Mercedes cars will use turquoise lights when driving autonomously to serve a purpose

Mercedes cars will project turquoise lights in Germany when they’re in self-driving mode using Drive Pilot.

The German automaker is testing Drive Pilot, the company’s autonomous system, as we speak.

But the prototypes are still in what we’d call ‘Beta’ phase, hence why Mercedes came up with this idea.

Although we think the fact turquoise lights look cool doesn’t hurt.

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Why Mercedes picked turquoise

Mercedes will spend the next few months driving EQS prototypes on the Autobahn, the famously unrestricted highway system in Germany, to test the new self-driving system.

Ironically, the turquoise lights were probably designed precisely because over 50 percent of the highway system has no speed limits.

But the test vehicles can only travel at 59mph, and so the maker needed something instantly recognizable.

In the end, turquoise was chosen because it’s easy to see, and can be quickly spotted by road users and the police.

For the time being, Drive Pilot is only capable of Level 3, which means they aren’t fully autonomous yet, and there will always be a human driver ready to override if needed.

There are six levels of automation, ranging from Level 0 to Level 5, and Level 5 means the vehicle can perform all driving tasks under all conditions by itself.

With Level 3, the vehicle can perform most, but not all, driving tasks, and human override is still required.

For reference, Waymo and Tesla are at Level 4.

To race to autonomy

Several automakers are working on self-driving cars.

Waymo’s autonomous taxies are now available in U.S. cities, with one more coming soon, and then there’s Zoox, which is almost the same thing, operated by Amazon in Las Vegas.

Aside from the German automaker, Uber, GM, Ford. and Tesla are also having a go.

Tesla is so determined to become the go-to autonomy company that it prioritized its robotaxis over the long-awaited second-generation Roadster.

We should also point out that some of these companies are making cars that are not fully autonomous.

Mercedes, Stellantis, GM, and Ford have systems that only work under specific conditions, and up to certain speeds.

There are safety reasons for this, but also legal reasons.

As of last December 2024, only 35 states had enacted laws that establish regulations for autonomous vehicles.

Are you lucky enough to live in one?

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