There’s a lot to be irritated about in there, but that “junior bureaucrat” thing really gets me. Public policy is the whole point of his article, and process doesn’t require specialized knowledge (unlike apparently very flammable cats). That remark wasn’t just ignorance, it was willful deceit of his readers to make a…

Nicely done! We love FMKcars - if you want to hear Jason play it with us, you can do so here: http://media.blubrry.com/teamclearcoat/files.teamclearcoat.com/podcasts/33-We%20Manage%20To%20Not%20Screw%20Up%20An%20Interview%20With%20Jason%20Torchinsky.mp3

This is one of those things that’s a really great idea right up until the moment it isn’t.

The idea that the American car industry would benefit from a lack of regulation - especially as it relates to automation - is really short-sighted and self defeating. Self-driving cars will not happen without a significant regulation regime, and there’s really no getting around that problem.

RE: the external fuel gauge.

Awesome! We are, indeed, A Thing. I will not be so presumptuous as to say we are a good thing.

If I may be obnoxiously self-promotional for a second, The TeamClearCoat podcast is also an option! We’ve even had Stef on before, as well as a few other Jalopnik writers. As we tell all our guests, were definitely idiots, but we’ll at least be *entertaining* idiots. And we have stickers!

I joined yours, despite not owning a single rusty truck. Out little one is here:

This is going to be great until someone’s rear axle comes through the windshield of a cop car.

I think the best bet for what they’re working on is car-to-car communication. This is a really big hurdle to clear before Level 5 autonomy can happen, and they’re well-positioned to write a standard and license it to car makers. Plus, think about the advantages they’d have if they integrated this standard into their…

Fuuuuuuuck window nets.

With McLaren’s electronics and sensors, maybe this will be a push to establish a standard for inter-car communication. We all know Apple’s relationship with open standards is...complicated, so maybe this is them getting out in front. If it’s kept proprietary at first, Apple could make a lot of money on licensing.

Applied! In under the deadline and everything.

Two additions:

The very top-tier version of this could feature gymkhana at the beginning.

For beginners, you could rope in some of the RPG kids by making it a SIMS-esque recreation of a full day of errands. And they could include items to keep people from stripping their cars: parallel park, put some eggs in the trunk. Sharp U-turn,…

YES. Everything Jason said.

I think we can have fun with the catching mechanism. For instance, to catch my MKIV VW, you would use a trail of new fuses. For my Saab, you would need to get it into some sort of flat-pack box.

Not with you on this one - here are a few reasons why:

I was in a gas station a while back when an older lady came in, and said “I drove over some grass and now my car is making a really weird noise.” The garage was closed, but the attendant and I both went out to have a look. This is what we found:

That collection of white gym socks is exactly as stylish as I expected. Sold!