Impact of Automatic Cars in Our Lives
Easiness in the Use of Automatic Cars4
Less Stress with Automatics4
Preferences of Cars..5
More Comfort and Luxury5
High Fuel Consumption6
Expensive Purchasing and Maintenance Cost.6
Pollution7
Political Effect8
Ethical Considerations.8
Conclusion9Peer Evaluation Analysis.9
References..10
Impact of Automatic Cars in Our Lives
Introduction
The use of automatic vehicles is gaining popularity across the world among the new and experienced drivers since they are simpler to operate and more comfortable for long journeys than manual cars. Automatic cars use automatic mode of transmission while manual cars use manual transmission. Automatic mode of transmission was invented by Alfred Munro, a Canadian citizen in 1921 (Jenkins, 2015). Munro had designed his own device to compress air other than hydraulic, which made the engine not to be used for commercial purposes. Automatic cars have no stick shift or clutch but a gear selector that puts the car on the drive. They gear switches automatically during the drive, and thus, the driver is not supposed to shift it unlike in the manual cars. They also have automatic breaks which stop the engine of the car in case of a collision or a crash.
The improvement is as a result of modern technology that tries to improvise the transport system and reduce the cases of car accidents on the highways. The cars are to be fitted with enhanced safety features such as warnings that caution drivers that they are on a blind sport or leaving a lane, as well as headlights that rotate as the car navigate corners. Some advanced automatic cars have safety belts designed to work with brakes. People buying cars usually consider these factors before they could settle on one to purchase. The use of the automatic cars has brought up positive and negative effects in the transport history. As one of the widely used mean of transportation, automatic cars have impacted significantly on the lives of the people. This paper will be discussing the effects of the automatic cars on the lives of individuals including those who own cars or use public transport systems.
Easiness in the Use of Automatic Cars
The automatic cars are manufactured using the current technology which makes them easier for people to drive. This is because the gear of the car changes automatically during the trip. If one put the transmission to Drive (D), the vehicle selects the correct gear automatically depending on the speed and the load on the engine. The car usually changes to a lower gear as it decelerates and a higher gear as the speed increases. The use of automatic transmission makes it easier for the drivers to slow down and stop in case of noticing an alert on the way. In such situations, the braking should be made sooner and more progressively so as to slow down the engine (Jenkins, 2015). Moreover, the technology has enabled parking and controlling of cars in traffic to become easier. Whenever the car is waiting in the traffic, the handbrake and footbrake are applied whenever one wants to pause.
Less Stress with Automatics
Numerous studies on the use of the automatics show that drivers of manual transmission cars experience more stress than those driving automatics. The studies involved measurements of the heartbeats of the drivers of both systems of transmission (Geraghty, 2016). The results show that heartbeats of manual car drivers beat faster than those of automatic vehicles. In fact, the stress levels as shown by the number of heartbeats for the drivers of the automatics were comparable to those of passengers. Some of the drivers also argue that manual car requires one to use more force just like a physical job. The basing of this argument is that the manual car requires the driver to shift the gear many times suing one leg more than the other which makes them use a lot of energy to drive. Therefore, the introduction of the automatic cars has made people have less stress in lives, which have reduced the cases of cardiac arrest, stroke and mental damage among the drivers (Geraghty, 2016). Moreover, a stress-filled and exhausted driver is likely to cause an accident on the road while driving. However, the fact that the driver of an automatic has less to do, he or she is likely to pay little attention to the traffic rules and would not detect signs of an accident. Some of them tend to relax and do other things that would not normally be done while driving such as making calls and fidgeting with objects or people in the car. It is said that driver inattention contributes to about 25% of the road accidents (Geraghty, 2016).
Preferences of Cars
Since the introduction of the automatic cars in the 1930s the trend of models of cars has drastically change. Many people have broken their preference of the traditional manual transmission cars to modern automatic cars. By doing so, they are trying to adopt and taste the current technology. The automatic transmission cars do not have a clutch pedal as in the normal driving, hence allowing someone with even amputated or any disability to drive. The individual is required only to use as few as two limbs to operate the car. The lack of manual shifting reduces the workload and the attention required inside the cabin.
More Comfort and Luxury
Driving automatics cars tends to be more comfortable than driving manual transmission cars since a driver only needs to work with two pedals and do not need to shift gears more often. In some countries in Europe and America, driving automatics cars is considered luxurious. Automatic rental cars in London is twice more expensive than their manual counterparts. Renting a cheapest automatic costs approximately $500 unlike those with manual transmissions which cost as little as $200 (Donnell, 2011). Many people find it good to drive these cars as a way of appreciating technological innovation in the motors industry. They think that this is the only way of giving past technologies their due for the hard work towards automation. Driving an automatic car is also interesting for drivers who want to drive while maintaining eye contact with their passengers and check what is happening outside. Moreover, the first car-buyers find an automatic car as a better choice since they are easier to learn and more comfortable to drive.
High Fuel Consumption
Manual transmission cars have better fuel efficiency than the automatic cars. This is because their engine weighs less, are less complex, and have more gears than the automatic cars. Therefore, they can cover a longer distance per kilometer than the automatics. According to the Automobile Association Company website, drivers save between 10% and 15 % of their fuel costs on manually-driven than the automatics. Current technology has led to the introduction of semi-automatic features such as paddle button which the operated gear changes and automatic clutch control which can help reduce fuel consumption (Jenkins, 2015). Although these improvements have been made, the automatic cars will still use more fuel than their counterparts.
Expensive Purchasing and Maintenance Cost
The automatic cars also require more maintenance throughout their lives which can be done even on a weekly basis. Their counterparts, manual transmission cars are usually designed to last for a longer time and require less repair and maintenance than the automatics. The lubricants of the manual transmission vehicles need to be replaced regularly but not as frequently as in automatics. Some versions of the manual cars use special transmission fluids which do not need to be changed at all. The design of the automatics do not make them operate for long (Zheng et al.,2015).
The cost of purchasing and maintenance of the automatic vehicles has been quite unfortunate for individuals who drive or owns cars. They are forced to spend most cost on spare parts of the cars, and their cars would have frequent breakdown. They will have to spend a lot their money to keep their cars on the road and maintain their luxurious life derived from owning this kind of vehicles. It is more common to find them using public transport to get to work or home because their cars are in the garage waiting for spare parts to be imported from an overseas country manufacturing the model.
Pollution
Political Effect
In several countries across the world today, there have been discussion on the use of automatic cars by various players in the transport industry. Some argue that those using automatic cars normally over speed and generally break the traffic rule. Automatic cars changes speed automatically and require less control from the driver, hence can overs speed. Another basis of the argument is that the automatic cars normally make sharp corners in roundabouts and the bending in the roads which can cause accidents. Some people would argue that the manual transmission cars are the best cars since they are more efficient and durable than the automatics cars. On the other side, those supporting the use of the automatic cars argue that they are easier to drive and more luxurious. In many countries, the adoption of the automatic cars have been slow due to this believe on their disadvantages. Some people argue that the purchasing of the automatic cars is like a waste of money, since cars would not last long and require subsequent maintenance which is also expensive.
Ethical Considerations
The introduction of the automatic cars has drastically changed the transport industry. The cars are considered easier and more comfortable to drive. It is gaining popularity among many people especially those in cities. However, apart from being expensive to purchase and maintain the cars can causes accidents due to over speeding. Due to the fact that the driver does not have to change the gear, he or she may concentrate on other things which cannot be done while driving such as making calls. The cars being automatic are difficult to control, hence the driver should be careful. The owners considers these cars more comfortable, but the driver driving a passenger vehicle does not need much comfortable but should concentrate on his steering wheel to ensure safety of the passengers. The use of the automatics by those individuals who learn to drive worsen the situation. They choose automatic cars since they are considered easy to drive. However, this can cause accidents if in case the individuals to drive are tempted to get into a busy highway.
Conclusion
The introduction of the automatic cars has drastically changed the ways of lives of the people. Many consider the cars to be easier and more comfortable to drive in the highways. However these cars have caused economic, environmental and political impact on our society. The automatic cars are expensive to purchase and require regular maintenance which also requires more money from the owner. Our streets, rivers and cities are more polluted than before due to these vehicles which consume a lot of fuel. The traditions of people are changing also due to adoption of these cars. For automatic to be effective to the users, there is need for improvement using the modern technology to reduce the consumption of fuel, which will in turn reduce the amount of fumes emitted into the atmosphere. Also, the cars could be made in such a way that the fumes can be treated before being released to the atmosphere.
References
Geraghty, P. (2016). “Automatic or Manual Cars: Which is Safer.” Safe Motoring: 26 Jan 2016.
Jenkins, R. (2015). Driving an Automatic Car. Print: 2015, Richard Jenkins Worldwide
The Automobile Association L. (2011, July 29). “Fuel Consumption & Emissions.” Motoring.
Retrieved May 16, 2016 from http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/car-buyers-guide/cbg_emissions.html.
Zheng, R., Yamabe, S., & Suda, Y. (2015) .Biological Analysis to Assess Mental Stress in
Automatic Driving of Trucks: Palmar Perspiration and Masseter Electromyography. Print: 2015
Mar; 15(3): 5136–5150, from the NCBI Database.
Donnell, J. (2011).Automatic braking in cars helps cut down on crashes. Print: 7/19/2011,
Gannett Company.
