Driverless Cars Are Here.

[foxy lady]

Is that the same as in that Youtube link I posted with the sleeping driver?

 

I've certainly seen the same as that on the M1 in recent times, in metallic burgundy.

 

 

Tesla claim that the cars will be FULLY autonomous in 2 years. That means that in 2 years the cars will drive themselves, park themselves etc. Current models can park where a driver tells it to park, drive in lanes and follow urban streets.

Edited June 15, 2016 by foxy lady

[PeteMorris]

 

Tesla claim that the cars will be FULLY autonomous in 2 years. That means that in 2 years the cars will drive themselves, park themselves etc. Current models can park where a driver tells it to park, drive in lanes and follow urban streets.

 

I just wonder how the insurance will work?...

 

As a 'for instance', when electric scooters first came out, I was on the brink of buying one, and it occurred to me to check how much it would be to insure.

 

The first issue was, they didn't have any 'history' of that type of vehicle. Next was that being 'silent' it was considered a hazard because people couldn't hear your approach. Not much different from a push bike I wouldn't have thought! Crucially, I couldn't find an insurer that actually offered any kind of policy. So needless to say, I didn't go ahead with the purchase.

 

I would imagine it's even more of a minefield with driverless cars. My view is that they'll only be completely 'safe' when there's no human drivers on the road.

[Cyclone]

Tesla P90D £89435 and equivalent of 762bhp. You can buy one today if you like.

 

Impressive stuff.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2016/02/01/what-it-feels-like-to-drive-a-tesla-on-autopilot/

 

But it's not programme destination and wait until you arrive, not quite.

 

---------- Post added 15-06-2016 at 15:14 ----------

 

I just wonder how the insurance will work?...

 

As a 'for instance', when electric scooters first came out, I was on the brink of buying one, and it occurred to me to check how much it would be to insure.

 

The first issue was, they didn't have any 'history' of that type of vehicle. Next was that being 'silent' it was considered a hazard because people couldn't hear your approach. Not much different from a push bike I wouldn't have thought! Crucially, I couldn't find an insurer that actually offered any kind of policy. So needless to say, I didn't go ahead with the purchase.

 

I would imagine it's even more of a minefield with driverless cars. My view is that they'll only be completely 'safe' when there's no human drivers on the road.

 

In theory the driverless car should be cheaper to insure than the driven one. It won't be frustrated or tired, it won't have a lapse of attention or speed. It won't try to impress anyone or be distracted by the phone.

So from the point of view of causing damage to a 3rd party, the risk should be greatly reduced.

 

Of course if it's crashed into, it will be an expensive car to repair (at least initially). By the time you can buy a Mondeo with selfDrive though, it will just be an optional extra costing a bit more, and the car will cost the same to repair as any other Mondeo.

[L00b]

Next was that being 'silent' it was considered a hazard because people couldn't hear your approach. Not much different from a push bike I wouldn't have thought!

Well, speaking from experience, (a) I can vouch for that one and (b) inform you that the main difference between a push bike (electric or conventional) and an EV moped, is weight (and it's a non-trivial difference) and therefore braking distance, which goes to the heart of the issue for the rider and an insurer's point of view.

 

The EV moped I had was identical to your run-of-the-mill Peugeot or Honda 50cc petrol scooter, but was even heavier than those because the batteries were lead acid (still at that time) and taking up most of the body underneath the saddle. I'd have said it weighed nearly as much as the 125cc petrol scooter I replaced it with. Certainly felt as heavy, and definitely had a longer braking distance.

 

An EV moped is just about as silent as a push bike (more road/tyre noise, and perhaps electric whine at high speed, but in an urban environment, effectively 'silent' against ambient bustling city noise), but weighs conservatively 5 times as much or more, and so takes a far longer distance to stop, even in an emergency.

 

People who cross the road without looking (and I've experienced people who cross the road even when they have seen you, looks to me like a eye/brain disconnect due to no accompanying sound stimulus), with a push bike you might avoid or emergency stop in time - same circumstances with an EV moped and it's a "bang". And I'm not mentioning bozos who amble around with earpieces and headphones.

 

That's precisely why many modern hybrid/EV cars are configured with a two-tone horn ('beep, I'm here' / 'paaaaaap, f off').

 

Then again, there have been full EV cars on UK roads for a while now (e.g. Renault Zoe), and I imagine a substantial number of hybrids that will be near-silent when on electric, so insurers should have at least some risk and quoting models.

Edited June 15, 2016 by L00b

[Anna B]

Not just driverless cars. I understand Google (or was it Amazon,) have already got a prototype flying car, based on a drone design.

[PeteMorris]

Impressive stuff.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2016/02/01/what-it-feels-like-to-drive-a-tesla-on-autopilot/

 

But it's not programme destination and wait until you arrive, not quite.

 

---------- Post added 15-06-2016 at 15:14 ----------

 

 

In theory the driverless car should be cheaper to insure than the driven one. It won't be frustrated or tired, it won't have a lapse of attention or speed. It won't try to impress anyone or be distracted by the phone.

So from the point of view of causing damage to a 3rd party, the risk should be greatly reduced.

 

Of course if it's crashed into, it will be an expensive car to repair (at least initially). By the time you can buy a Mondeo with selfDrive though, it will just be an optional extra costing a bit more, and the car will cost the same to repair as any other Mondeo.

 

But they won't have any 'data' to base the premiums on. Also until they remove the numpties from the road (us humans), they simply won't be safe.

[tzijlstra]

Not just driverless cars. I understand Google (or was it Amazon,) have already got a prototype flying car, based on a drone design.

 

It is Amazon and it is nothing like a flying car, it is a drone that can do deliveries.

 

They have been investigating getting something that can lift up to 20 KG I believe, but I can't find the article that I read that in.

 

Bring it on, THE JETSONS!

[Cyclone]

But they won't have any 'data' to base the premiums on. Also until they remove the numpties from the road (us humans), they simply won't be safe.

 

if the cars can react better than a driver, then they will be safer than any human driven car. But they still can't stop someone else crashing into them obviously.

 

Just reading further through the article about the Telsa.

 

And if the computer senses it is out of its depth, it will sound an alarm and flash a “Take over immediately!” warning.

 

That happened to me twice. And nothing makes your heart beat faster.

 

So for the moment you might as well still be driving it!

[foxy lady]

Not just driverless cars. I understand Google (or was it Amazon,) have already got a prototype flying car, based on a drone design.

 

http://newlaunches.com/archives/1954-taylor-aerocar-n-101d-flying-car-up-for-grabs-at-1-25-million.php

[Tomm06]

I think the Mercedes system requires the driver to grip the steering wheel, something like every 10 seconds which would be completely pointless, you may as well just steer yourself.

 

The Tesla one seems to work really well but I believe it needs very well painted road markings to ensure it stays in its lane, which could very easily be an issue over here anyway.