Mercedes-Benz will discontinue offering its certified Level 3 automated driving system, Drive Pilot, on the upcoming facelift of its flagship S-Class sedan, signalling a strategic shift in how the German automaker approaches vehicle automation.
The company confirmed that the refreshed S-Class, scheduled to debut on Jan. 29, will no longer include Drive Pilot, a system that allowed drivers to take their eyes off the road under narrowly defined conditions. The same decision is expected to apply to the updated EQS later this year, effectively ending Mercedes-Benz’s rollout of Level 3 technology in its current passenger car lineup.
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Drive Pilot was introduced in 2021 as a technology showcase and was marketed as the world’s first production-approved “hands-off, eyes-off” driving system. In the United States, it was limited to selected highways in California and parts of Nevada and could operate only in specific situations, such as good weather and when following another vehicle. Drivers were required to resume control within 10 seconds if the system requested intervention.
Although the system positioned Mercedes-Benz as an early leader in certified automated driving, its practical use remained constrained. According to German business newspaper Handelsblatt, the automaker concluded that the high costs, technical complexity and limited customer demand did not justify continuing the technology in the next generation of vehicles.
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Mercedes-Benz will instead equip the updated S-Class and EQS with MB.Drive Assist Pro, a so-called Level 2++ system that combines navigation with advanced driver assistance features. The system can steer, brake, accelerate, change lanes and handle certain urban driving scenarios, but requires the driver to remain attentive at all times, with legal responsibility staying with the human driver.
The move does not mark an abandonment of higher levels of automation. Mercedes-Benz continues to develop Level 4 technology in partnership with Nvidia and has already launched robotaxi trials in Abu Dhabi. Chief Executive Ola Källenius has previously highlighted the difficulty of achieving full autonomy, saying the challenge lies in rare and complex driving situations. “The real challenge lies in the final 1% — the ‘long tail’ of rare driving scenarios,” he said.
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Mercedes-Benz and Nvidia aim to deliver what they describe as an “exceptional Level 4 chauffeur experience” in the next-generation S-Class, expected between 2028 and 2030. Until then, the automaker appears to be prioritising supervised systems that can be used more broadly in everyday driving conditions.