Smooth motion / Seamless acceleration / Reliable performance: IM Motors' NOA Experience on High-Speed Elevated Bridges

Recently, IM Motors successfully held IM AD DAY in Suzhou, marking a milestone with a major update to the IM AD intelligent driving assistance system. At the event, IM Motors also officially announced the launch of its high-speed elevated NOA navigation assist feature. According to the plan, the OTA rollout for this feature will begin at the end of April, initially rolling out to the IM L7 model across the cities of Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Jiaxing, and Huzhou, with nationwide availability expected within the year. Meanwhile, the IM LS7 model is set to receive the OTA update in June, with nationwide deployment scheduled for later in the year.

Before officially rolling out the feature to users, we also visited Suzhou to be among the first to experience IM Motors' NOA highway and elevated-road navigation assist function. The vehicle used for this test drive was the IM LS7—a model that doesn’t come equipped with LiDAR sensors. Now, let’s dive into how the car performed in practice. Additionally, during this NOA highway and elevated-road navigation assist experience, we got a brief taste of the latest ZhiIM MOS 2.0 system. So, without further ado, let’s explore together what exciting new features MOS 2.0 has brought to the table.

Regarding the high-speed elevated NOA navigation assist, in addition to helping us navigate on highways and elevated roads, it also includes features such as automatic lane changes, merging onto and exiting ramps, handling ramps with sharp curves, dealing with vehicles cutting in front, accommodating larger vehicles by yielding appropriately, and intelligently selecting lanes to enhance traffic efficiency. Now, let’s take a closer look at how the vehicle performs in these specific scenarios.

First, let’s talk about how to activate it: When driving on highways or elevated roads and after setting up the navigation, once the gray steering-wheel icon appears above the digital speedometer on your vehicle’s dashboard, simply swipe down the gearshift lever to quickly engage the feature. After activation, the steering-wheel icon will turn blue. Overall, the activation process is quite straightforward and incredibly convenient to use.

Next, let’s talk about the smoothness of IM Motors’ NOA highway and elevated-road navigation-assisted driving system. Overall, the ride quality is quite impressive. Whether accelerating or braking, the vehicle delivers a remarkably linear response. Moreover, according to the official curves graphed by IM Motors, the car’s acceleration and deceleration during assisted driving are even smoother compared to how an experienced driver would handle these maneuvers. Overall, the driving experience feels exceptionally refined and comfortable.

Additionally, during the process of handling cut-ins, the vehicle consistently avoids any panicked or nervous maneuvers—instead, even drivers aggressively attempting to merge seem remarkably composed, as if they had already anticipated the approaching vehicle’s intention to cut in. Moreover, the car’s performance during lane changes continues to be nothing short of exceptional: first, the entire maneuver feels remarkably calm and reassuring; at the same time, based on the current traffic flow and the behavior of surrounding vehicles, the car seamlessly adjusts its speed—either accelerating or decelerating—to execute the lane change smoothly and effortlessly. What’s more, the timing of the lane-change decision is perfectly executed, giving the driver an overall sense of confidence and stability.
Additionally, there's the option of using the fast lane—vehicles don't have a fixed preference for a particular lane, such as always sticking to the leftmost or middle lane. According to our measurements, cars frequently change lanes, primarily to improve traffic flow. Observations show that, overall, their efficiency is comparable to that of more aggressively driven human drivers, and even slightly higher than NOA systems from other brands.

During driving, the vehicle also features an automatic large-vehicle avoidance function. When encountering a larger vehicle, the car will steer as far away from it as possible while staying within the lane markings. Once safely past the large vehicle, the car automatically returns to the center of the lane—again, with seamless precision. This is made possible because IM Motors' high-speed elevated NOA navigation assist system anticipates the presence of large vehicles well in advance. Even before the car gets close to the big vehicle, it begins executing smooth, gradual evasive maneuvers. Thanks to this proactive judgment and extended preparation time, the entire avoidance process feels incredibly fluid and never abrupt or jarring.

During the process of merging onto or exiting the ramp, IM Motors' NOA navigation-assisted driving system—specifically its ability to seamlessly guide me into the rightmost lane at the optimal moment—has been particularly impressive. Currently, the industry standard typically involves merging early, around 1–2 kilometers before the exit. However, since the rightmost lane is often occupied by large trucks, this not only compromises safety but also negatively impacts overall traffic efficiency (as shown in the image, merging begins when the vehicle is 745 meters away from the ramp).

The NOA navigation assistance system on the Zhiji Expressway has been optimized in this area, reducing the average merging time between left and right lanes from the current industry average of 1-2 kilometers to an average of 0.8-1.6 kilometers. This upgrade significantly improves traffic efficiency. Our tests showed that on clear roads, vehicles generally merged within less than 1 kilometer, and some even merged within less than 500 meters, significantly improving traffic efficiency.

Finally, we focused on performance on steep curves. During testing, we encountered three or four steep curves without a takeover. Upon exiting the ramp, the vehicle automatically slowed down, maintaining a speed of 40-50 km/h on these curves. Of course, if speed limit signs were present, the vehicle strictly adhered to them. In short, our overall performance surpassed that of most drivers.

Additionally, during cornering, the vehicle will stay as close as possible to the center of the curve. The main purpose of this maneuver is to maximize the driver's sense of safety while navigating the ramp at high speed—a detail that truly deserves recognition.

During this test drive, we not only experienced IM Motors' high-speed elevated-road NOA navigation assist feature but also got a firsthand look at MOS 2.0. As for MOS 2.0, it now comes with three major upgrades: First, when approaching an intersection where a turn is required, the vehicle will visually alert the driver of the upcoming maneuver by adding dynamic light effects on the instrument panel.

The light effect sweeps across the top of the screen—turning left causes a glowing bar to appear on the right side, sliding horizontally to the left, while turning right triggers the same effect moving in the opposite direction. Practical testing has shown that, when navigation is set to silent mode, this visual cue effectively alerts drivers to upcoming left or right turns.

Additionally, a blind-spot reminder feature has been added. The IM LS7 is equipped with blind-spot monitoring, with indicator lights located on the exterior rearview mirrors. When a vehicle enters your blind spot, the corresponding light will illuminate. In MOS 2.0, this functionality has also been integrated into the in-car display. Now, when you activate the left or right turn signal, if the system determines that changing lanes at that moment would be unsafe, it will flash a red warning light along the edge of the screen on the responding side—effectively enhancing your driving safety by working in tandem with the blind-spot monitoring system. Moreover, in the future, the system may even display real-time images of the A-pillar blind spots on the left and right sides of the screen, showing potential hazards such as pedestrians that could compromise your driving safety.

Additionally, MOS 2.0 introduces an enhanced team-up feature. Compared to the previous version, the new update allows for seamless voice communication at any time—so even if you're listening to music in your car, the system will automatically filter out the audio from the speakers when relaying your message to teammates. This ensures that your teammates only hear the voices of other passengers inside the vehicle, making sure music playback doesn’t interfere with your conversation. Moreover, navigation prompts will now be delivered through the driver’s headrest speaker system, ensuring you stay focused on your route without any distractions.

That concludes the projects we’ve explored in this experience. Now, let’s summarize IM Motors’ NOA system for high-speed elevated highways: First and foremost, drivers will immediately notice its smooth, seamless performance. Combined with crisp, precise maneuvers—and backed by its impressive ability to handle merging vehicles effectively, as well as its expertly calibrated approach to navigating ramp curves—the system delivers a strong sense of safety, reliability, and usability. Overall, it’s a highly functional and intuitive NOA solution tailored specifically for high-speed elevated roads. According to our plans, the full rollout to users will begin at the end of April. If you’re an IM Motors owner, you’ll soon be able to upgrade and start experiencing it firsthand. As for MOS 2.0, while the overall changes aren’t dramatic, the new features introduced are truly intriguing—and they also significantly enhance our driving safety. We’re already looking forward to what’s next! Meanwhile, IM Motors’ MOS platform has already undergone rapid, iterative updates over multiple versions, and we anticipate that MOS 2.0 will soon make its official debut as well.

Translated from Sina Auto

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