As with pretty much every new generation of the “Sonder Klasse” in the past, the latest Mercedes-Benz S-Class is trying really hard to be a technological tour de force, and from many points of view, it’s very much succeeding.
Most people talk about its hot stone massage seats or the Magic Body Control suspension system, but one of its most coveted newly-introduced technologies should probably be the Distronic Plus system with Steering Assist and Stop and Go capabilities.
Thanks to a wide array of short, medium and long-range radar sensors that work together with a stereo camera system situated behind the windshield, Distronic Plus with Steering Assist can maintain the optimum distance to the vehicle in front – automatically braking and accelerating the car depending on the situation.
Even more impressive is the Steering Assist bit, which in theory ensures that the car remains in in the middle of the lane even on gentle bends – and all this without driver intervention.
Since current legislation in most countries doesn’t actually allow fully autonomous cars on their roads, Mercedes-Benz was required to fit additional sensors on the steering wheel in order to detect that the driver keeps at least one hand on the wheel. If it detects that the driver isn’t using the steering during a given time, the Steering Assist system is deactivated.
Closely following the KISS principle, it seems that the steering wheel sensor is actually based on weight, so the German owner of a Mercedes-Benz S 500 decided to trick the system using what appears to be a can of juice.
The weight of the soda can simulates the driver using the steering wheel, which in translation means that the car can drive all by itself on the German Autobahn. Kind of cool but somewhat scary at the same time, especially since the shape of the steering wheel and the two gauges look a bit like a clown face…
By Alex Oagana