Land Rover Developing Remote Driving for Defender

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky

Jaguar Land Rover is reportedly working a system for the new Defender that would allow for low-speed maneuvers with all occupants outside the car. While it sounds like a good way to guarantee the safety of friends and family when traversing a cliff face that might be a bit too narrow, recent hiccups with Tesla’s new summoning tech has proven it’s best to exercise caution.

Fortunately, Land Rover says it wants to utilize the Defender’s 3-D Scout system to map the area surrounding the vehicle and allow drivers to control the Defender remotely from the outside in off-road environments (minimizing collision risks). This will likely require the addition of some level of vehicular autonomy, as JLR stipulates drivers will be controlling the model via the automaker’s wearable “Activity Key.” Present incarnations of the device are basically proximity sensors without the necessary controls to accomplish any meaningful level of remote control.

That means JLR will either need to revamp the wrist-mounted key or fine-tune the car to a point that it doesn’t need it. Reports from Autocar seem to indicate the latter. “[Defender is] capable of being able to do that in terms of its architecture,” indicated JLR product engineer Stuart Frith. “We’ve got as far as understanding how to do it, and we’ve run prototypes as well.”

From Autocar:

While the new Defender has advanced traction systems, clever software and better visibility with cameras and other sensors, Frith said there’s no substitute for checking the surroundings from outside the car to get over obstacles. “If you’re in a tight spot and you’re on your own, you can still get out of the car and ‘spot it’ yourself,” he commented.

While some cars already on sale can perform low-speed parking manoeuvres by remote control, adding steering to the mix and dealing with challenging terrain makes things more difficult. Legislation is currently the biggest hurdle, with regulatory bodies wanting safety assurances.

We’ve already seen Tesla and a handful of other manufacturers implement parking-lot summoning, so the legislative issue shouldn’t be impossible to overcome — especially since this system is supposedly limited to off-road use. But how exactly are you supposed to act as your own spotter without controls telling the vehicle how best to proceed? This author’s muddin’ and rock-crawling experience is rather limited, but I’ve learned you place a ludicrous amount of trust in the person that’s checking your placement (and vice versa). Wheel positioning, hidden obstacles, distances, and countless other items need to be conveyed routinely and accurately so the driver can proceed safely. Even with a more robust interface, it’s difficult to imagine JLR designing a system that allows such information to be conveyed to the vehicle — making us feel like the key will just be there to make sure the SUV doesn’t stray far from its owner.

Land Rover said it is also considering allowing owners to livestream footage of their excursions using the Defender’s EVA 2.0 electrical architecture and Online Package.

We hope that happen, as we really want to see how all of this is going to work. Unless JLR also has a new Activity Key in the works, the Defender will be spotting itself during driverless overlanding via 3-D Scout. (Assuming this technology actually comes to market, of course.)

[Images: Jaguar Land Rover]

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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  • Stumpaster Stumpaster on Oct 01, 2019

    What Tesla hiccups? In the video you referenced the Tesla was crawling through the parking lot and an MDX showed up suddenly and Tesla stopped. This is yellow journalism at its best.

  • Chuckrs Chuckrs on Oct 01, 2019

    Listen up, car. I'm too busy to go rock hopping today. Go out and record an hour or so of autonomous off-roading so I can watch it later from the comfort of my recliner. Wow, sounds like fun.

  • TCowner We've had a 64.5 Mustang in the family for the past 40 years. It is all original, Rangoon Red coupe with 289 (one of the first instead of the 260), Rally Pac, 4-speed, factory air, every option. Always gets smiles and thumbs ups.
  • ToolGuy This might be a good option for my spouse when it becomes available -- thought about reserving one but the $500 deposit is a little too serious. Oh sorry, that was the Volvo EX30, not the Mustang. Is Volvo part of Ford? Is the Mustang an EV? I'm so confused.
  • Mikey My late wife loved Mustangs ..We alway rented one while travelling . GM blood vetoed me purchasing one . 3 years after retirement bought an 08 rag top, followed by a 15 EB Hard top, In 18 i bought a low low mileage 05 GT rag with a stick.. The car had not been properly stored. That led to rodent issues !! Electrical nightmare. Lots of bucks !! The stick wasn't kind to my aging knees.. The 05 went to a long term dedicated Mustang guy. He loves it .. Today my garage tenant is a sweet 19 Camaro RS rag 6yl Auto. I just might take it out of hibernation this weekend. The Mustang will always hold a place in my heart.. Kudos to Ford for keeping it alive . I refuse to refer to the fake one by that storied name .
  • Ajla On the Mach-E, I still don't like it but my understanding is that it helps allow Ford to continue offering a V8 in the Mustang and F-150. Considering Dodge and Ram jumped off a cliff into 6-cylinder land there's probably some credibility to that story.
  • Ajla If I was Ford I would just troll Stellantis at all times.
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