Waymo in SF v.s. imitation Lombard St. | JJRicks Rides With Waymo

[@MrJojo2go]

What a unique twisting video ride!!!! 👍🏻😁👍🏿🇨🇦🇵🇭🇺🇸

[@JJRicks]

@@MrJojo2go thank you!!

[@KevinChen5]

Weird that it got stuck again at the hospital drop off. You’d think it’s fairly obvious that all those cars are stalled/double parked.

[@JJRicks]

Right??

[@Luke_Starkenburg]

Interesting start with the hospital! You had to hail a new car to the same spot for double the trouble! ;-)

[@JJRicks]

Heh, exactly

[@Luke_Starkenburg]

Because of your suggestion, I rode down the curvy street twice! The first time was flawless, the second time, it stopped for no reason for about 15 seconds.

[@JJRicks]

Twice, nice!

[@Luke_Starkenburg]

16:50, good braking for the car in front of you reversing. As much as I enjoy Waymo, I’m now seeing many of the incredible maneuvers being done in my own Tesla. With V12, it is nearly as good as Waymo, except that it can not reverse yet, so no 3 point turns. (I enjoy having my own chapter named for me in your videos!! 😊)

[@Bobrogers99]

If Tesla and Waymo joined forces, they'd have a pretty good product!

[@BadL_]

@Luke_Starkenburg what tesla do you have?

[@Luke_Starkenburg]

I have an early production Model Y. I bought it in 2020. I really love the car except for the stiff suspension.

[@Luke_Starkenburg]

@@Bobrogers99I’ve been thinking this for years now, but it seems like Tesla is finally catching up to Waymo in the full self driving, and Tesla doesn’t need detailed maps of the area for it to work.

[@BadL_]

@@Luke_StarkenburgYup wish the suspension was better on my model 3 too. Really fun car though, fsd has done great

[@mark99k]

It's amazing how many people can live in SF for literally decades and not know about Vermont Street. Fun fact: Vermont Street actually more crooked (more curves) and steeper than Lombard. Just a little less scenic -- and of course a lot farther away from the main tourist spots.

[@blessguy5330]

The screen on this Waymo has the old visualizations. When I was In LA It showed cars Instead of boxes

[@JJRicks]

Yup, this filming session was April 3rd, just before they rolled out. But I did get access in video #147

[@Bobrogers99]

The remote team had to override Waymo's caution programming twice at the beginning! I suspect that they were being attentive because JJ was on another test ride. At 16:00, Waymo handled the double-parked vehicles without hesitation.

[@johnklawlor]

Do you get charged for the two minutes that the car is sitting there when it should be moving?

[@JJRicks]

Not that I know of; total price is quoted up front

[@ArielChelsau]

Even if you don't, it's inconvenient that you lose time.

[@petecoventry6858]

Do they have enough cars de to these reviewers tieing them up all day? Just asking as I am going to SF at the weekend and want to use Waymo

[@JJRicks]

I believe so, yes (I think I'm the only one that was riding for 7 hours lol)

[@petecoventry6858]

@@JJRicks lol excellent - well I am glad you do :)

[@findlisa5]

For Kevin and JJ: I just calculated the relative speed that that black Toyota sedan hit the Waymo on I-10 near Bundy Dr. on 5/13/2024 shortly after1 am at 86 - 35 = 51 mph. I believe the Waymo test driver was the one transported to an LA hospital after this crash, possibly with neck and/or back injuries. Question: In the near future, are you guys going to risk your health in testing Waymos on highways where a Waymo could drive dangerously slowly (this one appears to have been on I-10, not just on that ramp, at 65 - 35 = 30 mph below the speed limit) and encounter human drivers who are driving dangerous fast (this one was traveling 86 - 65 = 21 mph over the speed limit). Please think this over carefully. I'd hate to hear that either of you got hurt.

[@JJRicks]

Yes, I am. If waymo lets ME in, there ain't no way that thing is gonna kill me. Probably. Either way, I'm here for the content lol

[@JJRicks]

However I really really appreciate the heads up! Thanks for the insight

[@findlisa5]

@@JJRicks Thanks for your response. Yes, I pegged you to be ready to try highway rides, when Waymo will allow you too, of course. What about wearing a crash helmet and one of those NASCAR fire-retardant jumpsuits? Or sitting in the front seat, to be safer if hit from behind, which seems like how most Waymo highway collisions are going to occur, in the rare case that a Waymo gets hit. Please consider some of these strategies for your first HWY ride. That getup might boost your views, even if you consider it unnecessary. BTW, it seems like we are only a couple months away from Waymo providing their first consumer HWY trips in CA, since they got permission from CA regulators for HWY driving with test drivers present on 3/1, and they probably have been testing that way since just after that. My guess is that Waymo requests a permit to start offering consumer HWY rides in CA (w/o test drivers) later this summer, maybe first in the LA area, where we know they have been testing for going on 3 months. Yeah, if that is granted, your first chance could come there/then.

[@manp1039]

what's the name of the fake lombard street?

[@JJRicks]

Vermont St.