A study by Thatcham Research asked people in Great Britain, among other things, according to whether they think autonomous cars are already for sale.
Believe there are autonomous cars for sale. Here in Germany? Maybe in the US? The answer is no, as long as autonomous driving from level 4 is meant. In Germany there is so far only one manufacturer, the one Level 3 wagon offers: Mercedes Benz. Hyundai intends to launch a vehicle of this level in the near future. Here you can take your hands off the steering wheel on certain routes at certain times.
This question was asked by Thatcham Research’s Trust in Automation consumer study in the UK. The majority of almost all age cohorts answered this with a “yes”. According to government plans, automated vehicles should be able to drive from 2025, but one million electric cars should be on the road in Germany by 2020.
The students see this as a danger. The unrealistic expectation of functionality could lead to overconfidence. An effect that you Tesla vehicles sees. There have already been a few deaths here because the drivers believed the car was capable of more than it actually could.
In the UK, 77 percent of 17-24 year olds believed such a car existed. The only cohort where the majority got this right were those over the age of 55. Here 41 percent believed in it, 48 percent did not.
Another finding of the study is that drivers are interested in the potential of automated driving to improve safety. When asked what their top benefits of the technology are, 21 percent cited the increase in security. In this way, human error would be eradicated. 14 percent hoped for an improvement in mobility for older and disabled people and eight percent wanted a reduction in environmental pollution through less traffic jams and unnecessary speeding. For three percent, saving time is an important advantage of autonomous driving, entertainment is also for three percent and sleep is two percent. 44 percent are waiting for the technology to improve.