A vehicle includes a first laser module configured to emit a first light beam and project a first dot onto a preceding vehicle, a second laser module configured to emit a second light beam and project a second dot onto the preceding vehicle, a camera configured to generate a digital image of the first and second dots projected onto the preceding vehicle, and a controller configured to determine, from the digital image, a width between the first and second dots, and subsequently determine a following distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle based on linear interpolation using the determined width.