The idea of driverless cars has been around for a long time, but it hasn’t been until recently that things have begun to get really serious. Just last year Audi was approved to run its driverless A7 named “Jack” on the public roads in Nevada and California. And just a few days ago, the Ford CEO, Mark Fields, predicted that fully driverless cars should be legal within the next five years. But you won’t see any from Ford that quickly, as they are not one of the leaders of the movement. Who is? Audi for one.
We know what a soul sucking experience the drive from Nevada to California can be, so an automated Audi A7 sounds like a good idea. Jack is authorized to run up to 70 mph on the freeway. However, it is not completely autonomous, as a human does need to be at the helm in case of an emergency. And once the car gets into the city, its controls must also be relinquished, as it has not been completely approved for handling the busy intersections of the typical urban setting.
Google envisions a driverless car that does not fit into your garage, but is rather more of an on-call chauffeur whenever you need one. You just call it up on your phone, and one will drop by to pick you up.
Just imagine: You can take a trip downtown at lunchtime without a 20-minute buffer to find parking. Seniors can keep their freedom even if they can’t keep their car keys. And drunk and distracted driving? History.
One problem for the more rural dwellers is that the initial Google car tops out at 25 mph for safety reasons. And when I mention safety, I am talking about the fact that the Google prototype does not come with a backup plan (a.k.a. steering wheel). However, Google constantly reminds us that this is only a prototype, so the final product could offer a much more speedier and stylish (less toyish) experience.
Speaking of stylish, Mercedes has designed what we would consider more of a gentleman’s driverless luxury car. It is called the F015 Luxury in Motion. It features swivel chairs for all passengers, so that you can hold a face-to-face meeting while in route to your destination.
But unlike the Google car, the Mercedes does offer the option to take over the drivers seat on command. In other words, this one does come with a steering wheel, and rightly so, as a car this funky beautiful deserves to be driven the old fashioned way.
