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I'll over some rebuttals to your points: Which parts of Texas/Arizona are we talking about? Remember, over 70% of Americans lived in Urbanized Areas (high den

I'll over some rebuttals to your points: Which parts of Texas/Arizona are we talking about? Remember, over 70% of Americans lived in Urbanized Areas (high density metro areas) in 2010, and that number is growing year over year [1]. There is definitely a cultural divide between these areas and more open/spacious areas with respect to cars, but I think it's easy to make the case that for the large majority of Americans (especially those in younger demographics), self-driving cars will be a relief. I'm pretty sure there is a strong generational divide with respect to car love. I can't quite pin down where the split is, but I suspect that somewhere between Gen X and Gen Y, a lot of people stopped having a fondness for their cars in the way that you're expressing. That's not to say there aren't car lovers/gear heads in younger generations, but a lot of younger drivers just don't see cars as major status symbols, or see their own cars as more than commodities. I'm with you on road trips. That's one of the great american vacations, and there are a lot of beautiful things to see from the road. I think what we'll see is services pop up that specifically cater to this market, with unlimited miles and specialized routes/options that let you stop anywhere you want along the way. [1] https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/ua/urban-rural-2010.html https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/ua/urban-rural-2010.htm...

douche 11y ago
They did stop making cars that could be considered in any way stylish or beautiful. It doesn't help that modern cars are almost impossible to work on for anything but trivial repairs, now that they are so complex and computerized. In high school, I drove an old beater of a '85 F150, which was almost completely electro-mechanical. With a little know-how, a high-lift jack, and a basic set of mechanics tools, you could take the entire thing apart to the frame and put it back together. Many modern cars, you can't even change the oil without taking it to a garage with factory certified technicians. My '07 F150, you can't even change the spark plugs without taking half the engine apart, and then you need to have the proprietary computer system to re-calibrate the electronic timing.
- WWLink 11y ago
  My 2015 wrangler seems to use the same torx screw for almost everything there is, and the best part is it came with a nice torx driver wrench with several heads in a little canvas tool kit lol. I think you have to shop around to find cars that are easy to work on, but it's not impossible. On my chrysler 300 the spark plugs are right on top of the engine lol
oneJob 11y ago
Kingsville, Corpus Christi, Austin, TX Tucson, Phoenix, Flagstaff, AZ Regarding the statistic on urbanization, and given that I'm unable to speak to the impact of yet-to-materialize but inevitably arriving self-driving cars, many cities simply require a vehicle. Period. And rural areas require the same, for a completely different reason. Besides, I would consider a self-driving car a vehicle. As opposed to say public transit, bikes, segways, walking, or telepresence/phones. I think you might have missed the point I was driving at. I'm not a gear head or car lover. I've never considered a car as something that impacted my status. And my cars have all been "commodity type" cars, that is, until I made memories with them, which would not have been possible without them. There are already services which rent cars with unlimited miles and unlimited routes. Budget Rent-A-Car. But again, that is a vehicle. I've also bussed across the country and taken the train up the coast of Australia. Not the same thing. A road trip is not a road trip, blanket statement, if it does not allow for deviations in route and schedule, for any reason, or no reason whatsoever. Before the arrival of Tesla, I would have said personal vehicles (self driving or not) were on their way out. But with advances in renewable energy, recyclable/ sustainable materials, and software which allows vehicles to either go their own way on dirt roads or coordinate enormous numbers of distinct vehicles in one super-efficient flow on shared, optimized infrastructure, it's my humble opinion that the personal vehicle has gained a second lease on life. Again, to me it simply boils down to the fact that there are too many pockets of awesome in this world. You can't build public infrastructure which makes them all accessible. That wouldn't make sense economically or ecologically. Philosophically it doesn't even make sense in many scenarios. It might be a pocket of awesome for the very reason that there are no convenient roads to it. And, no matter how many people we can squeeze into concrete jungles, there will always be a human desire to venture out, onto the road. As long as humans maintain their human nature, there will, in short, always be a human need for the personal vehicle to fulfill. And, by the nature of the need being fulfilled, that relationship between person and vehicle will not be mundane. Q.E.D.
- electricEmu 11y ago
  You can take Austin off that list: my friends and I got around fine without any cars. As a 30 something who sold their car years ago and only owns one through marriage:I haven't needed to own one for quite some time. Will I ever rent one if I want to take a road trip? Sure, but I don't have a human need to own one again. For me and the ilk I run with, personal vehicles are definitely on their way out.
MisterBastahrd 11y ago
The Dallas / Fort Worth area is referred to as a "metroplex." The vast majority of that metroplex has no adequate public transit, if "adequate" is to be described as "walkable without turning into a sweaty puddle during the summer time." But hey, if you want to walk 4 miles to reach a bus terminal to prove a point, be my guest. I'll be driving, and so will virtually everyone else in "generation Y." People seek status. Vehicle ownership is a status symbol by itself. Owning a more expensive car? Also a status symbol. That they don't know what's going on under the hood doesn't stop them from wanting the most flashy thing they can afford.

douche 11y ago

They did stop making cars that could be considered in any way stylish or beautiful. It doesn't help that modern cars are almost impossible to work on for anything but trivial repairs, now that they are so complex and computerized. In high school, I drove an old beater of a '85 F150, which was almost completely electro-mechanical. With a little know-how, a high-lift jack, and a basic set of mechanics tools, you could take the entire thing apart to the frame and put it back together. Many modern cars, you can't even change the oil without taking it to a garage with factory certified technicians. My '07 F150, you can't even change the spark plugs without taking half the engine apart, and then you need to have the proprietary computer system to re-calibrate the electronic timing.

WWLink 11y ago
My 2015 wrangler seems to use the same torx screw for almost everything there is, and the best part is it came with a nice torx driver wrench with several heads in a little canvas tool kit lol. I think you have to shop around to find cars that are easy to work on, but it's not impossible. On my chrysler 300 the spark plugs are right on top of the engine lol

oneJob 11y ago

Kingsville, Corpus Christi, Austin, TX Tucson, Phoenix, Flagstaff, AZ Regarding the statistic on urbanization, and given that I'm unable to speak to the impact of yet-to-materialize but inevitably arriving self-driving cars, many cities simply require a vehicle. Period. And rural areas require the same, for a completely different reason. Besides, I would consider a self-driving car a vehicle. As opposed to say public transit, bikes, segways, walking, or telepresence/phones. I think you might have missed the point I was driving at. I'm not a gear head or car lover. I've never considered a car as something that impacted my status. And my cars have all been "commodity type" cars, that is, until I made memories with them, which would not have been possible without them. There are already services which rent cars with unlimited miles and unlimited routes. Budget Rent-A-Car. But again, that is a vehicle. I've also bussed across the country and taken the train up the coast of Australia. Not the same thing. A road trip is not a road trip, blanket statement, if it does not allow for deviations in route and schedule, for any reason, or no reason whatsoever. Before the arrival of Tesla, I would have said personal vehicles (self driving or not) were on their way out. But with advances in renewable energy, recyclable/ sustainable materials, and software which allows vehicles to either go their own way on dirt roads or coordinate enormous numbers of distinct vehicles in one super-efficient flow on shared, optimized infrastructure, it's my humble opinion that the personal vehicle has gained a second lease on life. Again, to me it simply boils down to the fact that there are too many pockets of awesome in this world. You can't build public infrastructure which makes them all accessible. That wouldn't make sense economically or ecologically. Philosophically it doesn't even make sense in many scenarios. It might be a pocket of awesome for the very reason that there are no convenient roads to it. And, no matter how many people we can squeeze into concrete jungles, there will always be a human desire to venture out, onto the road. As long as humans maintain their human nature, there will, in short, always be a human need for the personal vehicle to fulfill. And, by the nature of the need being fulfilled, that relationship between person and vehicle will not be mundane. Q.E.D.

electricEmu 11y ago
You can take Austin off that list: my friends and I got around fine without any cars. As a 30 something who sold their car years ago and only owns one through marriage:I haven't needed to own one for quite some time. Will I ever rent one if I want to take a road trip? Sure, but I don't have a human need to own one again. For me and the ilk I run with, personal vehicles are definitely on their way out.

MisterBastahrd 11y ago

The Dallas / Fort Worth area is referred to as a "metroplex." The vast majority of that metroplex has no adequate public transit, if "adequate" is to be described as "walkable without turning into a sweaty puddle during the summer time." But hey, if you want to walk 4 miles to reach a bus terminal to prove a point, be my guest. I'll be driving, and so will virtually everyone else in "generation Y." People seek status. Vehicle ownership is a status symbol by itself. Owning a more expensive car? Also a status symbol. That they don't know what's going on under the hood doesn't stop them from wanting the most flashy thing they can afford.