# Why did anyone ever think flying cars were a good idea? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 10, 2015, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145 "2015-10-10T14:36:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/21 "2015-10-11T15:50:09Z")
The same logic applies to non-flying cars. ---
**Author:** ![Habeed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a587f6/32.png) [@Habeed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Habeed)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/22 "2015-10-11T15:59:37Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > The same logic applies to non-flying cars. You aren’t strapped next to an engine with 10 times or more the power output, coupled mechanically to some spinning propellers in a regular car. If you run out of gas in a regular car or have some other failure, it is not an emergency in most situations. You aren’t going in excess of 100 mph. You can afford to put a lot more crash absorption materials in a heavy ground car than a lightweight tin can structure of an aircraft. C’mon, LSL, you know all this. Regular cars are nowhere near as dangerous as regular cars that can fly, if the same level of inspections were done, and anybody could hop in the pilot’s seat after having taken a test once when they were 16. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/23 "2015-10-11T18:31:26Z")
> [@stosh](#): > > Considering how many of us kill ourselves on the roads every year, I’m not sure that flying cars are a good idea, unless you can remove human error. > In fact, it would, probably, be better to not let the humans do anything at all. Mmm. Quite frankly I’m paranoid enough about car accidents without the thought of a flying car careening down into my house from 35,000 feet in the air at 250 mph. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/24 "2015-10-11T19:26:08Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > The same logic applies to non-flying cars. Not really. Most mechanical failures in cars do not result in accidents or injuries but rather just the motorist stranded on the side of the road. Most failures of driver attentiveness or impairment result in minor accidents on or adjacent to a road surface rather than a couple of tons of metal and fuel falling out of the sky in some random location. Pilots are licensed and aircraft regulated with regular maintenance requirements for this reason. For “flying cars” to be a reality, they would have to be so sophisticated as to be able to essentially fly themselves, and so failsafe as to be able to diagnose and remediate a propulsive or guidance failure and abort to landing before losing control. This just isn’t plausible with current technology even setting aside the energy and propulsion requirements. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/25 "2015-10-11T19:28:00Z")
> [@stosh](#): > > Considering how many of us kill ourselves on the roads every year, I’m not sure that flying cars are a good idea, unless you can remove human error. > In fact, it would, probably, be better to not let the humans do anything at all. Yeah. Self-driving cars that work pretty much perfectly are going to be a prerequisite for any flying car, since the consequences of human error are much greater. Then we can worry about the impossible physics. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/26 "2015-10-11T19:43:32Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Then we can worry about the impossible physics. “If you’ve done 6 impossible things this morning, why not round it off with breakfast at Milliways, the Restaurant at the End of the Universe?” [RIGHT]Douglas Adams, _The Restaurant at the End of the Universe_[/RIGHT] Stranger ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/27 "2015-10-11T20:05:37Z")
> [@Habeed](#): > > One cliched gripe is “it’s the future, where’s my flying car”. To me, I hear this as an indictment of technological progress - we humans are too stupid to have invented practical flying cars yet in 2015. That should become reality after the next Energy Revolution – perhaps by the end of the century. Many predictions in science and technology came true much later then expected. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/28 "2015-10-11T21:16:19Z")
I suppose the reason is that it would be enormously practical to have a vehicle that can drive on the roads like a car, but if necessary can ascend to the sky and hover/fly like a helicopter. The classic example being the [“spinner” vehicle from Blade Runner.](http://bladerunner.wikia.com/wiki/Spinner) In contrast, Luke’s land speeder from Star Wars is more of a hovercraft. It’s obvious benefit is that it is all-terrain. I should note that in most sci-fy interpretations of the flying car, they fly via some sort of anti-gravity, rather than jet propulsion. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145/29 "2015-10-11T21:18:33Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > Many predictions in science and technology came true much later then expected. When steam cars appeared in 1820s, many predicted that by 1850 they will displace carriages – which did not happen… Until 1920s. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anyone-ever-think-flying-cars-were-a-good-idea/734145.md?page=1)