First, let me establish that I am a car enthusiast. I relish all types of driving, on roads, tracks, off-road, it is all exciting and fun for me. Some of my best memories and important life moments revolve around driving or cars in some fashion.
Self-driving or autonomous vehicles are coming, with the amount of energy and money being funneled into creating a successful consumer ready vehicle that needs no human interaction to navigate the world’s roads, it is only a matter of time.
Personally, I am excited for self-driving cars to become a reality. Even though I really enjoy driving, there are major advantages to taking people out of the driver’s seat. First and foremost on that list is safety. For those that are skeptical about how these vehicles can safely navigate populated urban areas without a human controlling the car, this TED talk is a must watch.
No matter how good you think you are behind the wheel, human reaction and a computer reaction are not even comparable. Also, humans make mistakes and can get distracted, computers do not have the temptation to check their notifications on Instagram or that text from the person they met at the bar last night.
Now, I am sure there are those reading this that feel their driving skill is heads and hands above everyone else on the road, and you may be right. But I would bet that there is not single person who does not feel there are many drivers who should not be licensed to pilot a vehicle on the road. These drivers can cause even the most experienced, defensive, and careful drivers to have an accident.
Looking beyond the introduction of the vehicles, self-driving cars could eventually be the end of the need for stoplights or signs and even traffic jams. If cars could communicate with each other and drive to the tolerances allowed by computers, intersections could be extremely efficient and managed by the vehicles instead of being directed by signage.
There are still some significant challenges that need to be overcome before we can all go to our local dealership and pick out our new self-driving vehicle, like reducing the cost of the sensors and solving some serious moral questions, but with the minds at incredible companies like Apple, Google, Ford, GM, VW, and many others, we will not be waiting long.
To answer the question in the title, No, self-driving cars will not end the automotive hobby, just like the automobile did not end the equestrian sport and hobby. The vehicle enthusiast hobby will change, you could see more private road courses, off-road parks, or driving destinations that will let you continue to experience the excitement of driving, but it will still remain strong.