Re:G.M. Invests $500M in Lyft
by jkimmel on Monday January 04, 2016 @02:49PM
(#10838014)
>Not only that but power trains are engineered with a half life of ~250-300,000 before they become unusable
This makes me think of an interesting side effect.
Will there be pressure on automotive engineering teams to significantly increase drivetrain half-life in consumer vehicles due to automated-driving?
I imagine there are trade-offs made at present that limit the drivetrain half-life simply because there isn't a great deal of pressure to increase the life of a consumer car beyond 300,000 miles ( 300,000 mi * 1 yr / ~10,000 mi = 30 yr old cars).
Semi-trucks may be a nice example where a similar engineering pressure currently exists. A mechanic friend once told me semi's can drive a million+ miles.
This makes me think of an interesting side effect.
Will there be pressure on automotive engineering teams to significantly increase drivetrain half-life in consumer vehicles due to automated-driving?
I imagine there are trade-offs made at present that limit the drivetrain half-life simply because there isn't a great deal of pressure to increase the life of a consumer car beyond 300,000 miles ( 300,000 mi * 1 yr / ~10,000 mi = 30 yr old cars).
Semi-trucks may be a nice example where a similar engineering pressure currently exists. A mechanic friend once told me semi's can drive a million+ miles.