As of writing, there are already 46 car manufacturers who are working on their own autopilot cars. However, out of these corporations, only a handful released their own self-driving cars in the market. In addition, development and research are minimal and still in their early stages. This is why people are still divided whether to invest one ahead of everyone or just let it sit for now and see what happens.
Just like most things, autopilot cars have their advantages and disadvantages. These pros and cons do impact not only the users but also the economy and stakeholders. And with that, we're going to answer the titular question. We provide some lists of advantages and disadvantages along the way.
First off, let's talk about how the term autopilot cars came to be. Back then, when technology was a mere idea, it was called self-driving cars - and it's still called that by many today. However, when Elon Musk's Tesla came around, he called it autopilot cars. Musk coined this term since both Model S and Model X come with a semi-autonomous driving tech. So he might have thought it sounded cool. However, many people believed that the term can be taken out of context that may put many in danger.
Although Tesla's autopilot cars may have semi-autonomous tech, both Model X and Model S don't have enough safety features. Yet, the company still markets both models as safe as expected. Thus, people believe that this misnomer is quite hazardous and shouldn't be used at all. In fact, the German government called autopilot cars (the term) a "considerable traffic hazard."
The good thing with the autopilot cars of today is that their tech features keep on upgrading. Safety features such as adaptive cruise control, active lane keep, automatic emergency brake, self-parking, and blind-spot detection are getting better. Most of these features are even available in some of the cars in the market today. And since these features are getting better and better now, autopilot cars will be fully autonomous. So people can enjoy driving without even touching the steering wheel. Now, how cool is that
Autopilot cars have their own advantages and disadvantages, especially when it comes to vehicle and road safety. And it doesn't just affect the people driving. It also impacts the people on the road, the carmakers, and even the economy.
One fantastic benefit of owning an autopilot car is that it may reduce the cost owners spend, contrary to what most believe. According to some reports, self-driving vehicles can save the entire society by up to $800 billion each year. For the owners, they may reduce the costs of maintenance and fuel. Apart from that, society can save in general from reducing crash-related expenses, which is a heavy burden to all when it happens. In turn, it also reduces the cost of the healthcare system. Speaking of car crashes...
The majority of fatal car accidents back in 2020 are caused by human errors. In a post by Bailey Javins Carter, National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that human error makes 94% of car fatalities that year. Autopilot cars may help decrease the high fatality rate caused by human mistakes once many of them will roll out. Many analysts believe that when drunk driving and distracted driving are out of the way, then car accidents will decrease exponentially up to 90%.
One of the problems people face every day, especially in huge cities, is heavy traffic flow. With thousands of cars trying to get to their destinations every hour, people can get frustrated when they're stuck amidst the concrete madness. Some would even think they can get faster to point B if they have just walked. Self-driving cars, fortunately, may be able to solve this problem.
One of the benefits that self-driving cars can contribute to our society is that they can ease traffic. Autonomous cars obey rules 99% of the time. In addition, they also can communicate with each other. With these two factors, these cars would be able to travel with better efficiency. They can also determine the best route to make the travel way faster than expected.
This advantage is one of the most essential ones, mainly because politicians push for and debate this. Autopilot cars, for the most part, are electric. Thus, people won't need fuel to make it run. To add to that, autonomous vehicles drive at a consistent speed, so there's no need to hit the brakes and the accelerator most of the time. These two factors alone make this kind of car more friendly to the environment. They can also help in reducing the carbon footprint the world population makes.
Also, let's talk about emissions. When there is carbon footprint, there are definitely emissions. Scientists believe that when cars release carbon into the air, it will accumulate and cause climate change. That's why if people switch to driverless cars, there's no need to use carbon-emitting fuel because most of these cars use electricity. And when there is less gas when driving, the carbon rate in the air can dramatically reduce and lessen the climate change impact.
This may be sad news for jet setters (or good, depending on the situation), but self-driving cars may help cut air travel. Domestic air travel, that is. But how can that be possible, you may ask. In 2018, Volvo unveiled their concept car, 360c. If there's a hierarchy of autonomous vehicles, the Volvo 360c should be at the top of the pyramid. This concept car is not just a self-driving car but a moving luxury cabin where one can sleep, work, and relax. To put it simply, it's a driverless cabin wherein you'll find everything you need while going from point A to point B.
With this kind of advanced concept, self-driving cars may reduce domestic air travel, especially short ones. In addition, Volvo promises a smooth ride each time and no matter how far, so you won't have to worry about looking tired when you arrive.
While self-driving cars have many advantages, there are also disadvantages. These cons are essential so that buyers can weigh down on their decision whether to get one soon or not. Below are the disadvantages.
Unless you have an expendable trust fund or have won the lottery's jackpot, autopilot cars are not affordable. But we believe most people already know this. For example, Tesla's full self-driving option may cost you $10,000 or more. But you may wonder, $10,000 isn't that bad of a deal, right? Well, you're wrong. That's just for the option and not the entire vehicle. Also, the "full" self-driving option is just a couple of autopilot features such as automatic car parking and changing lanes on the highway.
But just like any other up-and-coming tech features, self-driving cars may just be expensive now but accessible later on. The only problem is when that will happen. So if you want an autopilot car, it may be best to save up starting today.
In this report by Washington Post, a Tesla Model 3 that got into a fatal crash in California had the Autopilot system active when the adversity took place last May. This crash is just one of the several autopilot car-related crashes reported this year, raising safety, among others.
Not trying to fear-monger here, but let's be honest; there's no such thing as perfect technology. Although scientists and engineers spent thousands of times perfecting the formula of self-driving cars, there's always that glitch that can potentially harm people. Drivers can get overwhelmed by how flawless autopilot cars drive around at first. Still, there will be times when the programming can encounter some faulty codes. Most of the time, these glitches give some annoyance at best, but they can also cause numerous car accidents.
Self-driving cars are pretty much like computers or mobile phones with wheels. When not secured enough, hackers can get into the system and disrupt it. So it isn't just glitches and human errors that can cause car accidents; hacked systems can be, too. According to Georgia Tech and Multiscale Systems Inc. research, even a tiny hacking can cause collisions and gridlocks, especially in heavily populated cities like New York and Los Angeles.
What's really disappointing about this is that it's hard to secure autonomous cars. These cars somehow need an open network to talk and coordinate with each other, as they need to be in the same network protocol. And as the number of cars "talking" to each other increases, so does the chances of getting hacked. Soon, this may be fixed. But, for now, this problem raises concern for many drivers regarding their privacy and security.
Let's start with what licensing infrastructure is. Infrastructure license for vehicles is a license given by the federal government to car companies to assure safety and regulate the vehicles. It's also responsible for monitoring, compliance, and license allocation, among other technical things.
Now, this poses a challenge to car manufacturers. As of the moment, self-driving cars don't yet have a final licensing infrastructure. So, though most of these companies say that their self-driving cars are safe to use, it is still up to the local government to keep drivers safe. Also, there's still not much research done to prove these cars' safety, thus making it hard for the government to regulate and create policies. That's why companies that produce self-driving vehicles have a hard time advertising their products as safe.
Wait, what? Self-driving cars are bad for the environment? Yes, you've heard that right. That's why politicians are having heated debates over whether everyone should switch to electric cars or not. And since most of these autonomous cars are electric, they're considered under the electric vehicle category.
So how do self-driving cars create more environmental problems than reducing them as advertised? For one, a study from the University of Michigan back in 2018 suggests that using too much power can harm the environment than good. Most autonomous cars have additional features that put more weight on the vehicle. And when there is added weight, the cars have to use more power to sustain their consumption needs. In addition, with all the digital monitoring that comes with the vehicle, this only means that the car can consume a decent amount of gigabytes per hour.
To answer whether it's safe to drive self-driving cars or not, it always depends on how you drive. Although car manufacturers promise that their autonomous vehicles can bring you to your destination 100x safer, they still are not perfected. And probably no manufacturer will perfect it. Only time - and a dozen research - can tell whether the safety to drive one is more accurate than expected.
Unfortunately, there are not a lot of used self-driving cars at the moment. If you're not looking for one right now, however, you can always choose from our inventory of used cars for sale in Orem and Lehi, Utah. Each vehicle comes with a condition report and is priced fairly using a car valuation tool for more confidence when choosing a used car online.
