British researchers on the road to an affordable self-driving car At the moment, the complete system costs around £5,000 - but Prof Newman believes that future models will bring the price of the technology down to as low as £100. Simple self-driving tasks, such as cars that can park themselves, are already in use across the industry. The aim is to produce a fully-autonomous vehicle that is safe and affordable. Google has been testing its car for several years, with the company boasting of 300,000 computer-driven miles without an accident. While at an earlier stage of development, Oxford University's car has significant key differences to Google's offering and much cheaper, Prof Newman said. He added: "Our approach is made possible because of advances in 3D laser mapping that enable an affordable car-based robotic system to rapidly build up a detailed picture of its surroundings. Because our cities don't change very quickly, robotic vehicles will know and look out for familiar structures as they pass by so that they can ask a human driver 'I know this route, do you want me to drive?' Prof Newman applauded Google's efforts in innovating in the space - but was buoyant about the role British expertise could have in the industry. This is all UK intellectual property, getting into the [driverless car] race. I would be astounded if we don't see this kind of technology in cars within 15 years.