# What will we call "self driving cars"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 27, 2019, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174 "2019-06-27T18:16:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/21 "2019-06-28T15:08:31Z")
Using a self-driving car will be called “sov-citting”, because you are not driving, you are traveling. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/22 "2019-06-28T15:16:10Z")
Taking the “Airplane!” approach, we could call them Otto. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Wizerables](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c89c15/32.png) [@Les\_Wizerables](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Wizerables)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/23 "2019-06-28T17:24:17Z")
“AVs” (short for autonomous vehicles) seems like a possibility. When Congress did its whole “give legislation a title that has a cutesy abbreviation” thing in this area, they called the bill the “American Vision for Safer Transportation through Advancement of Revolutionary Technologies Act,” or the AV Start Act. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/24 "2019-06-28T18:49:35Z")
Cars. You no longer buy a “flat screen TV” you buy a TV. When self-driving cars are in the majority, they will just be “cars.” ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/25 "2019-06-28T19:00:06Z")
> [@Charlie\_Tan](#): > > Cars. > You no longer buy a “flat screen TV” you buy a TV. When self-driving cars are in the majority, they will just be “cars.” _When_ they are in the majority, sure. But I’m thinking there will be a time when half of all cars on the road are autonomous and half are human controlled. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/26 "2019-06-28T19:06:58Z")
Fapmobiles. Seriously, I feel like society is not realistically considering how many people are going to be riding around in these cars just cranking the hog while staring at other drivers, due to some combination of “I’m in here alone”, and “driving is boring” and “because I can”. People are going to be saying “I just fapped my way over here”, and outwardly we’ll laugh like it’s ironic, but inwardly we won’t be sure if it wasn’t a literal statement. ---
**Author:** ![CelticKnot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/celticknot/32/3392_2.png) [@CelticKnot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CelticKnot)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/27 "2019-06-28T22:04:02Z")
So far we have called our cars Lucy (short for Lucille as in “You picked a fine time to leave us”), Rosie, Goldie, Jackie (a cheesy white car), and Sylvia. If we ever get one (doubtful until there’s no choice because nothing else is affordable) we will see what name she reveals to us. I did think James. “Home, James.” ---
**Author:** ![AnalogSignal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/analogsignal/32/1085_2.png) [@AnalogSignal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnalogSignal)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/28 "2019-06-28T22:32:08Z")
Driverless Horseless Carriages ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2019, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/29 "2019-06-28T22:52:53Z")
Christines ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/30 "2019-06-29T14:42:20Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > _When_ they are in the majority, sure. But I’m thinking there will be a time when half of all cars on the road are autonomous and half are human controlled. OK. Fine. Autocars. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/31 "2019-06-29T16:20:08Z")
Sedrics. I hereby claim copyright on the name. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/32 "2019-06-29T16:44:40Z")
Actually, the longer I think of it, I think we’ll have “cars” and “poor people’s cars” (i.e., manually-driven cars). ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/33 "2019-06-29T17:21:29Z")
I’ll bet we called them AVs early on, and that name sticks. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/34 "2019-06-29T19:49:54Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > I’ll bet we called them AVs early on, and that name sticks. As a member of the AV club (and the parent of one) in school, I can strongly state we will not take this lying down. Expect a firmly worded petition. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/35 "2019-06-29T21:50:15Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > As a member of the AV club (and the parent of one) in school, I can strongly state we will not take this lying down. Expect a firmly worded petition. Shouldn’t it at least have a slideshow or accompanying graphics? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/36 "2019-06-29T22:04:25Z")
Crazy idea here; I have a suspicion we’ll call them “self-driving cars”. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2019, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/37 "2019-06-29T23:01:47Z")
Historically, the popular version of something retained the original name and the older version got a retronym in most cases. My expectation is that they would be called “cars” and the old-style, non-self-driving vehicles would be the ones to get a new name. “Self-steered vehicle” ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2019, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/38 "2019-07-01T00:54:14Z")
AVs for autonomous vehicles but personally I will name him George, and I will hug him and pet him and squeeze him… What can I say? I really want one. As long as it has a manual function. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2019, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/39 "2019-07-01T03:02:59Z")
> [@Charlie\_Tan](#): > > OK. Fine. > Autocars. Autocar is French for [intercity bus](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autocar). ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2019, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174/40 "2019-07-01T03:43:07Z")
There will be cars and there will be vintage or antique automobiles. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-we-call-self-driving-cars/836174.md?page=3)