BlueCruise 1.2 is Ford’s Best Adaptive Cruise Control Ever (& Most Expensive)
BlueCruise 1.2 offers the most refined hands-free Ford driver assist functionality yet. But is hands-free driving really worth $700-$900/year when the hands-on Adaptive Cruise Control does most of the same job?
Full disclosure: Ford provided transportation and accommodations for Ford Truck Enthusiasts to attend a two-day media event where we tested out BlueCruise 1.2 along with the 2024 F-150 PowerBoost hybrid, Tremor, and Raptor R. Ford also provided an extended F-150 XLT loaner to continue testing after the event.
Like many automakers, Ford has been continuously developing, updating, and upgrading its vehicle safety systems over the last several decades. Many of these technologies are now part of the company’s Co-Pilot360 systems, which monitor vehicle blind spots, help prevent collisions, look for speed limit signs, assist trucks backing up to trailer hitches, and much more as we’ll soon discuss. Ford named its most advanced driver assist feature BlueCruise. It debuted in 2021 on vehicles like the F-150 and Mustang Mach-E. Classified as a Level 2 Autonomous System (the scale runs 0 through 6), BlueCruise is an evolution of Adaptive Cruise Control technology that can “take over steering, acceleration, and braking in specific scenarios.”
Human drivers, however, are required to pay attention at all times, or the system disengages.
Now, for the 2024 model year, Ford has launched BlueCruise 1.2, claiming that the company’s engineers have improved refinement while adding two new features and an updated pricing structure. Does BlueCruise 1.2 improve over its predecessor? Is it worth the cost to buy the feature? What’s it like to drive with BlueCruise?
These are the questions we hope to answer after a spending few days and nearly 200 highway miles behind the wheel of a 2024 F-150 XLT and Lariat.
What is Adaptive Cruise Control & How Does It Work on the F-150?
In the beginning, cruise control was simply a function of setting a speed, and the vehicle’s computer would modulate the throttle to maintain the requested speed. Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) is much more advanced, utilizing a combination of vehicle-mounted cameras, radar sensors, throttle inputs, and braking controls to maintain a requested speed unless traffic is detected. At which point, ACC will slow the vehicle to go with the pace of traffic and maintain a pre-selected distance behind said traffic. Newer variants, like the system found in the 2024 F-150, include Stop & Go functionality, which allows for full stops in heavy traffic, after which the vehicle will resume the requested speed (if possible).
The radar sensors are the black rectangles in the front bumper (left); front facing camera (right).
ACC is often paired with Lane Centering Assist (LCA), which senses marked lanes on a roadway and keeps the vehicle centered between them. If the road or highway is straight, the vehicle drives straight. If the roadway curves, the vehicle follows those curving lanes. When LCA and ACC are combined, it can appear as though the vehicle is driving itself. However, the system requires drivers to keep their hands on the wheel at all times.
The system checks for human compliance two ways. The first, a torque-based sensor located in the steering column, requires just a hint of pressure from the driver the wheel. The second — a dash-mounted camera assisted by two infrared sensors that allow the camera to see in the dark — looks for drivers’ eyes and head position to determine whether or not each driver is paying attention to the road
What is Ford BlueCruise?
Ford’s BlueCruise is the next evolution in Adaptive Cruise Control with Lane Centering Assist. In short, it’s ACC + LCA, but you don’t have to keep your hands on the steering wheel as long as you are on a road that’s part of Ford’s BlueCruise network. To put that another way, BlueCruise currently enables hands-free driving on “97% of controlled-access highways (freeways, interstates, and expressways) in the United States and Canada.”
Again, as long as the system detects that you are paying attention.
Camera Monitors & Personal Data
In the wake of recent scandals where certain automakers have been selling wirelessly-collected vehicle data, through data brokers, to insurance companies, I asked Ford if the integrated BlueCruise camera system is secure. Ford reps stated that BlueCruise data, including the camera feed, never leaves the vehicle. (It’s not sent over the air via the vehicle’s data connection, for example.) In fact, it’s not set to record video unless there is a collision or crash.
Meaning, if you crash a BlueCruise equipped vehicle and a local, state, or federal agency decides to investigate and obtain a warrant to search your vehicle, they will end up with video from the BlueCruise / Adaptive Cruise Control camera. But, this is no different from all the other data modern vehicles capture during/after an accident. (Things like steering angle, brake and accelerator pedal inputs, vehicle speed, engine and transmission settings, etc.)
What’s New in BlueCruise 1.2?
BlueCruise 1.2 adds two new features to the mix along with improved refinement. Ford dubs the first new feature In-Lane Repositioning. Using the vehicle’s side radar, if BlueCruise detects a large vehicle like a semi-truck or bus in the next lane, BlueCruise will give you a little extra breathing room rather than maintaining perfect lane centering. Next, Ford engineers added Lane Change Assist, which allows you to change lanes without disengaging BlueCruise. To try this feature, simply tap the turn signal stock up or down, and BlueCruise will check to see if the next lane over is clear, and then it will move over to that lane and stop blinking left or right..
Lane Change Assist only works one lane at a time. Drivers can also lock the turn signal stock into up or down position, but that leaves the turn signal on until the driver returns the to the center. So it’s a little easier just to do a tap.
Pricing & Availability
BlueCruise 1.2 is currently available on select 2024 model year Ford vehicles, including F-150, F-150 Lightning, Expedition, Explorer, and Mustang Mach-E. On the F-150, it requires XLT Mid-Package trim, or above. Every new Ford that offers BlueCruise as a feature includes a 90-day free trial period with a new vehicle purchase. Owners can also opt, at the time of purchase, to add a 3-year BlueCruise subscription for $2,100. (This allows folks to include the service in the lease or financing.) Next year, on 2025 models, Ford plans to offer a 1-year subscription for $700.
If a customer elects to add BlueCruise after the expiration of the 90-day free trial, you can opt into a monthly subscription of $75/month (which ends up costing $900/year), or an annual subscription of $800/year. Ford also notes that pricing is subject to change.
What’s BlueCruise Like to Drive?
A few years ago, we drove BlueCruise 1.0 while reviewing the Mustang Mach-E GT. We’ve also tested Adaptive Cruise Control with Lane Centering Assist on several F-150s and Expeditions. The pre-2024 versions of these driver assist systems are impressive, no doubt, and ultimately felt safe to drive. But the overall experience was a touch clunky.
More specifically, BlueCruise and ACC are really good at driving smoothly at a requested speed and slowing down for traffic. Even when that traffic appears suddenly from an aggressive driver who decides to cut you off without signaling. However, the Lane Centering Assist portion of these systems has, until now, felt very ping-pongy… A sensation where, instead of gradually curving with the road, it felt more like it was driving straight, hitting the edge of the lane and correct, then driving straight until it hittting the edge of the lane and correcting… rinse and repeat.
It never felt unsafe… but it felt remarkably UNhuman, if that makes sense.
BlueCruise 1.2 marks a dramatic improvement over that sensation. I drove about 60 miles back and forth on the highway that runs through Palm Springs, California. Then 115 miles from Palm Springs to Los Angeles on another day. And also on a quick trip up to downtown Los Angeles for breakfast one morning. Nearly 200 miles of, in my opinion, flawless, steady driving that, quite honestly, seemed safer than many human drivers, who appear prone to random speed variations and lane changes.
The best part about the experience is the way both systems reduce the stress of long-haul and heavy-traffic driving. Free from the need to constantly brake and accelerate and turn, the mind is free to focus on road conditions and enjoy the sites and sounds of the whole experience.
That’s not to say that there aren’t a few quirks.
For example, BlueCruise doesn’t appear to work at/during highway interchanges (although ACC with LCA will stay on). And ACC is prone to asking for its drivers to put their hands back on the wheel even when the driver is already holding the wheel. This is due to that torque sensor in the steering column; the fix is to simply apply a touch a pressure to the wheel in either direction. Not enough to turn the vehicle, but enough to let the computer know you’re still there.
Is BlueCruise 1.2 Worth Extra Money When Adaptive Cruise Control Is Already Great?
If BlueCruise 1.2 were simply an option or a package — a feature with one price, paid once — I’d be telling you to run out and add this to your 2024+ F-150 order. For people who commute or regularly roadtrip on divided highways, it’s remarkable. However, BlueCruise 1.2 is not a one-time feature or an optional package.
It’s a subscription service that costs between $700 and $900 per year (for now)…
Further complicated by the fact that Adaptive Cruise Control with Lane Centering Assist is a one-time fee that’s baked into most 2024 F-150s starting with the XLT Mid Package. And, as far as I can tell, ACC with LCA does 90% of BlueCruise’s job, allowing the F-150 to effectively drive itself on the freeway or almost any roadway with marked lanes… at highway speeds or in stop-and-go traffic… and the only sacrifice is that you have to hold onto the steering wheel.
So, what do you think, is it worth paying almost $2-$3 per day for the privilege of taking one’s hands off the steering wheel when the built-in system is already pretty great? I’m not sure it is.
Images: Michael S. Palmer
