In previous Dashboard columns, I have explained what Advanced Driver Assistance Systems or ADAS is and also cribbed about some of its features such as Collision Avoidance Systems, which is automatic braking for all intents and purposes. But over the past few weeks, I have driven cars with ADAS on highways such as the new Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, and now, I am making peace with the technology. Because, as the mid-life facelift of the fifth-generation Honda City proves, ADAS is going to be everywhere in the coming years.
There isn’t much dramatic change on the Honda City, though — some small cosmetic design changes to the interiors and exteriors. The big change is that Honda now offers Honda Sensing, which is what they are calling their ADAS, on all variants of the car. In fact, from now on, every Honda City, barring the entry-level manual version, will come with the system. Honda, therefore, is the first carmaker in India to offer ADAS on a manual car. While buyers in major metropolitan areas might be choosing automatic variants, in smaller cities, manuals remain popular, although that is also changing. By installing ADAS across the board on the City, Honda has thrown down the gauntlet to other carmakers.
Just the way touchscreen infotainment systems rapidly proliferated across cars — to the extent that even the Maruti-Suzuki Alto features one today — ADAS is likely to be the next feature to become standard. Talking to Honda executives during the launch of the new car, I learnt that the upcoming Honda Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV), designed to take on the Hyundai Creta and Maruti-Suzuki Grand Vitara (which will be based on the City platform), will also have Honda Sensing. And so will the next generation of the Honda Amaze compact sedan. Takuya Tsumura, CEO of Honda Car India Limited, said that the installation of Honda Sensing is a global mandate from headquarters.
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Focus on better safety
There is a bit more to this. In certain markets like in Western Europe and the United States, a ‘five-star’ safety rating or a safe body shell that protects occupants is not enough — vehicles need to have driver assistance. This has been quite controversial because some cars, though they are structurally safe, have lost points for lacking advanced safety assistance features.
While some carmakers have, in the past, stripped Indian-made cars of safety features, customers’ concerns about safety have forced them to increase safety standards. Indian manufacturers Mahindra and Tata Motors have taken a clear lead here. But ADAS has always only been available on the very highest and most expensive models. The fact that Honda Sensing will be available in mid-level V specification of the City, which is Rs 12.37 lakh ex-showroom, it is almost certain that other carmakers will follow.
It is expected that the mid-life refresh of the new Kia Seltos later this year and the Hyundai Creta in 2024 will have ADAS.
The problems with ADAS
There are a couple of problems, though. The first one is that ADAS requires quite a lot of processing power. After all, features such as Adaptive Cruise Control and Forward Collision Warning and Mitigation process radar information — ADAS comes with the technology used in aviation. The system also uses cameras, say, in lanes where it processes images within milliseconds. All of this requires extremely advanced processing power, and currently, due to the semiconductor shortage that has particularly affected the automotive industry, there seems to be a shortage of ADAS parts. Tsumura assured Honda buyers of semiconductor supplies for ADAS till the second half of 2023, following which he expects the shortage to ease up.
Then there is another problem with ADAS. It can interfere a bit much in the driving process. For instance, when the collision mitigation system kicks in, the car can brake extremely hard — harder than a human can. Lane assistance can be irritating, particularly in city traffic as the car tries to keep you within your lane when you are trying to overtake, although it stops if you use your indicators.
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Never forget it’s just a system
Despite such problems, I kind of grew used to ADAS. I drove the Honda City down the Yamuna Expressway, using adaptive cruise control (which adjusts speed according to the vehicle in front), lane-keeping assistance, and, of course, collision mitigation. The Honda warns you of a potential collision with a big orange warning on the instrument cluster and through alarms. ADAS on the Hyundai Tucson and MG Hector also have a similar alarm system. As I wrote previously about my experience of the new Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, our driving habits in India are still to catch up with the roads that we are building. To put it bluntly, a reply I received on social media said: “First world roads and third world drivers.” ADAS can help.
In addition, we are very distracted drivers nowadays. Most of us would be lying if we said that we have never looked at our mobile phones while driving. I would be lying if I said that I have never done that, though I try not to. I use Apple CarPlay and voice recognition to ‘type’ my messages and have even tried to stop the car and have been successful for the large part. But far too many drivers are distracted by their smartphones, and this is where I feel ADAS will really help by preventing accidents.
However, one must remember that ADAS is only an assistance system — it is not autonomous driving. Sure, the car can do much of the work with adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assistance, especially on expressways, but your hands need to be on the steering at all times and your right foot primed to brake. While there is no doubt that ADAS will be the next ‘big’ feature one will see in cars in India, the fact that it is just an assistance system should never be forgotten.
@kushanmitra is an automotive journalist based in New Delhi. Views are personal.
(Edited by Humra Laeeq)