Merc's new E-Class cars set to autopilot on highways

Munich

DRIVERS of Mercedes-Benz's new E-Class sedan will have to get used to a startling feeling: the steering wheel moving in their hands as it pilots motorways and country lanes by itself.

What's so far only been shown in test situations will be available around March next year, when Daimler AG's revamped model goes on sale. The technology packing the vehicle shows how quickly automated driving systems have advanced since 1998, when the Mercedes S-Class first featured cruise control that could adjust its speed to follow a car in front.