Despite nearly every major automaker touting models with cutting-edge autonomous driving technology, actual self-driving cars are still not available to the general public. Booking a ride with a fledgling driverless taxi service is the only way to experience a self-driving car, and these services are having a bit of a moment this summer. Waymo reached 100 million miles of fully autonomous driving this month, and Tesla finally launched its own Robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, after Elon Musk made promises about it for nine years.
We asked our readers earlier this week what cars would make for the scariest robotaxis. Commenters came out in force to share their ideas for vehicles that would radiate fear at first sight for both passengers and drivers in other cars. They went out of their way to find the fastest and largest vehicles with reputations worse than a ’90s baseball player with a dubious prescription history. Here are the scariest potential 21st-century Headless Horsemen:
A TVR Sagaris for a brash British killer
TVR Sagaris. I mean, it already wants to kill you. What could go wrong with giving it a robot brain and the free will to move through traffic as it sees fit?
Submitted by: JohnnyWasASchoolBoy
The Nissan Altima will ride forever
Nissan Altima with a bashed-in fender and a temporary spare on a front wheel.
Submitted by: Don Jackson
A Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat to deafen the neighborhood
An HM Vehicles Free-way for your one-way trip
The recommendation from commentator LambertsTeeth pointed us in the direction of a recent Craigslist ad for the novel microcar from the late 1970s. Even if there were enough HM Free-ways for a driverless fleet, I’d be terrified if it were to cut off a pickup truck. The commuter car would be a fly on the windshield for a road-raging truck owner.
A behemoth GMC Hummer EV to establish dominance
Hummer EV. What could be scarier than a 4.5-ton…truck…SUV…whatever it is…bearing down on you?
Submitted by: Joe Stricker
I’d say a Hummer EV pickup. At 9,000lbs+, I sure hope the autopilot makes zero mistakes and doesn’t dismiss any pedestrian as a false positive.
Submitted by: jihad joe
Any current Tesla vehicle to embrace tradition
DynamicPresence’s top-rated comment cast a net over Tesla’s entire model line-up. While the electric automaker has only rolled out modified Model Y crossovers for Robotaxi service, Elon Musk envisioned that Tesla owners to rent their vehicles back to the company for driverless rideshares. I can’t imagine the chaos if privately-owned Cybertrucks are ever allowed to roam the streets without a soul behind the wheel.