The savings on Ford’s end will come from all stages of the manufacturing process, from materials acquisition and freight to assembly. Galhotra said that the company used live information sent from its vehicles to help make this decision. “Connected vehicle data here is very important because it helps us see what we’re providing, whether the customers are using it or not.” Ford currently uses the active park assist feature on several of its vehicles, including the Escape, the Mustang Mach-E, and the best-selling F-150 pickup.
Ford claims not enough drivers were using the feature to keep it viable, but a survey by The Zebra found that 49% of Americans fear the stressful, traffic-obstructing task that is parallel parking. That figure is more than twice the number of drivers who are afraid of colliding with another car. It remains to be seen if other carmakers follow Ford’s lead and drop their own parking assist systems. Currently, at least a half dozen other manufacturers offer the feature, including Tesla, BMW, Lexus, Mercedes, Audi, and Nissan.
