Vehicle control apparatus and vehicle control method

A vehicle control apparatus applied to a vehicle including a plurality of detection units detecting, in different fashions, an object existing around an own vehicle, and implementing vehicle control for avoiding or mitigating a collision with the object based on detection information from the plurality of detection units, the vehicle control apparatus comprising:

• a first determination unit that determines an occurrence of a detection capability impaired state in which a detection capability for detecting the object is impaired at any of the detection units among the plurality of the detection units based on the detection information from the detection unit or the other detection units;
• a second determination unit that determines whether or not the detection capability impaired state has been eliminated after the first determination unit determines the occurrence of the detection capability impaired state;
• and
• an actuation control unit that shortens an actuation time until implementing the vehicle control for avoiding or mitigating the collision, in comparison with a time when the detection unit detects the object and the detection capability impaired state has not previously occurred, if the object is detected by the detection unit in which the detection capability impaired state has been eliminated within a predetermined time after the second determination unit determines that the detection capability impaired state has been eliminated, and not shortening the actuation time, if the object is not detected by the detection unit in which the detection capability impaired state has been eliminated within the predetermined time after the second determination unit determines that the detection capability impaired state has been eliminated.