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German Report Says 'Apple Car' Could Arrive in Form of Electric Van

Smart move. The one person one car has to go. Not enough cement to handle the demand growth. How cool would it be to have ones personal bus (van) come right to your house to and from work. Fleets like delivery and public transportation an excellent way to begin the transition to totally automated vehicles for everyone. Easier to manage the development cycles. The individual car on a mass rollout not a good place to begin. Too many variables. Tesla an example, small company, few cars, still a long road ahead to total autonomous driving.
 
I don't get this idea that they want to make a car. Their products tend to be very personal - an music player, a desktop/laptop that you become very attached to, a smart phone that keeps you in touch. They also tend to create products only when they believe they can do it better than anyone else and the electric self-driving car market has hardly begun let alone gelled into something they can disrupt.

I love my car but if I wasn't driving for ride-share right now to make ends meet it would sit the two days I'm off every week. I just don't have the same relationship with it that I do my Apple products.
 
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There is so much that can change with this, as I still think Apples autonomous vehicle is no where near ready. They could have multiple Proto-type vehicles that they’re working on, let alone maybe it’s a van, maybe it’s also a car of some form as well, as there are so many variables. But I can only imagine the software integration into a vehicle like this, and if it does launch, it will be interesting to see how advanced the A.I has become by that time, especially if it’s based on Kuo’s prediction for 2023 through 2025.
 
Why would you bet against a van?

Think about the design challenges:

Battery weight.
Safety. Range. Cargo. Autonomous.

One great solution could be a van. Oh ok, you maybe don’t like the word van. How about “SUV”. Lol. Same thing. These days instead of the Chrysler magic wagon people are driving an Audi G7 and pretending it’s not a magic wagon

Someday you might hop in the back of the van and laydown for a sleep on the couch bed and tell it to take you to Las Vegas Bellagio.
 
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You know... IF Apple produces an electric vehicle - which still seems so bizarre that it just might come to fruition - I could kind of see them offering some sort of family-friendly, cargo-hauling box of an electric vehicle.

As other have said - the time is coming where we won't be steering a car but will be rotated around and interacting with the other passengers. Steering is so 2019...

Apple is the only company that could even dare to make a minivan something we never knew we wanted.
 
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cmaier said:
The whole point is you wont be driving it. You’ll “hey Siri get me a car,” one rolls up, you throw your stuff in it and get in, it takes you where you are going, and you get out. You are automatically charge with Apple Pay, you don’t have to park it, the car goes and gets someone else, and you move on with your life.
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Yes that’s a great model. All the more reason to be a van.
 
The minivan form-factor is for testing. You put all the junk in the minivan, knowing that by 2025 the junk will be smaller due to miniaturization and could fit in a sedan-sized vehicle. ...but for people stomping on this as fugly, the real future for self-driving is trucks and shuttle-buses. Take logistics, for example: Right now a tractor trailer stops - and stuff inside is parked - while the driver takes legally-mandated breaks. If the truck drives itself, even if only on certain pre-approved stretches of interstate, it means the human driver can take a break during those times and the stuff inside doesn't stop. Things get delivered, faster, truck company makes more money. Do you think they care if it's fugly? Apple doesn't care, and Ives doesn't care, what the truck looks like that delivers your iPhone. But they do want to get it to you asap.
 
BuddyTronic said:
Why would you bet against a van?

Think about the design challenges:

Battery weight.
Safety. Range. Cargo. Autonomous.

One great solution could be a van. Oh ok, you maybe don’t like the word van. How about “SUV”. Lol. Same thing. These days instead of the Chrysler magic wagon people are driving an Audi G7 and pretending it’s not a magic wagon

Someday you might hop in the back of the van and laydown for a sleep on the couch bed and tell it to take you to Las Vegas Bellagio.
Click to expand...

There is a reason the new New York taxis looks like vans. Easy entry, lots of cargo room, good safety, lots of interior space. These are cars you won’t drive, so no reason for everyone to be facing forward in rows. These are cars you wont own, so no reason to look “sexy.”
 
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The more I think about this rumor, I actually could 100% believe Apple would release a van of some sort. I think others are expecting Apple to release some type of futuristic car, but it doesn’t mean it can’t be in the form of a van either, for some, that might be more practical to have a van for a plethora of reasons. I don’t think Apple is trying to be a Tesla or any other electric vehicle, I think that they are trying to make something that focuses on the software integration coupled with practicality.
 
In the meanwhile, I enjoy my all-analog, 1965 vintage car (with contact points, and centrifugal- and vacuum-assisted, distributor, and gas-powered V8 6230cc engine):
IMG_3187.jpg
 
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An electric autonomous vehicle makes more sense as a van than a car, from an internal space perspective. Taken this thinking to its logical conclusion means the van idea is too practical an idea for Apple. They’ll produce the most non-van design possible. Apple cares lots about brand image, and I imagine their first car will be a stylish looking car-car.
 
I see an autonomous car share/rental program where people would buy a car and then put it out on the autonomous network to make money for them between personal uses. More like an investment than an expense. Right now our cars spend most of their time sitting around waiting to be used.
 
Mac Fly (film) said:
An electric autonomous vehicle makes more sense as a van than a car, from an internal space perspective. Taken this thinking to its logical conclusion means the van idea is too practical an idea for Apple.
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Remember: apple is focusing on services. What better service offering than a subscription computer on wheels. Get in, listen to your Apple Music or watch your Apple TV while it drives you to where you’re going, and then goes and gets the next passenger.
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Marcus PM said:
I see an autonomous car share/rental program where people would buy a car and then put it out on the autonomous network to make money for them between personal uses. More like an investment than an expense. Right now our cars spend most of their time sitting around waiting to be used.
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That’s what Tesla was rumored to be working toward. But Apple doesnt need to sell the cars - no reason to buy it, either. As long as i can ask Siri for a car and one comes within a few minutes (or i can schedule one to arrive when i need it) there’s no need for me to own the car.
 
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IRockThat828pScreen said:
Why even bother? Tesla is going to be far ahead of any car Apple could put out. They've missed their chance.
Click to expand...

The whole Apple Car idea, in terms of a real 4-wheel car, was silly to begin with. Only rumours. Apple is designing and building the automation system to run a car, and I see this being available for car manufacturers to use as one option when adding automation to cars. I think it would be foolish for Apple to invest anything in building the actual car. Yes, they are a hardware company, but that would be a serious distraction for them.
 
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