happens. When a human crashes a car, other humans learn nothing. That's why two million a year a killed.

Remember, plane crashes have never even nearly meant the end of aeroplanes, even when hundreds die all at once. And for every one autonomous car that crashes, tens of thousands of human-driven cars also crash. Humans can't be trusted to drive cars. They can't even be trusted to drive Teslas on Autopilot and obey the rules about keeping their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel. Full and compulsory autonomy is the logical future for cars and these tiny setbacks will make not one jot of difference to that.

How much extra are you willing to pay for a "Full and compulsory autonomy" Ford Focus ??? an extra £15,000 maybe.

bowsersheepdog 17 July 2016

androo wrote:

androo wrote:
xxxx wrote:

Been saying it for a while now and it's nice that a company have finally come out and said "no plans to introduce fully autonomous " - music to my ears. Of course the real reason is a truly autonomous car, in the sense the press and Google spout on about, won't be technical possible for at least another 25 years, it will still be neither be totally autonomous, safe or affordable. So please can the press stop going on and on about it and as to the people who said it will be a solution to the dangers of driving - Goodbye

The people who 'rejoice' that a couple of Teslas crashed while in Autopilot mode think that's the end for autonomous cars. It isn't. It's just one of the natural stages. It's actually a great set of data for Tesla every time one of their cars crashes (tragic as a deaath is) and all other Teslas will become safer every time it happens. When a human crashes a car, other humans learn nothing. That's why two million a year a killed.

Remember, plane crashes have never even nearly meant the end of aeroplanes, even when hundreds die all at once. And for every one autonomous car that crashes, tens of thousands of human-driven cars also crash. Humans can't be trusted to drive cars. They can't even be trusted to drive Teslas on Autopilot and obey the rules about keeping their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel. Full and compulsory autonomy is the logical future for cars and these tiny setbacks will make not one jot of difference to that.

If there were any scintilla of sense to your comment that human beings cannot be trusted to drive cars, it would also be evidence that human beings cannot be trusted to design, build and program autonomous cars and an autonomous road network.