New Ford Fusion focuses on driver assist systems

(CBS News) Automakers are spending a lot of effort to make your commute as easy as possible. New driver assist technologies are popping up in 2013 models with the mission of making driving as simple as possible. The 2013 Ford Fusion is no exception, packing a ton of driver assist features including lane-keeping systems, adaptive cruise control and collision warnings, and active park assist. Ford calls it the widest array of driver assist technologies available in any midsize sedan in the country.

The new Fusion comes stocked with radar equipment as well as ultrasonic, optical and motion sensors. Par for the course in new cars, but the sheer array of new technology is impressive.

The 2013 Fusion comes packed with a lane-keeping system, driver alert system, blind spot information system (which Ford calls BLIS), active park assist, cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, collision warning and a rear view camera.

"These new sensing technologies help extend the driver's own senses, providing a level of assistance never before available to the family sedan buyer," Adrian Whittle, Ford Fusion chief engineer, said in a press release. "The new Fusion launches this year with these advanced technologies - making them more affordable and available than ever before."

The automaker expects much of this technology to improve in the near future. The goal, common among automakers today, is to inch towards a future of autonomous driving.

"The new Fusion is a showcase of how we will use sensors and vehicle data to enhance the driver's own capabilities when behind the wheel," said Paul Mascarenas, chief technical officer and vice president of Ford Research and Innovation. "Driver assist technologies will continue to provide increasing levels of convenience in the near-term. In the future, they also will help us manage issues such as traffic congestion and CO2 reduction."