Did the future already get here?

[rubato]

There are some things which you are aware of almost in the background noise of existence but which you don't pay a lot of close and direct attention to. One of them for me has been the development of 'driverless cars'. Five years ago plus they seemed a very futuristic notion and involved some very slow-moving vehicles only used on closed courses away from other cars. Almost overnight companies have lobbied for legislative action to get them legalized on public roads where they were already being demonstrated. And the development has been shifted from university-centered groups to business-centered groups. It just occurred to me that they might become commercialized products in the near future. Google, a very well-funded company with limitless ambition has had a very active program for several years now.

So when do you think the first driverless car will be offered for sale? At what price would it be attractive to you to buy one? What do you predict will be the asking price? Would you be less likely to use it on high speed freeways than on city streets?

My guess is that one will be for sale in 5 years or less. For $65,000. I don't think I would be interested for more than $45,000 and I would only use it around town at least at first. I'm also guessing that they will be all-electric.

I'm further guessing that the manufacturer will partially allay people's fears about safety by taking on the liability, or some significant fraction of it, themselves. They will pay for liability insurance or form their own insurance division to do so.

yrs,
rubato

[Sue U]

I would love to have a car I didn't have to drive myself; I could spend travel time much more productively. My big question, though: Once you get to your destination address, how does it know where/how to park?

[Crackpot]

The short answer is you tell it to

[Crackpot]

The long answer might be proprietary so I'm not going to talk about it

[Sue U]

Teaser.

[TPFKA@W]

I read up on these little buggers and for practical purposes they are worthless to me because they can't navigate in rain and snow. They have a ways to go before I will shell out for one.

[Crackpot]

From what I have seen is "true" driverless is a ways off. Because no one wants to be responsible for the liability of mistakes from driverless systems. But "assist" already is and will be covering much broader everyday driver functions.

[Long Run]

Given the onslaught of poor driving led by the many distractions found in a typical car, I can't wait for the assisted driving technology to become more common to reduce the number of brain dead driving maneuvers that I see every day. Unfortunately, the bottom percentile of drivers who most need this technology will likely be the last ones to get it.

[Crackpot]

You sure about that? I can see people getting too distracted to notice all the notifications to pay attention

[Guinevere]

I'm in a pool that gets requested to complete on-line surveys (I get "compensated" in frequent flier miles), and recently completed a survey on the multitude of driver assistance features that are or are coming available. A lot of them sounded more distracting than helpful. The only thing I have seen in action that I'd like on my next vehicle would be a back-up camera. Only because while I can parallel park on a dime, in any size spot (so long as it is, actually, a little bit longer than my Jeep), I seem to be unable to back up in a straight line, no matter how much I try and how carefully or slowly I go.

ETA: Any "assistance" that can't handle weather seems ridiculous, since there is lots of it, in the majority of the country. And it's only going to get more severe over the comings years.

[Crackpot]

Rain it should be able to account for. Large puddles and slick spots is another story.

[Big RR]

I actually enjoy driving and ordinarily don't even like to ride when others are driving (I can do it, but I'd prefer to drive), so I doubt I'd really want a driverless car that would do the driving for me.

[Crackpot]

From what I hear automated parallel parking works like a charm

[Econoline]

Truck drivers, taxi drivers, delivery drivers, etc. are SOOOO fucked.

I hope that at least the factories making these vehicles will be located in the U.S. so all those displaced workers can go to work on the assembly line. Oh, wait....the assembly lines will be automated, too.

I actually enjoy driving and ordinarily don't even like to ride when others are driving (I can do it, but I'd prefer to drive), so I doubt I'd really want a driverless car that would do the driving for me.

I'm with you there, Big RR.

[Joe Guy]

The drone car is coming....

We will eventually see driverless cars with no passengers doing drive-by shootings (with automatic weapons).

And when the police need to pursue a driverless car, they could stay at the donut shop while sending a drone car to do the job.

Very good for the economy.

[rubato]

Driving for a living for most people is a life-shortening, brain deadening job and they are better off not to have to do it. They will just have to join the horse-wranglers all put out of work by tractors and motor vehicles who all found other jobs.

The job we need to do is to make the transition as harmless and painless for them as possible.



yrs,
rubato

[Crackpot]

Never misses a chance to put down those he sees as beneath him does he?

[Lord Jim]

I actually enjoy driving and ordinarily don't even like to ride when others are driving

Kelly loves to drive, but I've never seen it as anything but a chore and a headache; (especially with the traffic jams, lousy drivers, and parking issues in town) I avoid it as much as possible.

I don't mind driving short trips out here in The Outer Sunset, but if I have to go downtown by myself I'll either take the L-Taravel light rail, or drive to Glen Park and take the BART. (And my parallel parking skills are so poor, they are the stuff Youtube videos are made of...)

Open highway driving can be enjoyable for the first hour, but after that I find it to be a tedious, mesmerizing, grind. I'd much rather let somebody else drive while I relax, and read or take in the scenery.

[MajGenl.Meade]

I'd much rather let somebody else drive while I relax, and read or take in the scenery.

There are words you'll never get me to use in any sentence other than this one: "let somebody else drive" and "relax" . Those are mutually exclusive notions!

[Econoline]