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Funny thing is, we have two cars- my full size GMC Sierra pickup, and (gasp) a Tesla Model 3! I know, everyone here hates them, but in all seriousness, they are very good cars. FYI that the 'self driving' is currently not truely self driving- meaning you cant sit there on your laptop or eat a bowl of cereal- when in autopilot or self driving mode, the car monitors you for alertness. If you dont have your eyes facing ahead, or dont have your hands on the steering wheel, it will warn you, then will disengage the self driving, and not allow you to re-engage it until you have stopped. Too many of these, and you actually lose the ability to engage autopilot for a period of time.

One safety feature I really like about this, is if you have a medical emergency while driving. Currently, with a manual car, if you suddenly pass out due to a medical emergency, you pretty much crash at full speed, with potentially horrific results- ask me how I know as I spent 10 years as a Firefighter/Emt. With the Tesla, while it is monitoring you while it is self driving, if you are not paying attention, which includes if you have your eyes closed and are say passed out, it will warn you, then eventually slow down and stop the car, all while keeping you in the proper lane, and will turn on the flashers. WAY better than just careening forward with a manual car.

Sure we can blast electric cars all we want, but there are serious benefits. And Unfortunatly many of these most vocal have never experienced one and dont understand the tech and safety features.

Anyone who wants to go for a ride with me, hit me up! ;-) BTW the Tesla is BY FAR the fastest car I have ever owned- and i have had corvettes, Audis, Caddilac ats, motorcycles etc. It is insane how fast these things accelerate . . .
As far as the guy eating, even worse if he was doing it on just CC. I think the true balance of EVs is in distance/time. Around town or commuting they could be perfect. I even considered one once.

Actually, I posted before that I only saw 3 American cars on my last trip to Europe. I forgot about the Teslas. There were many. I don't know if they are exempt from any tariffs, but the people didn't seem to care either way. I was thinking Ford, Chevy, etc.
 
Sure we can blast electric cars all we want, but there are serious benefits. And Unfortunatly many of these most vocal have never experienced one and dont understand the tech and safety features.
How often will a person need to find a, hopefully functioning, charging station on a road trip in near/sub freezing temps?
 
Not only that, but common for me to hit those flashers when I have to slow down unexpectedly. Freeway, in traffic..... It's the ash-holes not paying attention BEHIND you that will get you, in those circumstances.
Almost every time that is the phone. Often when weather is like that you still see those next to you driving while looking at the damn phone. A LOT of vehicles now have the warning systems to try to wake them up for just this reason. Those who don't have this? They just plow into the back of people and then start to blame everyone else. :s0092:
 
How often will a person need to find a, hopefully functioning, charging station on a road trip in near/sub freezing temps?
That is one of the reasons we have both a full size truck and a Tesla. There are times where driving one is better than the other. Having said that, dont know where you are in Oregon, but 3 years ago when we had the insane ice storm here in the greater Salem area, our area was without power for literally weeks. That included the gas stations- both in that they could not pump gas, and that the gas deliveries could not get through, many ran out of gas very quickly, and that also included propane.

Agreed that for most people, not having electricity means no way to charge your electric car. Except that we had thought of that prior, and have installed a solar panel array, with a battery bank/back up system. Not only did we have plenty of electricity to live comfortably until the power company rebuilt the power lines/grid, but with solar panels being able to create energy to 'fill' our electric cars 'gas tank' we were literally 'creating gas', so to speak. Compare that to gasoline combustion cars- you cant create gasoline, only rely on it being brought to you, and the grid being there to supply it to you.

I realize I may be an extreme case, and most people dont have that level of prep in place, we are very fortunate, but it has been very effective. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions regarding the set up and what works/what doesnt, as I did a ton of research before we bought both our solar panel/battery system, and the Tesla.
 
Currently, with a manual car, if you suddenly pass out due to a medical emergency, you pretty much crash
I have had this unfortunate experience and survived. It could easily have gone the other way.

Sure we can blast electric cars all we want, but there are serious benefits.
The situation is that adoption by the masses in the US isn't there yet. Elon Musk turned his product into a luxury vehicle instead of pursuing mass adoption. Now we are into an inflationary era where vehicles of all types have gotten expensive. It's being left to the Chinese to pursue mass marketing and so far, our government won't allow that to happen here. Our pols don't want Chinese commerce to further hollow out our labor force.
 
I'm a driver and a racer. I do not want my car doing things for me. I've spent about 50 years doing all kinds of stupid crap in cars and trucks (murdercycles, too) and have a damn good idea what I'm doing.
However, the antilock brakes and stability control are part of the reasons I picked the truck that my wife drives. She didn't have it three months before we had an ice storm and she was able to avoid an accident as it was happening in front of her on the downhill slant of the Abernathy Bridge on 205. She called me in tears and said. "I love my truck." This technology does have it's place.

If the supposedly smart car can't sense the lanes, how the hell can it pilot the car? I almost think it would be fun to rent one, with all of the insurance available, just to see how stupid it would be in an ice or snow storm.
 
How are those self drivers gonna find the lines in this?

No way would I trust a computer to drive in this.

There is very few humans I trust to be on the road with me in this….

IMG_3936.jpeg
 
I cant speak for other cars with self driving ability, but for the Tesla Model 3, it drives manually like a normal car, meaning with you in full control. You as the driver then have the option to turn on/activate Auto Pilot/Full self driving. When turned on, as mentioned, the car monitors you to make sure you are still actively alert and paying attention, and will shut down autopilot if you are not. It also has many cameras, as well as our Tesla has Ultrasonic/Radar, which senses all objects, rendering a full 3d image 365degrees all around you. It is accurate to the inch- will tell you as you are pulling in to your parking spot exactly how many inches you are away from an object, such as a curb/wall.

If any of these features have trouble seeing/sensing everything that is needed to self drive, it deactivates and you are not able to use autopilot until the conditions improve. This happens when the rain is too hard, when snow is covering the ground, when there are no lines or the road is very rough. The car alerts you, and has you take over control, or it will deactivate and stop the car. It is honestly pretty incredible technology.

As mentioned, I was a Firefighter/EMT for many years, and have responded to COUNTLESS wrecks, where humans made errors that cause crashes, people driving distracted, inebriated/impared, or in conditions that they should not have been driving. The humans scare me far more then some technology in a car that I fully control and can choose when I want it to turn on and off. I have driven all manner of vehicles from heavy construction/paving equipment, very large fire apparatus, high end sports cars and motorcycles. It is SUPER nice, when heading up to work in the morning up I-5 from Salem to PDX, to turn on auto pilot, and let the car keep me in my lane, as well as speed up/slow down for stop/go traffic. It is a LIFESAVER in traffic.

My point in all of this, is please educate yourself on how this 'newfangled' tech works, it is pretty incredible. Some of my family visited from North Dakota last month. Farmer/ranchers, very anti electric or self driving cars. After taking them out for rides and showing them the technology, two of them returned home and bought Teslas. LOL!
 
My point in all of this, is please educate yourself on how this 'newfangled' tech works, it is pretty incredible. Some of my family visited from North Dakota last month. Farmer/ranchers, very anti electric or self driving cars. After taking them out for rides and showing them the technology, two of them returned home and bought Teslas. LOL!
No thanks. I like driving. I trust me, not what the voices tell me I should trust. That doesn't mean your way isn't a good way to get around. For you.
 
THIS: "I do not want my car doing things for me."

...and, I wouldn't accept a free (spontaneous combustion) ev vehicle of any make of model...maybe someday they'll get far get to be far higher quality than they are now, but they're not there yet, by a long stretch...

I've seen a number of Tesla truck videos where they're having to be pulled out of the sand or snow by a fossil fuel real truck...
 
Wait until one encounters black ice.
I actually experienced hitting black ice with adaptive cruise control and lane centering on at 70 mph just recently.

Truck started going sideways, traction control kicked on and lane centering corrected it. Hands calmly off wheel actually. Don't let that change any encouragement for technology advances though, we can stay in the stone ages.
 
My point in all of this, is please educate yourself on how this 'newfangled' tech works, it is pretty incredible.
That's actually a fairly condescending statement. I've been in the automotive field for over 40 years and have kept myself up to date with the technology. Like I'd mentioned I appreciate if for my wife because while she driven for quite a while, she's not been one to push the boundaries, which is where we learn. That technology is pretty incredible, but nothing I want for myself.

For years I've said, "Smart cars make for stupid (or poor if you prefer the term) drivers."

I've nothing against electric cars. But the price, coupled with the restrictions do not appeal to me, with the possible exception for an in city commuter. That's the wonderful thing about having choices. You do you. I'll do me.
 
For years I've said, "Smart cars make for stupid (or poor if you prefer the term) drivers."
I have seen this first hand. I have been around the trucking industry for 40 years and every gadget that makes driving easier makes some drivers lazy. If you don't have to do something you forget how to do it when the time comes that the technology fails.

As examples for car drivers.....back up cameras and lights to indicate if a car is beside you. These are great technologies but you still have to look over your shoulder and check behind and beside you. Older drivers who never had the technology will use it to enhance their driving and not rely on the technology solely. New drivers that learn with the technology will only use the camera or look for the light and will not look over their shoulder or check to their sides when backing. I have seen drivers clip the car next to them ,while backing, several times while looking at the camera.

I know of several young drivers that rely 100% on those technologies. One even routinely lets the car brake for him just for fun and being lazy. I see it all the time in drivers when they rely on those lights to tell them if a car is beside them when merging onto the freeway. I will see another car merging to the right into that same lane as well and they both get startled because one or both relied solely on the light and not checking mirrors and looking over their shoulders to see if anyone is merging also.

The technology is a great feature but should never be relied on 100%. I have a car with those features and I ignore them all. In 20,000 miles I have never had the car brake for me and never had it adjust my lane position....because I am driving the car not the other way around.
 
For years I've said, "Smart cars make for stupid (or poor if you prefer the term) drivers."
Amen brother. While I appreciate what the technology can do, I can also appreciate how things could still go terribly wrong.

A licensed drivers should have a full and complete command of the vehicle they're driving as well as the skill set to handle adverse weather or driving conditions.

Unfortunately the State of Oregon only requires a very minor subset of skills to obtain a drivers license…
 
For years I've said, "Smart cars make for stupid (or poor if you prefer the term) drivers."
Human nature......and it's not just cars! It is obvious that people are dumbing down. Closer and closer to "The Year 2525".
 

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