The Volkswagen Touareg that was crowned as the first DARPA Grand Challenge winner in 2005 (the first challenge was in 2004, but no winners were crowned) is making a grand tour that will eventually lead the fully autonomous vehicle to the top dog of museums, the Smithsonian. The Touareg was nicknamed "Stanley" since it's so much easier to pronounce.
Stanley was developed by Stanford University's School of Engineering with input from Volkswagen, MDV-Mohn Davidow Ventures and Intel. It's completely autonomous, meaning it requires no driver, making its completion of the 132-mile Mojave Desert course in a little less than seven hours at an average speed of 19.1 mph all the more impressive. Technology developed for Stanley has helped advance technologies being used by vehicles today, including adaptive cruise control and electronic stabilization.
[Gizmag]