Imagine a big-tired Bronco Sasquatch SUV barreling down the highway—the driver not even touching the wheel. Or a V8 Mustang GT keeping its lane like a racing champ. Welcome to the new BlueCruise era, where even the burliest Fords are going hands-free.

Driver aid software goes full beast mode

Ford’s BlueCruise hands-free driving system is expanding to three new models: the Bronco, Ranger, and Mustang. These aren’t your average commuter pods. A lifted Sasquatch Bronco on 35s creeping along in rush-hour traffic with no one driving? That’s peak 2026.

Ford says the tech expansion comes from their new electrical system, FNV3.X. This system merges their electric and gas vehicle platforms into one to reduce “complexity and costs.” Doug Field, Ford’s EV design chief, explained, “Having a small number of core platforms is a key part of any software-driven engineering team.”

According to Field, the new platform allows Ford to update cars “quickly” and “deliver improvements in vehicle quality.” He added, “We want our Ford digital experience to be recognizable whether you’re in a Bronco or a Mustang Mach-E or an F-150 with a snowplow attached.”

BlueCruise is not true self-driving—it’s a hands-free driver assistance system that only works on pre-mapped highways, using adaptive cruise control, lane centering, and GPS tracking. Unlike full self-driving tech, BlueCruise still requires driver attention and won’t navigate intersections, side streets, or make autonomous decisions off mapped routes.

The future of BlueCruise is loud and proud

You’d expect hands-free driving from a Mach-E. But a 5.0-liter Mustang GT doing it? The pinnacle of retro-cool muscle car design? That’s irony on four wheels. Still, Ford is all in. As of March, over 757,000 vehicles have BlueCruise, including 446,000 added just in the past year.

Consumer Reports ranks BlueCruise #1 overall among driver-assist systems, calling it “clear, helpful, and consistent.” CR notes that BlueCruise is “easy to engage and disengage” and “gives frequent alerts to stay engaged.”

And Ford isn’t done yet. “Expanding BlueCruise coverage to additional models should only help continue that feature’s tremendous growth,” the company said. That’s corporate for: we’re about to see even more muscle cars and off-roaders ghost-driving down the interstate.

The sight of a self-driving Bronco might break a few brains at the gas station. But with 757,000 BlueCruise-equipped vehicles already on the road and more coming, it’s time to get used to the tech. Ford’s future is part horsepower, part software—and full of surprises.