Super Smart Cars and Pipesmoking?

[northernneil]

I love driving but I hate other drivers for the most part

Daimyo, I could not agree more. I cannot remember the comedians name, but in essence he says, "people who drive faster than me are idiots, and people who drive slower than me are assholes!"
I see a real potential, and future, in self driving cars. Not only from a safety standpoint, but for productivity and relaxation (aka, reduce stress). Commute times would be lowered, and people could even conduct business in transit! I would love to see it sooner than later, personally.

 

[rolldog]

Miranda Lambert has a great song that sums up this thread called, "Automatic". In the spirit of the song and this thread, I'm not going to provide a link to easily click on, you can search yourself. :puffpipe:
RD

 

[cortezattic]

I wish they would perfect that beaming thing like in Star Trek.

 

[freakiefrog]

I've driven the cars with the "Flappy Paddle Gear Box" and do not like them. There is a hesitation between the shift and the power. Give me a good old fashioned clutch and Tremec transmission. If I can't grab a gear at 35mph dump the clutch and slide the ass end I'm not interested.

 

[settersbrace]

One does have to admit though that being able to stretch out and fire a bowl while being whisked off to your destination is mind blowing. I know I will never see the inside of such a vehicle but progress being what it is and at the rate it's progressing, my adult children may one day find themselves traveling in such a way. Driving and pipe smoking is one of my favorite things to do, if everyone did it I'd suspect there'd be less road rage, rear end fender benders and peace would envelope our nations highways. Yeah, pain med's can make you wishful and delusional.

 

[jmsutton]

The best part of driving a stick shift while smoking a pipe is seeing the terrified, yet impressed, look on my wife's face. Thank goodness we live in the heart of the blue ridge mountains and are about 15 years behind the rest of society. Most people in our small town still don't trust wal-mart or the internet.

 

[edgreen]

If cars are so smart they can avoid collisions then what will we do with the overpopulation of armadillos this would cause?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I keep hearing people talk about the difficulty in driving and smoking. Please explain.

Beyond just clenching a pipe while shifting gears, maybe occasionally grabbing a tamp in my shirt pocket and quickly tamping, what on Earth is the big deal? Eating a burrito is maybe a tad more difficult while driving, but everyone does that also. Heck, 16 year old girls can put on make-up, dance to music, and style their hair, and live to tell about it (or text about). So, a bunch of grown men can't even light a pipe while on the road? Maybe you all need a 16 year old girl to keep your pipes lit and tamped. :wink:
Are you guys talking from the "I've never tried it" standpoint? Or, is it that your pipes are all too big to clench?
I'm not trying to talk anyone who is reluctant to smoke and drive. I just don't understand why it would intimidate anyone. I just don't see the issue.

 

[settersbrace]

Hey Cos, smoking the pipe takes a back seat to texting, reading forum threads, putting out the embers on the upholstery, changing radio stations or CD's, directing traffic with a handgun, etc. it's no longer sporting for an old hack like me since I grew up driving 3 on the tree, doing other things not tobacco related and never going into the ditch, well, almost never.

Perhaps the next wave of you tube tutorials that hit the airwaves will be directed at aiding young pipe smokers in establishing Good Habits and Safety Tips whilst driving and Pipe Smoking. Lol. This has turned into a fun thread, I doubt it's gonna last. ;-)

 

[maxx]

I drove a manual transmission for 34 years, and got my first automatic 8 years ago when I got a new truck. I still sometimes reach for the stick when pulling away from a stop sign. I haven't tried smoking pipe while driving, but I have smoked cigars then.
I don't enjoy being passive or submissive and want to be in control of my environment. The smart cars in this thread sound like it'd make us all passengers. When the machines are in control, we're not. I believe there will be a backlash to the pervasive encroachment of technology, and there will be people that reject it on principle. They will be "off the grid" to various degrees. They will not be online talking about it, though, I imagine.

 

[rcstan]

It will happen one day, but considering the fact quite a few states don't even have basic vehicle emissions regulations ......