Ford expects sales of 100,000 vehicles with hands-free driving system

Ford Motor said on Friday it expects to sell 100,000 cars and trucks geared up with the company’s new hands-free driving system in the first whole year of availability.

The catch is, only the system hardware will be installed. The software will not be ready for nearly another year, the automaker said.

The automaker’s Active Drive Assist will be provided first on the redesigned F-150 pickup and the new Mustang Mach-E electric SUV, both of which go on sale during this year. However, the feature will not be activated until the third quarter of the next year.

Consumers can order a Mach-E or an F-150 with the Co-Pilot360 advanced driver assistance package, which consists of the hardware for Active Drive Assist. That feature will be switched on via a wireless over-the-air update when the software is finalized in 2021, the automaker said.

Active Drive Assist is going to be standard on selected high-end models and available as an alternative on others, priced from around $1,500.