IN THIS FEATURE A lesson from Asimov A helping hand, not a babysitter Quick thinker Don't try this around town Allowing you to focus on what matters

Not quite. Where Honda's LKAS differs from other similar devices is that it's actually capable of driving you out of trouble. Drift out of your lane in a C4 and your buttocks get buzzed. Do the same in a next-generation Accord and the car will steer you back on to the straight and narrow. All the while, the cruise control system will do everything necessary - even apply the brakes - to keep you a set distance from the car in front. This is 21st century driving, I Robot-style.

Don't get too excited, says Honda. This isn't a driverless car - merely a form of passive safety that's designed to share the workload a little. And it's right. We're still some way off removing humans from the driving equation completely. But it's a significant step in that direction.

But radar to scan road ahead hides behind Honda badge

The '06 Accord is still being kept under wraps for another few weeks. But Honda invited us to come and try out the system in one of its current-shape development cars. Given that the next one is little more than a facelift, it's as good as the real thing. The hardware is identical.

Let's quickly run through it. There's a millimetre-wave radar transmitter mounted behind the big 'H' corporate logo in the front grille. The unit also houses the receptor. So when the radar wave bounces off the car ahead and back into the array, a computer uses the amount of time it took to do so (combined with the yaw rate and speed of the car) to calculate how many seconds in front it is. Maybe Schumacher should have a word with Jean Todt - might be useful on his Ferrari F1 car...

This ability to factor in vehicle yaw - i.e. the amount of horizontal g-force generated during a turn - is vital to the ACC's success as a form of cruise control. With some other systems I've tried, the radar has a nasty habit of getting confused. If the road curves, they'll often pick up a car travelling at a lower speed in the middle lane when you're driving in the inside one. Unless the road is empty, it's a pain in the ass.