Hands-Free Super Cruise Hits European Roads in Cadillac EVs

General Motors is taking Super Cruise overseas. Starting in mid-December, the hands-free driver assistance system goes live in Europe on three Cadillac electric crossovers: the 2025 Optiq, the 2026 Lyriq and the 2026 Vistiq. Germany, France and Switzerland are among the first countries where owners can switch it on.

The European rollout covers more than 180,000 kilometers — about 111,000 miles — of pre-mapped compatible roads across 16 countries. Super Cruise leans on that mapped data plus real-time cameras, radar sensors, GPS and adaptive cruise control to steer without hands on the wheel. It holds the lane, keeps a safe gap to the car ahead and works in stop-and-go traffic at speeds up to 130 km/h (81 mph).

Don't call it self-driving. Super Cruise is a Level 2 system under Society of Automotive Engineers definitions, so the driver stays responsible at all times. A driver monitoring system watches for alertness, and a green light bar on the top of the steering wheel signals when the feature is active. Lane changes only happen when the driver flicks the indicator. Cadillac also baked Google Maps into the navigation display so drivers can see which roads qualify and how much of a route can be driven hands-free.

"Super Cruise brings together Cadillac's premium driving experience, connected services and advanced driver assistance technology to make everyday journeys more comfortable," said Maximilian Wittich, Managing Director, Digital Services and Experiences. "We are excited to bring this hands-free experience to customers in Europe and to offer technology that has been tested and adapted for European roads and requirements." GM says it ran performance and validation testing, regional route testing and Europe-specific software tweaks to meet local legislation and driving conditions.

Super Cruise already runs in the United States, Canada, China and South Korea. Since its 2017 debut, it has racked up more than a billion hands-free driving miles, according to GM. The automaker counts roughly 750,000 Super Cruise-enabled vehicles in North America and expects that user base to pass 850,000 by the end of the year. In the U.S., more than 20 GM models support the system.

European buyers get the feature free for the first three years from first registration. After that, keeping hands-free driving means paying for a Super Cruise subscription and a Connected Services plan.