Thanks everyone for your interest and posts. It was great meeting so many people at NSXPO.
The Stage 2 system can be manually operated up and down and it also can be "semi-automatically" operated. Semi-automatic means: the driver manually raises the car by tapping a botton and the iLIFT(R) System will automatically lower itself when you drive away from the obstacle and reach the target speed (i.e. 25 mph) that you set. The Stage 2 semi-automatic systems do not have any sensors.
The Stage 3 Fully Automatic systems do have sensors and can be operated manually or automatically as the driver chooses.
All iLIFT(R) Systems can use the cruise control buttons on the OEM steering wheel. This eliminates the need to install aftermarket switches to manually control the iLIFT. For cars without available OEM cruise control buttons, a separate double throw rocker switch is provided.
The Stage 2 and Stage 3 systems are ready for sale. We had originally planned on offering a lower performance Stage 1 system at a lower cost. The ECU for the Stage 1 system is not completely developed.
Due to the surprisingly strong response we received at NSXPO for the Stage 2 and 3 systems, we have decided to concentrate our focus on getting the Stage 2 and 3 systems to customers. Many people commented that the features of the Stage 2 and 3 systems are so much superior that we should not sell an inferior Stage 1 system.
The Stage 2 and 3 systems have a much more powerful and sophisticated ECU and MANY more valuable features. This increases the efficiency of the system and allows the use of smaller components (i.e. air tanks) than is possible in a less sophisticated system.
For example, the Stage 2 and 3 systems have a sophisticated (patent pending) proprietary iLIFT(R) filtration system that eliminates contaminants and moisture (condensation) in the air systems. The Stage 2 and 3 systems are highly configurable to be customized to the specific vehicle and the driver's preferences.
The Stage 1 system that we planned did NOT include the patent pending filtration system to eliminate condensation from the air system and would require users to periodically drain the condensation from the air tank like other conventional systems. After explaining and demonstrating the features and benefits of the more sophisticated stage 2 and 3 systems, the overwhelming majority of people at NSXPO felt that the benefists far outweighed the savings of a stripped down version of the lift system.