R.I.P. Saab

Quirky, weird, different. That's what Saabs were all about. The very first car I borrowed from an automaker as a journalist was a 1984 Saab 900 Turbo. It was a revelation to me, having been brought up with a series of very mundane domestic cars. The Saab was FAST and FUN with an aromatic leather interior that really fit your body contours, and of course, an unmistakable chunky shape that was unlike any other car. Saab obtained its highest sale volume in 1986, and it has been on a steady decline since then.

There was some hope that after the GM bankruptcy in 2009, that Swedish Automobile CEO Victor Muller could pull off a miracle and get Saab back on track, but it wasn't mean to be. Saab was declared bankrupt by a court on Monday. A new 9-5 was trotted out to the press last year, but it wasn't different enough to create much of a sir. There are just too many good cars out in the marketplace now; it's harder and harder to stand apart.

My wife's car is a Saab 2000 9-3 convertible that my daughter now drives. Even back then, Saab was beginning to slip into conformity thanks to the badly-managed GM ownership that eventually killed it. I'm sorry to see Saab go, even if it was only a ghost of what it once was. There are just too many vanilla cars out there.

Some automakers have taken up the 'different is better' gauntlet, including Subaru, VW and MINI, not to mention Nissan with their weird but somewhat lovable Cube and Juke vehicles, and the brand-new Fisker performance hybrid.  Let's hope there will always be cars that have distinct personalities that are also fun to drive.

Google Goes Knight Rider All Over California

In true Knight Rider fashion, Google has been developing self-driving cars. And this isn't a rumor or plan for the future, they've been testing these cars on actual California roads for months now.
As a tech-geek, you can bet I've read the slew of articles about Google's new endeavor and am very curious/excited/salivating-over the what this technology may bring. But I won't get ahead of myself, because there are a few issues to address before we see swarms of robot-cars on our highways.

The first, but potentially most divisive, question is also the simplest: Does the public want self-driving cars?

Here's a few different takes on this question, starting with why people do want cars that drive themselves:

• Safety concerns: Over a million lives are lost each year to road traffic accidents (according to the World Health Organization). It's hard to think that self-driving cars wouldn't help bring that number down significantly.
• Stop the texting menace: In the same vein as that first point, there's a big push these days to stop people from texting while driving. Cars that drive themselves would eliminate the threat that texting causes.
• Far more productive traffic jams: Not having to drive would allow people to actually get work done during those long morning commutes, which could have a big impact on overall productivity.
• We're a techno-centric society: In our modern world, innovation breeds aspiration. If it's new, a lot of people will want it solely for that fact.

On the other hand, here are the obstacles Google will likely face:

• Safety concerns: Yes these cars could save some lives, but as with any new technology there's a margin of error, and the thought of being in that margin while cruising along at highway speeds will deter people.
• For the love of the road: Sure, it might make those morning commutes and road trips more tolerable, but let's not overlook how many people honestly love driving. A lot of people like hopping in the car and going for a drive, and this technology practically eliminates it.
• 'Green' technology: I'm not talking about hybrids here, I'm talking about money. Remember, Google is a business and businesses need to make money. Google has admitted they're not completely sure about monetizing this technology, and expensive experiments like this need strong financial backing to avoid an early death.
• The times they are a-changin' (but we don't like it): With the millions of people in this country, it's a given that wide, sweeping change is usually met with hesitation and scrutiny, and game-changing technology like this won't please everybody.

So whether you're already planning to be the first in line to buy one of these self-driving cars or writing an angry letter to Google as we speak, I offer the following advice. First, let's stay realistic, because we won't see these cars hit the public for a few years yet.

More importantly, both sides need to take the others' point of view into consideration, because regardless of who or what's controlling the car, we all need to drive on the same road.