The distant future of hot rods?

[Tommy]

Several tech advances and news stories have been swirling in my head, making me wonder what the world of hot rods (including Cobra replicas) will be like in 30 years. I don't expect to be here to see for myself, so I thought some of us might speculate on how things will be. Here are the stories that got me thinking.

• Lookheed expects to market 100 MW fusion reactors, small enough to fit in the back of a truck in about ten years.
• The USA is expected to be the world leader in the production of both oil and natural gas by 2015. Saudis worried about dramatic falls in oil prices.
• Automakers are steadily making cars more responsible for driving actions. Self driving cars that communicate with similarly equipped cars are expected to be the norm in about 20 years.

Falling oil and energy prices are plainly good news for hot rodders. Cleaner energy production is also good news for hot rodders who are currently more a part of the problem than of the solution. All this bodes well unless it accelerates the transition to electric cars to the point that gas stations become as rare in the future as electric recharging stations are now.

Can you imagine a time when hot rodders with powerful electric motors are as enthralled by the silence of their rides as we are of the rumbles and roars of our cars? Will it get to the point where the cars with the most powerful motors are so quiet that their drivers will look down on the pitiful guys still driving gasoline engine cars? Will there ever be a Cobra replica with a Mr. Fusion reactor in the back (ala Back to the Future)?

One of the anticipated benefits of computer guided and networked self driving cars is the ability to move more cars down the road in less time. For example, if there are 250 such cars moving down the freeway and a patch of open highway appears ahead of them, all 250 can accelerate simultaneously to the same higher speed without generating the accordion motion common in manually driven cars. They can also shuffle the cars that need to take the next three exits to the right places to do that without impacting the rest of the pack. But it only works if all the cars are networked AND self driving. So where will hot rodders fit into this world? Will the times and places that hot rods can be driven start to narrow? Will hot rods find themselves in the same category with golf carts? Will you have to trailer your hot rod to the next event behind your self driving truck? Will hot rods be as welcome and as rare on future highways are horses are on current roads?

So what do you think the future holds? Feel free to expand on the list of technologies you think may change the hobby.

[bliss]

Well, the hot rod era ended around 1970.

Therefore, you are talking about an entirely different subject. Get a grip.

[Buzz]

Interesting questions to ponder, Tommy. I assume you mean the future of current hot rods and not the hobby of hot rodding itself. I think (speaking about North America) guided networked navigation for individual vehicles will become a reality at some point, but it will likely be used only on high traffic arteries within and between major metropolitan areas; and will only be accessible to cars built - or retrofit - with the necessary systems and equipment.

Cars will still need to be able to leave the grid and navigate conventional traffic routes so the automobile as we know it as an independently-drivable device will probably be around for some time to come. At some point, as grid navigation expands, car manufacturers may be mandated to make auto-nav standard equipment on all vehicles built and sold in the US.

The greatest impact on the future of gasoline powered cars will be environmental regulations and the development of practical alternate energy sources. I love our gas-powered cars, but I'm also excited by the performance potential of electric power. Massive, flat powerbands from zero to a gazillion RPM's, individual motors at each wheel, unheard of control over dynamics, braking, traction and stability - these cars will take performance to a whole new level.

Packaging flexibility in the absence of big motors, transmissions and fuel tanks will open up car design to envelope-pushing shapes and layouts that will obliterate conventional limitations and paradigms of comfort, utility, ergonomics and aesthetics. Contrary to many who fear the death of automotive passion, I believe we are approaching the beginning of the most exciting revolution in the automotive world since the 50's and 60's.

The bad news is that gasoline power will not fit into that future scenario and will be on a certain track towards extinction. The good news is that it will take a very long time. First will be their exclusion from networked navigation highways and arteries. Then they will only be able to be operated in specific areas - most likely outside of central and downtown metropolitan areas. Gas stations will be fewer and further between, and lower volume combined with environmental levees and penalty-taxes will make fossil fuel very, very expensive. Gas-powered hot rodding will be around for a long time to come, but it will eventually become a niche hobby, much like vintage WWII airplanes are today - practiced by a small niche of committed hobbyists and limited to regulated use at specialized events in controlled locations.

As we die off, the hue and cry over the dismantling of our hobby will taper off and fade away. The majority of younger enthusiasts will be enthralled and captivated by the sleek, silent supercars with their revolutionary shapes and high-tech features; and the morphing, shape-changing SUV's that adapt to different terrain and crawl over off-road obstacles like mechanized insects.

I'm 90% convinced all of this will happen sooner than later, but I also know that in that quiet and sterile world, a grizzled old stalwart will roll an ancient looking car out into the daylight and fire it up near a group of citizens. The blast from the exhaust pipes will shatter the serenity and make neck hairs stand on end. A little boy will stare first in fear, then in awe at that thundering primitive beast and be absolutely blown away by the sound and the look and its raw, elemental nature. That day a brand new hot rodder will be born. It will happen every time an old hot rod is driven and a small but passionate population of old-school hot rodders will continually be supplied and replenished.

The world will change around our hobby, but the truth is it will never, ever die.

[Buzz]

Electric Cobra circa 2045

[Tommy]

Bliss - perhaps you should offer to serve as Hot Rod Magazine's official arbiter of all things hot rod. I'm sure they'd appreciate it as much as I do.

Buzz,
Thanks for the thoughtful and eloquent response.