The iCar ?

[LordFerret]

Not quite in time for OS X Yosemite.

[h=1]Apple studies self-driving car, auto industry source says[/h]

[sal_vager]

"Sorry I can't come to work today, my car is beachballing"

[Starwhip]

"Sorry I can't come to work today, my car is beachballing"

Seriously, the hacking industry is going to have a party.

[astropapi1]

Bet it's going to cost a fortune, under-perform relatively to other cars, and require special parts only Apple technicians have access to.

Sorry. I'm still kinda butthurt after buying an iPod touch...

[Tarrow]

Bet it's going to cost a fortune, under-perform relatively to other cars, and require special parts only Apple technicians have access to.

Trust me, plenty of cars have issues that're only resolvable with specialist equipment only available to the manufacturer. You can't even change the brake pads on a current generation hybrid Lexus without scan tools that're restricted to Toyota & Lexus dealerships.

Apple can't make a phone that doesn't crash on a regular basis. Would you really be willing to trust their software deveoplers with the lives of passengers & other road users? 'Cause you just know they'd do their best to wiggle out of any liability when their code outright kills someone.

[segaprophet]

There's no indication from the article that an Apple produced "iCar" is anything more than 100% conjecture. Apple has been working towards more car integration with existing manufacturers for years, this probably has to do with that, if anything.

Saying an "iCar" is coming is just spreading silly (groundless) rumors.

Edited February 15, 2015 by segaprophet

[Flymetothemun]

Trust me, plenty of cars have issues that're only resolvable with specialist equipment only available to the manufacturer. You can't even change the brake pads on a current generation hybrid Lexus without scan tools that're restricted to Toyota & Lexus dealerships.

What is a "scan tool"? I don't doubt you or anything, it's just that how I know you replace pads and calipers you just take the wheel off (easier said than done), get the caliper off, take off the old and put on the new brake pads, and reverse the process to get the car back on the road. I'm honestly curious, is it something that plugs into that diagnostic socket that they have on all cars nowadays? And if you do it without the tool will the computer that virtually all new cars have somehow get confused and think the brake pads are used up when you've put on new ones?

[cpast]

Bet it's going to cost a fortune, under-perform relatively to other cars, and require special parts only Apple technicians have access to.

Sorry. I'm still kinda butthurt after buying an iPod touch...

It'll also have Pinto-level gas tank design, because it lets them make the car a little bit lighter and smaller.

(I work on Macs, and that's a reasonable summary of Apple's battery philosophy)

[LordFerret]

There's no indication from the article that an Apple produced "iCar" is anything more than 100% conjecture. Apple has been working towards more car integration with existing manufacturers for years, this probably has to do with that, if anything.

Saying an "iCar" is coming is just spreading silly (groundless) rumors.

Maybe you should re-read the article?

"... is exploring how to make an entire vehicle, not just designing automotive software or individual components, the auto industry source said."

If there is anything big to come of it, I'm sure at some point I'll see some manner of mention on CNBC. Follow the money.

[CelticCossack51]

Everyone is talking about an 'iCar'? Well, We will call it the AppleCar!

[Tarrow]

What is a "scan tool"? I don't doubt you or anything, it's just that how I know you replace pads and calipers you just take the wheel off (easier said than done), get the caliper off, take off the old and put on the new brake pads, and reverse the process to get the car back on the road. I'm honestly curious, is it something that plugs into that diagnostic socket that they have on all cars nowadays? And if you do it without the tool will the computer that virtually all new cars have somehow get confused and think the brake pads are used up when you've put on new ones?

Lexus RX 450h (the rear brakes, to be specific). They're brake-by-wire, so there's no physical connection between the brake pedal and the brake calipers. Without the right manufacturer-specific tool plugged into the diagnostic port you cant wind or press back the brake pistons to fit the new, thicker pads - valves in the abs system block flow to & from the rear calipers when the vehicle is stationary or turned off. You can't bleed the brakes or change the brake fluid without it either - else the brake hydraulic controller interperets the opening of a bleed nipple with the car electronics active as "the pressure from my brake pump has just dropped, ALL POWER TO THE PUMPS!". Then the bleed nipple starts venting brake fluid at several hundred psi.

It's fair to say that when it comes to hybrids & electric vehicles the only people fully informed and equipped to maintain them are the manufacturers own garages. Self-drive systems are going to be the same. The manufacturer can charge whatever they want for maintenance, beacuse only they can do the work. A company as large as Apple (with as much spare cash as they have) would have to be silly not to have looked into it at one point or another.

[Kinglet]

I bet a apple car would come with a dashboard selfie camera and a front camera for "photo sharing". (Ins't that supposed to be "video evidence"?).

This should REALLY encourage people do not text while driving.