4 ms·

Why buy one? Just use Uber or similar.

criddell 10y ago
Because they are going to be very affordable (eventually) and it's nice to be able to leave stuff in your car. People already spend far more on cars than they need to and that's not likely to change.
- 1812Overture 10y ago
  Why would they possibly be cheaper than current human operated cars?
  - criddell 10y ago
    The cars will be mechanically simpler (electric motor connected to wheels without a traditional gearbox), require less maintenance (no oil changes), be cheaper to insure, and inexpensive to operate. The electronics and software will do what they always do - get better and less expensive. Lighter cars that don't crash (often) can be made from different (cheaper) materials than current cars. They will be similar to today's golf carts. I think a basic car will cost less than $10,000. A lot of the same innovations that go into producing a self-driving car apply to the construction and repair of the car itself. One of the most expensive parts of a new car is paying for wages, benefits, and pensions for the people that made the car. I'm thinking self-driving cars will be built and serviced by other machines. I would bet that before long, you buy a car the same way you buy a cell phone. You subscribe to a plan and upgrade every 2-3 years. Maybe you would subscribe to a shared fleet for $50 / month or maybe you "buy" your own car for $250 / month. This is all assuming a few years have passed and human driven cars are rare.
    - 1812Overture 10y ago
      Car prices historically haven't done that. The typical inflation adjusted price for a car is the same as it was 100 years ago, as automation and technology improve manufacturers add features rather than lowering prices. Current cars are almost entirely built by robots as it is, not much more gains to be had there.
      - GFischer 10y ago
        "Car prices historically haven't done that. " ... in the United States. Let's take a cheap car from the 1960s, an Austin Mini Cooper. A 1960s Mini Cooper was about 500 pounds. That's 10.000 pounds in today's money. Today you can buy a Dacia Sandero for 6.000 pounds. That's almost half of a Mini Cooper. http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-2232885/Top-5-cheapest-brand-new-cars-buy-Britain.html http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-2232885/Top-...
        1812Overture 10y ago
        Or you could get a Mini Cooper today for around 16.000 pounds. In the 1960s you could get a Trabant for less than than the Mini too if you're comparing English vs Romanian cars.
        GFischer 10y ago
        The point I was trying to make is that "automation and technology" can lower prices. The current Mini is nothing like the old Mini, it has billions of features more (exactly the point you were making in the original post I replied to). I can't find any sources, but I strongly suspect that an inflation-adjusted Trabant would be much more expensive than a Dacia Sandero. Edit: I found some sources which confirm my hunch. A Trabant would be 11.000 pounds today if bought at East Germany prices, and 5.500 pounds if bought at West Germany (subsidized) price. The same source says that the Mini destroyed the Trabant market, they competed at similar price points. A Maruti 800, which would be a much better comparison to the 60s Mini or Trabant, should probably cost about 4000 pounds in the U.K. Source for Trabant prices: http://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com.uy/2014/01/trabant-east-german-peoples-car.html http://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com.uy/2014/01/trabant-east-g...
nommm-nommm 10y ago
I travel a lot out of town.

Because they are going to be very affordable (eventually) and it's nice to be able to leave stuff in your car. People already spend far more on cars than they need to and that's not likely to change.

1812Overture 10y ago
Why would they possibly be cheaper than current human operated cars?
- criddell 10y ago
  The cars will be mechanically simpler (electric motor connected to wheels without a traditional gearbox), require less maintenance (no oil changes), be cheaper to insure, and inexpensive to operate. The electronics and software will do what they always do - get better and less expensive. Lighter cars that don't crash (often) can be made from different (cheaper) materials than current cars. They will be similar to today's golf carts. I think a basic car will cost less than $10,000. A lot of the same innovations that go into producing a self-driving car apply to the construction and repair of the car itself. One of the most expensive parts of a new car is paying for wages, benefits, and pensions for the people that made the car. I'm thinking self-driving cars will be built and serviced by other machines. I would bet that before long, you buy a car the same way you buy a cell phone. You subscribe to a plan and upgrade every 2-3 years. Maybe you would subscribe to a shared fleet for $50 / month or maybe you "buy" your own car for $250 / month. This is all assuming a few years have passed and human driven cars are rare.
  - 1812Overture 10y ago
    Car prices historically haven't done that. The typical inflation adjusted price for a car is the same as it was 100 years ago, as automation and technology improve manufacturers add features rather than lowering prices. Current cars are almost entirely built by robots as it is, not much more gains to be had there.
    - GFischer 10y ago
      "Car prices historically haven't done that. " ... in the United States. Let's take a cheap car from the 1960s, an Austin Mini Cooper. A 1960s Mini Cooper was about 500 pounds. That's 10.000 pounds in today's money. Today you can buy a Dacia Sandero for 6.000 pounds. That's almost half of a Mini Cooper. http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-2232885/Top-5-cheapest-brand-new-cars-buy-Britain.html http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-2232885/Top-...
      - 1812Overture 10y ago
        Or you could get a Mini Cooper today for around 16.000 pounds. In the 1960s you could get a Trabant for less than than the Mini too if you're comparing English vs Romanian cars.
        GFischer 10y ago
        The point I was trying to make is that "automation and technology" can lower prices. The current Mini is nothing like the old Mini, it has billions of features more (exactly the point you were making in the original post I replied to). I can't find any sources, but I strongly suspect that an inflation-adjusted Trabant would be much more expensive than a Dacia Sandero. Edit: I found some sources which confirm my hunch. A Trabant would be 11.000 pounds today if bought at East Germany prices, and 5.500 pounds if bought at West Germany (subsidized) price. The same source says that the Mini destroyed the Trabant market, they competed at similar price points. A Maruti 800, which would be a much better comparison to the 60s Mini or Trabant, should probably cost about 4000 pounds in the U.K. Source for Trabant prices: http://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com.uy/2014/01/trabant-east-german-peoples-car.html http://heinkelscooter.blogspot.com.uy/2014/01/trabant-east-g...

nommm-nommm 10y ago

I travel a lot out of town.