Photo via Nissan Motor Co.

Photo via Nissan Motor Co.

Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn announced the Japanese automaker will have vehicles with autonomous driving technology by 2020.

Ghosn clarified that the type of technology will be assisted or enhanced driving rather than a totally driverless car. The car company doesn’t rule out creating a driverless vehicle in the future, but is aiming to please the more conservative consumer. 

"That is the car of the future. But the consumer is more conservative," Ghosn said. "That makes us cautious."

Nissan plans to make traffic jam and single lane systems available by 2016, and highway and multi-lane driver assistance by the end of 2018. The “traffic jam pilot” feature allows the car to drive autonomously in heavy stop-and-go traffic. Ghosn said this feature eventually will be offered across a wide range of Nissan, Infiniti and Renault vehicles.

The automated technologies will be designed for “complex city driving environments,” according to Nissan.

Nissan announced a partnership with NASA in January to work on new technologies, including remote controls. The automaker is also working with Stanford, MIT, Oxford and the University of Tokyo on automated drive technology.

Ghosn said the biggest hurdle will be getting approval from regulators. He made these predictions during the company’s 2014 fiscal year report at the company’s global headquarters in Yokohama.

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