BMW sees China as dominant market for driverless cars

But, to make such cars part of people's everyday life, it is imperative to make the advanced technology affordable. It is a challenge that motivates Mance.

"HAD cars need all kinds of sensors. These laser scanners would cost nearly 60,000 euros ($65,600), which is almost the price of a car now. So for the next stage of our research, we want to focus on reducing the cost of these lasers and scanners," he said.

Tech-savvy companies, including Google Inc and Tesla Motors Inc, are racing to launch their own driverless cars, but Mance said BMW has no fear of the competition.

He said no matter how advanced off-board intelligence gets, the core functions of car are always going to remain in the hands of carmakers.

"A highly automated car may recognize a pedestrian standing on the side of the street, but a human driver can know which direction the pedestrian is going by making eye contact," he said.

For him, highly automated driving technology can free drivers from steering wheels in certain conditions, such as traffic jams, but the steering wheel will be needed to allow the engagement of humans for a long time.

Many of BMW rivals also announced ambitious plans to have their self-driving cars on road in another three to five years, but Mance has no such timeframe for the introduction of cars with full HAD technology.

Several things need to be sorted out first, like a legal framework that accepts the new technology. "What we always say is that the technology is, or will be, available earlier than the legal framework allows making such technology available to consumers," he said.