Weirdly, this came up on my social media feed even before HH mentioned Saturn (so the algorithm has precognition).
It’s a Saturn car commercial that inadvertently demonstrates just how much space is wasted for cars that could be reclaimed by building out mass transit infrastructure.
I miss beater pickup trucks.
(To stay on topic: P=IV)
Cancelled my Rivian R1S delivery the other day. I really enjoyed the demo drive, my Tesla-owning and loving old neighbor who went with me was thoroughly impressed with the R1S, but my lingering gut feeling was to not go ahead and purchase. It’s pricey even with a locked in preorder and I couldn’t justify the extra car payment with my ‘20 4Runner almost paid off.
My SWA coworker who talked me into the presale down payment in ‘21 lovvvvvvves hers, but each time I’d walk past my neighbors’ R1S here in Austin, I kept thinking it’s a fucking tank and not for me. Plus, buying the A model of something isn’t always wise. So, I’ll wait and see what Rivian comes up with.
The R2 and R3 look really good (if you’re down with the somewhat polarizing facia), are much cheaper and due out in 2025/6.
Yep, I’m going to take a looksie.
Thanks for posting that!
Sometimes, not being at the forefront of a sea change in technology can be an advantage.
Just imagine a future where every parking lot had wireless parking pads…
It would be hell on pacemakers.
And the 5G wireless from your Covid vaccine.
The reason Teslas are a risk to catch fire in high water situations is because they’re built badly, not because they’re electric.
Musk unveiled his RoboTaxi last night. The event was held on a movie backlot that looks like a city street, the car drove up [please ignore the dude standing off to the side using his phone], Musk talked about it and then [please ignore the dude standing off to the side using his phone] walked over to the car as the doors opened themselves [please ignore the dude standing off to the side using his phone]. Musk got in and, after a brief pause [please ignore the dude standing off to the side using his phone] drove about 100 yards in a straight line on an imaginary street.
Musk said it will be “coming next year” and cost “less than $30k”. Yeah, and if you believe that I’ve got a CyberTruck to sell you.
As a bonus, Musk also showed off a RoboVan, which is a design exercise that was focused on making the CyberTruck not the most dumpster-looking vehicle on the road. It also performs eleventy medical tests from a single drop of blood.
Maybe the dude standing off to the side wasn’t controlling the RoboTaxi like some oversized RC car, but was merely ditching all his stock. He wouldn’t be to the only one…
Has the market finally wisened up to Musk’s bullshit?
Here’s the drive away moment:
First, a correction: the car makes a left turn, using its turn signal.
Soooo many questions:
So is he looking to replace Uber and Lyft with a fleet of these things? Isn’t a significant component of their business models shifting unwelcome expenses (like, say, insurance) onto the individual drivers? Maybe he figures that if he can get Trump elected liability will be a thing of the past.
I think the theory is that the likes of you and I buy one or more and then release them into the wild to make us passive income 24/7. After we’ve paid the nut-crushing subscription to Tesla for the FSD service, of course.
Why no rear window?
No rear window and no steering wheel. Good luck passing inspection.
No need for inspections in our new libertarian utopia.
I thought Uber’s long term plan was to transition to driverless cars - no wages to pay, and with dreams of a regulation-free regime. They already have some Waymo cars in places. Perhaps the rise in Uber stock is because they think the plan is getting closer?
For anyone who missed the event. I have ya covered
