Toyota's new truck makes off-roading simpler -- 'more civilized' - Fortune
While Toyota has dominated the midsize pickup truck segment with Tacoma, General Motors Co. rejoined the segment last year with Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon, and both have proven to be strong sellers. The new Tacoma — which fans call the “Taco” — can be equipped with “crawl control,” a high tech system of computerized sensors and controls. True, but the new feature might also make the new Tacoma appear soft or sissified compared with those off-road models that require more touch and coordination with brake pedal and accelerator. Crawl control is the latest automotive high-tech gadget that precludes the judgment and driving skill of the person behind the wheel in order to deliver performance that, in theory, will avoid errors and slip-ups. Toyota’s new Tacoma has a computer and sensors that apply brakes and gas automatically to each wheel. It’s the latest gadget that is leading to self-driving cars, which need little or no driver input. By automating braking, cornering accelerating, lane-changing and navigation in a more comprehensive fashion, engineers at Google and elsewhere can build vehicles that can drive themselves. In off-roading situations, conventional four-wheel-drive vehicles with high ground clearance may be able to avoid getting stuck. Source: fortune.com
