Why self driving cars will eventually be banned

[Chock 17,769]

18 minutes ago, martin-w said:

A computerized car doesn’t get distracted, talk or text on a cell phone...

Well if that's true, how is it doing this then...

19 minutes ago, martin-w said:

Autonomous cars communicating with one another...

Personally, I'm not happy with the idea of my Ford Cyberdyne sending videos of cute kittens to the Dodge Skynet alongside it on the motorway as it goes along at 70 mph, or updating its Facetube status etc, in an attempt to impress some flashy sports model in the adjacent lane. 🤣

[honanhal 1,420]

50 minutes ago, Matthew Kane said:

This is the #1 reason why I will never be interested on a Self Driving Car, because I prefer to live in places like this:

The irony is that this is actually probably one of the easiest environments for a self-driving car! Wide, clearly-marked lanes, long stretches with no cross-streets, little traffic, no pedestrians.

Personally, I'm skeptical that the technology will be able to cope with even moderately dense urban driving environments in the next 20 years. Anyone who's ever driven in that setting knows that even as a human, you end up with sensory overload. There's just so much going on with moving cars, pedestrians, bikes, pets, you name it -- not to mention confusing traffic rules that change depending on the time of day...

James

[martin-w 3,238]

Distraction isn't relevent when communicating with other vehicles. Its desighned to do it. No diferent to you driving with a passenger. You concentrate on the road and the passenger posts your naked pictures on a porn site for you.

In the same way, two diferent sub systems handle comms and driving.

 

 

[martin-w 3,238]

6 minutes ago, honanhal said:

Anyone who's ever driven in that setting knows that even as a human, you end up with sensory overload. There's just so much going on with moving cars, pedestrians, bikes, pets, you name it -- not to mention confusing traffic rules that change depending on the time of day...

James

 

Automated systems have capabilites humans dont. The chaos of the rush hour might be an issue for me and you, but not for an electronic system designed to do it.

Tesla's system already does handle moderately dense urban environments so I believe. Perhaps those in this thread that own them can confirm.

Edited December 22, 2020 by martin-w

[Luis Hernandez 570]

5 hours ago, martin-w said:

the systems on board monitoring your driving, ready to intervene if you are about to kill yourself or others.

Why does it sound like the typical Airbus vs Boeing discussion?

5 hours ago, Matthew Kane said:

This is the #1 reason why I will never be interested on a Self Driving Car, because I prefer to live in places like this:

I love it. Give me tighter curves, deeper elevation changes, and rougher pavement, and you'll see my typical roadtrip. Hint: we use these roads I describe for the WRC in Argentina.

 

Edited December 22, 2020 by Luis Hernandez

[birdguy 3,943]

Martin, your picture reminds me of California State Highway 1.  On some of our motor trips to California we used to stay overnight at Cambria and then drive it all the way up to Monterey.  And I became intimately familiar with the Northern section of it when we lived in Marin County.  Driving up the hill to Mt. Tamalpais and down to Stinson Beach and the up the coast almost to Eureka.  As beautiful as the Blue Ridge Parkway in the Appalachians and the Natchez Traceway in the south.  These roads are meant for driving, not mind wandering while the car drives itself.

When I drive in my mind I see the engine working.  I imagine the pistons going up and down and the valves opening and closing.  The suck, squeeze, bang, blow of an internal combustion engine as opposed to the silent whine of an electric motor which is all I'm going to hear when I step into my driverless car and say, "Take me to Safeway".

You see, I had the advantage of cutting my teeth on the old cars before they became so complicated you couldn't work on them yourself.  Before computers were introduced to motor vehicles.

Many of us had tool boxes with wrenches and screwdrivers pliers and spend an entire Saturday afternoon installing a carburetor kit and new points and sometimes even new plugs.  Adjusting the carburetor float, gapping the plugs and setting the timing with a timing light.

Half of you probably don't know what I'm talking about.  But Sue does.  I'll bet she loved motors.  She once e-mailed me a picture of her tool box.  It was taller than she was.

Our tools were prized possessions.  We took better care of them than we did our teeth.

Before the pandemic when Betty and I would drive up into the Sacramento Mountains 70 miles east of us to do our hiking I left the Prius home and drove her Corolla because it has a tach on the dashboard.  And even though it has an automatic transmission I like to look at it.

In the old days many of us had an after market tach installed.

How many of you here have ever driven 'four on the floor'?  How many of you know what a clutch is?

What I wouldn't give for an MG TC or an Austin Healy today.

Self driving cars?  Bah Humbug!  Just making our lives a bit more sterile.  To put it simply driving is fun.

It won't be long before breakfast, lunch and dinner will be pills we take.  It will be healthier they will tell us and solve the world hunger problem.  In the name of progress we will miss a breakfast of poached eggs on toast with a couple strips of bacon, a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch, and rare roast beef with baked potatoes and gravy for dinner.

Noel

Edited December 22, 2020 by birdguy

[Luke 782]

7 minutes ago, birdguy said:

What I wouldn't give for an MG TC or an Austin Healy today.

I've seen more than a few MGs during my youth, my neighbor even had a Jaguar E-Type. Oddly enough I've never seen any of them running - given the love people have for them you would think that they would start them up and drive them. 😄

FWIW, I have a very nice 2008 with a six-speed manual and Japanese engineering.

Cheers!

Edited December 22, 2020 by Luke

[martin-w 3,238]

5 minutes ago, birdguy said:

Martin, your picture reminds me of California State Highway 1.  On some of our motor trips to California we used to stay overnight at Cambria and then drive it all the way up to Monterey.  And I became intimately familiar with the Northern section of it when we lived in Marin County.  Driving up the hill to Mt. Tamalpais and down to Stinson Beach and the up the coast almost to Eureka.  As beautiful as the Blue Ridge Parkway in the Appalachians and the Natchez Traceway in the south. 

 

Noel

 

Not Mine Noel. It was from Mathew. 🙂 

 

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These roads are meant for driving, not mind wandering while the car drives itself.

 

And our enthusiastic driver in his autonomous car will switch to manual mode then. And enjoy driving while the systems monitor his driving and keep him safe, win, win, situation for everybody. 👍 Once again Martin W has saved the universe.

 

 

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The Galactic Foundation has removed this bit.

 

 

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You see, I had the advantage of cutting my teeth on the old cars before they became so complicated you couldn't work on them yourself.  Before computers were introduced to motor vehicles.

 

You still can work on them yourself Noel, many do. And quite a few are working on their own Tesla's too. Check out Rich Rebuilds. Great YouTube channel. He buys salvaged Tesla's and refurbishes them. 

 

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Many of us had tool boxes with wrenches and screwdrivers and spend an entire afternoon installing a carburetor kit and new points and sometimes even new plugs.  Adjusting the carburetor float, gapping the plugs and setting the timing with a timing light.

Half of you probably don't know what I'm talking about.  But Sue does.  I'll bet she loved motors.  She once e-mailed me a picture of her tool box.  It was taller than she was.

Our tools were prized possessions.  We took better care of them than we did our teeth.

 

 

I'm 62 Noel. Bought my first car at 24. AS soon as I bought it I was working on it, cam belts, brakes, the lot. So yes, I for one know exactly what you're talking about. Those days haven't gone away. Yes there's more electronics now but the mechanical bits haven't vanished. 

 

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How many of you here have ever driven 'four on the floor'?  How many of you know what a clutch is?

 

90% of us in the UK. 😁

 

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Self driving cars?  Bah Humbug!  Just making our lives a bit more sterile.  To put it simply driving is fun

 

Garghhhhh! Cars that currently have a self drive mode also have a manual mode. Manual mode isn't going away even when the self drive technology is more sophisticated you guys are moaning about nothing.

[birdguy 3,943]

But how soon will it be before the manual mode disappears in the name of safety?

I open the hood on my car and it is so packed with stuff that I would have to get underneath it to change out the plugs.  But I guess with the ignition systems they have today changing plugs points (if there are any) I not necessary.

Perhaps the reason some people don't drive their MGs and Jags is because they can't pass emission inspections.  We don't have such inspections in New Mexico so send one my way.

About British cars.  Years ago there was an old saying that the reason the Brits didn't produce computers is because they didn't know how to make them leak oil.

Sorry Martin, I hereby attribute it to Matthew.

Noel

 

[Luis Hernandez 570]

1 hour ago, birdguy said:

How many of you here have ever driven 'four on the floor'?  How many of you know what a clutch is?

I'm just 35, and at least 95% of the cars I've ever driven are manual. Mine (a 2017 Citroën C3) is no exception.

In the US (and maybe Venezuela during the good times), manual transmissions are rare, but not here.

[Luke 782]

1 hour ago, birdguy said:

Perhaps the reason some people don't drive their MGs and Jags is because they can't pass emission inspections.

This has been a pattern I have noticed prior to emissions testing, but you are correct in observing that you can't pass emissions if the car does not start. 😄

Cheers!

[martin-w 3,238]

4 hours ago, birdguy said:

But how soon will it be before the manual mode disappears in the name of safety?

Noel

 

 

Who knows. Very long time probably. If at all. If the automatics can monitor your manual mode and get you out of trouble, I see no reason manual mode would be prohibited.

 

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I open the hood on my car and it is so packed with stuff that I would have to get underneath it to change out the plugs.  But I guess with the ignition systems they have today changing plugs points (if there are any) I not necessary.

 

Nope, plugs are still changed, just like they always have been. It's still an internal combustion engine, just like in the past, despite the electronic gizmo's bolted on. Still the same old archaic technology. 

 

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About British cars.  Years ago there was an old saying that the reason the Brits didn't produce computers is because they didn't know how to make them leak oil.

 

And suffer 1000 faults the first year and go rusty.

 

 

Edited December 22, 2020 by martin-w

[martin-w 3,238]

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Ah, Jags of Blackpool now relocated to Birmingham 

 

I recall it was way back in the 1920's that Jaguar were based in Blackpool. They then moved to Coventry. Castle Bromwich now in Birmingham, the plant.  Headquarters is in Coventry still I think. Tata Motors own them now. 

[F737MAX 5,612]

4 hours ago, birdguy said:

the reason the Brits didn't produce computers

Sorry, what?

https://www.zdnet.com/article/introducing-the-arm-processor-again-what-you-should-know-about-it-now/

https://arstechnica.com/features/2020/12/how-an-obscure-british-pc-maker-invented-arm-and-changed-the-world/

Computers:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinclair_Research#Commercial_success_and_home_computers

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acorn_Computers

[Rogen 1,092]

I see liability being an issue.

What about a machine needing to choose to either A run down a group of pedestrians - or B swerving and running into another group of pedestrians also potentially killing or injuring, given a choice of only A or B.

Plus there is insurance to take into account, most insurance companies are just like "Insuricare" and will look for anyway to minimise a claim or deny liablity.