V2V Communications Finally Arrives in America with Updated Cadillac CTS

More than 2.5 years after General Motors (GM) CEO Mary Barra announced plans to launch vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications in the US market, the first of a new generation of connected cars is now on its way to dealers. GM has begun production of the updated 2017 Cadillac CTS sedan, the first of what is likely to be several models equipped with the technology within the next year.

At the time of Barra’s 2014 announcement, it was expected by most people in the industry that a mandate for V2V on new vehicles would be in place by now. That process was held up by efforts by the wireless industry to grab some of the 5.9 GHz spectrum that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had allocated for dedicated short-range communications. The final notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) was not published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) until December 2016. Under the new administration in Washington, it’s not clear if the NPRM will get final approval.

Pressing Ahead

Nonetheless, GM has been a strong proponent of V2V and vehicle-to-external (V2X) communications for more than a decade, having conducted its first public demonstrations in 2007. Despite the fact that the CTS accounted for only 0.5% of GM’s more than 3 million US sales in 2016, the company is pressing ahead with the introduction, clearly hoping to start demonstrating the efficacy of the technology in real-world conditions.

There is also a strong likelihood that this is only the first of a number of GM vehicles that will add V2V in the near future. The launch of the Delphi-supplied V2V system coincides with the introduction of an all-new next-generation CUE infotainment system. The new version of CUE includes support for over-the-air software updates that can add new functionality. Initially, the CTS will provide drivers alerts when cars down the road have hazard lights on, activate stability control, or have a hard brake application.

“At launch, we are offering these three features. That doesn’t rule out additional alerts in the future, as we are always looking for ways to add additional safety features to our cars,” said GM spokesperson Chris Bonelli. “Coupled with the next-generation Cadillac user experience also launching on the 2017 interim model year CTS, we are able to provide over the air updates as needed for new features and safety.”

Cadillac has already announced that the ATS and XTS will get the new version of CUE when they begin 2018 model production later this year. These vehicles will likely get V2V as part of that package, with other models to follow in 2018 as they get the electronics updates.

Another factor that may be driving GM to push the technology forward even in the absence of a regulatory mandate is automated driving. It is moving forward aggressively with the development of an automated version of the Chevrolet Bolt EV for use with the Lyft ride-hailing service. GM is projected to begin pilot deployments of automated Bolts with Lyft as soon as 2018. V2V is expected to be an important component of automated driving, significantly expanding the situational awareness of the vehicle beyond the line of sight that is possible with sensors alone.

Growing Market

Guidehouse Insights’ Connected Vehicles report projects that more than 70 million vehicles will be sold globally with V2V technology by 2025. Toyota launched V2V on several Japanese models in late 2015 while Honda has also been very active in the development and testing of V2X communications. Neither company has made product announcements for North America, but these two OEMs are likely to follow GM in the next year.