Even though the software is not capable of self-driving, a large percentage of people who use the system think it will.
According to a new survey from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 42 percent of the people who use the autopilot feature in their cars feel like they're self-driving. The Full Self-Driving package, which drivers weren't asked about in the IIHS study, is still very much in testing.
IIHS President David Harkey said in the organization's press release that the early-adopters of these systems have a poor understanding of the technology's limits.
The fact that autopilot mode requires drivers to be paying attention and driving is one of the limits.
Harkey pointed out that system design and marketing could be adding to the misconception.
Only 12 percent of people who use Nissan/Infiniti's ProPILOT Assist software feel the same way as 53 percent of people who use Cadillac's Super Cruise assisted driving software.
The survey's findings show that there are clear differences among the three owner populations as to what their cars are capable of.
40 percent of the assisted driving users said that they had been locked out of their cars if they didn't meet failsafe criteria, and both types of cars have lockout features that switch off or suspend the vehicle if the driver doesn't meet failsafe criteria.
A high percentage of drivers confused a temporary suspension of the feature with the lockout procedure and failed to respond to warnings intended to ensure they were paying attention to the road.
Nissan/Infiniti assisted driving users don't have failsafes to contend with, but they do have attention reminders, and a high percentage of the users questions said they had never received an attention reminder.
We have a bad feeling that this could be a sign of things to come because there's clearly something going on with the cars.
The employee who posted the videos about the self-driving car was fired by the company.