When it is in self-drive mode, the new Honda Accord ADAS automatically accelerates and decelerates, and can steer around bends. However, its Advanced Driver Assist System (ADAS) self-drive technology only works on motorways and dual-carriageways.

While this might sound like the kind of technology we've all been waiting for, giving weary drivers the ability on long trips to get in the back seat to catch some shut-eye, Graham Avent, a spokesperson for Honda UK, said that, when the ADAS system is switched on, drivers cannot simply ignore what's happening.

"They can't climb in to the back of the car and go to sleep," he said. "It is very important to get the message across that this technology does not replace the driver."

Autopilot Mode

Avent said that, every 10 seconds, the ADAS system will bleep to check that the driver still is alert.

"All the driver has to do then is to touch the wheel," he said. The analogy is with the autopilot technology that was introduced into airplanes back in the 1970s and 1980s, he explained. The pilot can put the plane into autopilot mode, but he or she still is in charge and still is flying the plane.

Drivers can override the ADAS system at any time, Avent said.

The ADAS system features two main components: a radar-based cruise control and a lane-assist technology.

"The Adaptive Cruise Control is a millimeter-wave radar sensor behind the Honda badge on the front of the car to scan ahead for other vehicles," he said. "The cruise control then speeds up or slows down accordingly."

The driver presets the cruise control at whatever speed he or she thinks appropriate -- at 70 miles per hour, for example. "If a car pulls into the space in front of the ADAS car, the cruise control will slow the car down," Avent said.

Lane Control

The ADAS system also includes a Lane Keep Assist System (LKAS). "This is a camera mounted next to the rear-view mirror that watches the white lines and controls steering," Avent said.

Honda UK said that the Honda Accord ADAS will cost 25,880 pounds (US$46,500) and will go on sale in March. All Hondas are due to have ADAS by 2016.

"When you combine the ADAS system with intelligent traffic-monitoring technology and GPS mapping, you really have a very advanced car," Avent said.

"But no car manufacturer is then going to go out and say that such a car can drive itself, as we don't want to give the wrong message to drivers."