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FCA, Google Ready Pacifica Minivans for Autonomous Tests
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV says it has completed production of 100 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans that will join Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo autonomous vehicle test fleet early next year.
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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV says it has completed production of 100 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans that will join Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo autonomous vehicle test fleet early next year.
The minivans are being outfitted with Waymo’s fully self-driving technology, including specially built computers, various sensors, telematics and other systems. Engineering modifications to the minivan’s electrical, powertrain, chassis and structural systems were made to optimize the vehicle for the technology.
Waymo (formerly the Google self-driving car project) and FCA co-located part of their engineering teams at a facility in Michigan to accelerate the development process. Testing was conducted at FCA’s proving grounds in Chelsea, Mich., and Yucca, Arizona, as well as Waymo test sites in California. The companies announced the partnership in May.
Waymo plans to launch a ride-sharing service with the Pacifica starting with a semiautonomous version of the minivan by the end of 2017, according to media reports earlier this month. The service likely will require more than the 100 Pacificas FCA originally agreed to supply.
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