A little more than a week ago, I was listening to this program on "On Point" radio on NPR about the future of cars. They had on a couple of people from Car & Driver magazine and the founder of Zip Cars. They talked a bit about hybrids, of which I own one (2014 Ford Fusion hybrid and absolutely love it) but they talked a lot about Elon Musk and autonomous cars. They were duly impressed with Elon Musk and his ability to do what he puts his mind to, although they viewed the Tesla as mainly a rich person's car who wants to show off how environmentally conscious they are. I found the conversation about autonomous cars that I disagreed with most.
The woman who founded Zip Cars felt that autonomous cars were going to be the wave of the future in cities, that they would free up Moms from having to ferry around their kids to multiple places (swim classes, soccer, birthday parties, etc.) but she did concede that the projected proliferation of autonomous cars would mean increased traffic congestion. My biggest problem with autonomous cars is the possibility of having the car hacked. I mean, if banks, large stores and even the Department of Defense can be hacked, what level of security will car manufacturers put into their cars? And truth be told, I can see that if the autonomous car does take off the way she says it may, that drivers will lose the skills that make them good drivers. It takes more than passing a test one time to be a competent and conscientious driver. It takes years of practice, and I fear that with the crash avoidance and parking assist systems available today, that these options are lulling those drivers who depend on them into a false sense of security.
I also found it funny that the one caller who called in who didn't think owning a Prius wouldn't be cost effective in the long run couldn't even pronounce Prius properly! Speaking from personal experience, I spent $32,000 on my Fusion which included an in-dash voice navigation system, full touch screen, moon roof and extended warranty, as well as a $900 trade in. Not only do I get 41+ MPG on average, meaning I routinely get 570 miles and up on a 13.5 gallon gas tank, but my maintenance costs are also half because I only have to change my oil every 7,500 to 10,000 miles, and that all adds up.
Take a listen. It's only an hour long.
http://ift.tt/1umQkl2
Michael
The woman who founded Zip Cars felt that autonomous cars were going to be the wave of the future in cities, that they would free up Moms from having to ferry around their kids to multiple places (swim classes, soccer, birthday parties, etc.) but she did concede that the projected proliferation of autonomous cars would mean increased traffic congestion. My biggest problem with autonomous cars is the possibility of having the car hacked. I mean, if banks, large stores and even the Department of Defense can be hacked, what level of security will car manufacturers put into their cars? And truth be told, I can see that if the autonomous car does take off the way she says it may, that drivers will lose the skills that make them good drivers. It takes more than passing a test one time to be a competent and conscientious driver. It takes years of practice, and I fear that with the crash avoidance and parking assist systems available today, that these options are lulling those drivers who depend on them into a false sense of security.
I also found it funny that the one caller who called in who didn't think owning a Prius wouldn't be cost effective in the long run couldn't even pronounce Prius properly! Speaking from personal experience, I spent $32,000 on my Fusion which included an in-dash voice navigation system, full touch screen, moon roof and extended warranty, as well as a $900 trade in. Not only do I get 41+ MPG on average, meaning I routinely get 570 miles and up on a 13.5 gallon gas tank, but my maintenance costs are also half because I only have to change my oil every 7,500 to 10,000 miles, and that all adds up.
Take a listen. It's only an hour long.
http://ift.tt/1umQkl2
Michael
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