US car manufacturing colossus General Motors has unveiled its new autonomous vehicle and it has certainly caught the attention of motoring enthusiasts.
The American automaker has released the first image of its new Cruise AV, which is a self-driving vehicle that has no steering wheels, pedals, shifter or manual controls of any description within the car.
The automotive industry is undergoing a revolution as the race to develop and deploy autonomous vehicles increases by the quarter. Automakers and suppliers are busily working hard to be in a position to introduce self-driving cars to the public, although it must be said that the majority of these car manufacturers have developed autonomous vehicles that have steering wheels and pedals, unlike GM's new Cruise AV.
GM has remained coy on the vehicle, declining to elaborate in any great depth or detail about the capabilities of the autonomous car, but it's quite evident by examining the image released that we're looking at the inside of a modified Bolt EV, which has a symmetrical dashboard instead of its traditional controls.
The automaker says the vehicle is "production-ready" and has formally asked the US Department of Transportation for permission to start testing it on public roadways beginning next year. It is expected that if granted the permission to conduct testing, the trial program will take place in San Francisco where GM's Cruise Division is headquartered.