Google Aims to Destroy Driving Pleasure

Google Self Driving Prototype (2014) (Credit: Google+)

Google recently unveiled a prototype for a new driverless car, and it has already become apparent that the Internet giant is trying to kill any driving pleasure in the world. It’s an understandable move by a company that is based in an area of perpetual bad driving and road congestion, but Google has failed to take into account that there are some people who actually enjoy holding onto a steering wheel and piloting a car down the road. The prototype not only has no steering wheel, it also has no pedals, meaning it can never switch between autonomous and driver-controlled modes.

The new model was designed from the ground-up as an autonomous vehicle. As a result, it looks nothing like any current or past production vehicle. Instead, it more closely resembles a plastic Easter egg on wheels, which has of course inspired the world with visions of incredible structural integrity and crashworthiness.

In a surprising bit of automotive industry gossip, it’s rumored that Roush will be helping Google build the production version of the little Easter egg. Such information seems hard to believe considering Roush is known for pushing Ford Mustangs to new performance heights as well as numerous motorsports endeavors. The rumor originally started on Jalopnik through its Detroit sub-blog, which in the past has been a reliable source for valid industry rumors. Neither Google nor Roush has confirmed or denied the rumor, which of course means nothing.

If you are paranoid about robots taking over the world and enslaving the human race, you likely will find the latest announcement from Google to be highly disturbing. If you are convinced that Google is monitoring your every move on the Internet and is sharing that information with the NSA, you will likely think that the new Google car is designed to track your movements in the real world as well.