@Mike from Boston: How is that draconian? That's already in effect in various States.

Draconian would be not only executing drunk drivers, but also executing speeders, jaywalkers, people who spit on the sidewalk, and anyone who misses the trash can while depositing litter.

Your plan is known as "alternative sentencing", is usually what drunk drivers get, and is about as draconian as Outward Bound for a juvie gangbanger.

omg-ponies

Once I achieve Total World Domination™ one of my draconian measures would be the requirement that all repeat drunk driving offenders have neon orange bumpers to alert the world of their hazardous presence on the road. I can see this technology lending itself well to my evil plans...

Mike from Boston

I'm sure there will be some sort of insulated clear outer coating to prevent you from getting zapped

burningsensation

Add a couple of cameras, automate the pigment shifting process, and you'll have yourself an invisible car!

rkr215

That would be hot.
Im sure the current isnt dangerous or anything and they'll probably develop a cover that doesnt conduct electircity. That would act as a see through vynl and you could touch it all you want without getting electrocuted. Maybe a little bit of static.
I already see Angelina Joelie getting into her car looking beautiful. When she gets out her hair is in an afro puff. of the static.

SneakerFiend

@Mike from Boston: agreed with both statements

demonwolf

If it's a small current, there's no reason to think of it going white when you turn off the car.
Why? Simply because the battery doesn't exactly die when you turn your engines off.
Minor adjustments on the electronics of the car would be enough.

But it's not that bad having a standard color for when it's parked...

Bokusatsu_Tenshi

@gamble: You don't remember that puke pale turquoise that was all the rage in 1992? Or maybe the avocado green of the 70's?

Name any ugly color - it's been on an economy car.

omg-ponies

@Kaiser-Machead: Pshaw.

There's nothing wrong with the old method of making psychedelia appear to move - LSD. It's a helluva lot cheaper and gives memories to last a lifetime.

omg-ponies

Hippie dream car. Now all that psychedelic shit can be animated.

Kaiser-Machead

This sounds like the ultimate thing to hack!! Make it so you can flow through colors/designs/shapes using a program so you're not limited to a static color. It will be worse than spinners b/c the car could be made to look like it's still moving! Put pressure sensors into a polymer shell and you could make ripples appear on the surface like water!! Sell ads on your car. The possibilities are endless!! =-D

BigDanInTX

Didn't Subaru do this with their SVX already?

LoganSix

This would probably be what the military is looking for. Imagine camo-paint that could change to the matching color-scheme of the surroundings. Just awesome.

Visp3r

Why not temporarily toggle the paint color when you hit a button on the remote? Certainly that's a lot more visible during the day than a beep or blinking headlights.

@OUTLANDERSSC: KITT had his license plate flipper... I'm surprised that license plate number obscuring technology hasn't advanced since.

dingus

@Monty: "ARE YOU USERNAME LADIESMAN217?!?"

Nintenboy01

I'd like my car to shed its paint instead. That way I wouldnt have to clean it.

Zenshai

@Mike from Boston:

Sounds like a problem for law enforcement as well.

I doubt it would seem quite as funny when cops are using this to disguise their vehicle.

Monty

@ester: That reminds me of the Magna-Volt commercial from RoboCop 2.

Nintenboy01

Wouldn't changing colors while driving be somewhat of a distraction? I thought that was part of the reason you're not supposed to drive with ground effects lit up.

Luke

Can you pick any color you want at any time, or do you get a limited selection to choose from? It would be awesome if you could choose from the Photoshop palette!

atomx

Another great application: keep it white on hot sunny days to reflect sunlight rather than absorb it and heat up the car.

So in addition to enabling criminal getaways, blowing up gas stations and zapping exposed skin, it also facilitates leaving pets and/or babies locked up in your car while you hit the mall for several hours.

Mike from Boston

@Mike from Boston: Which brings up another good point. This could result in many cars with the ugliest paint choices ever. Do we really want to subject ourselves to that?

gamble

If it's a "small amount of current" then perhaps a small solar panel imbedded somewhere on the car roof could provide enough current when parked to keep your car whatever sharp color you wanted. At least when it's sunny and daylight (and who cares when it's dark?).
What would be really cool would be if you could set different parts to different colors. Actually, on second thoughts, that might be lead to fleets of awfully garish cars.

wjousts

@prodigal_son: hahaha, i was just thinking that! if this becomes the "new thing" for car manufacturers, i think we'll start seeing a surge of exploding gas stations all around the world.

Georgio

If the police get a good look at you and your car and plate, you're probably as good as caught. However, sometimes all you get is a quick glance as the offending car speeds off after a hit-and-run, running a redlight, etc.

Another plus is that the color of your car won't affect resale value so much, so if you really want that neon pink Miata, go for it!.

Mike from Boston

still, i want it bad

prodigal_son

You have all missed a pretty big concern..

If the paint holds a charge, even a small one, you will go KABLAM at the petrol station.

Its already a concern with static discharge, but this kind of thing is just asking for it.

prodigal_son

Guy gets in the car for the first time, starts to drive. He's enjoying it. Merging onto the interstate he floors it, and rolls down the window. "This is comfortable!" Then he relaxes, and puts one arm out the window when 'BZZZZRT!!!!'
"What the hell was that?!"
Car dealer: "Oh yeah! That's the paint."

tek_nic

What Macbandit said. And or a sensor that can tell them which cars were recently color swapped to and from something.

SinisterSkull

What will happen is that there will be a DOT RFID chip in every car and the cops will have a directional antenna built into their radar/laser guns. This way they can identify the car without ever seeing your license plate.

MacBandit

Im still waiting on the scratch and sniff auto-paint.

Michai

you have to register a cars colour on your MOT certificate (in the UK) meaning, every nissan would be registered as White, and once you change colour you are breaking the law

thistle.john

@Elliuotatar: I think the point stands either way. Just because the color changes does not mean they will be fooled. Make and model play into it as well. As much as we would like to think it is that easy to fool the cops, they are trained to observe more than just the color of a car. Additionally, if this does make it to market, they will be aware of it.

The bigger question is, since it has some electric current required to maintain a color, will you be shocked by it? or better yet, will some unsuspecting car-jacker be shocked by it.

ester

@omg-ponies:
Better yet, use color changing paint to instantly change the numbers on the plate -

outlanderssc

Flash:
Uh, he's talking about speeders, not carreer criminals whom the cop have a license plate for.

Elliuotatar

Actually, that's even better. You get the color you want when you're driving, and you get the best color to reflect the hot sun when you're not.

Stang70Fastback

@FlashSandbox: So then swap out the plate.

omg-ponies

Cops wouldn't be fooled by the color. They'd be looking for YOU in a car with your plates. If they're comin' for you, they know what you look like and at least the state from which you've come. It wouldn't be hard to figure it out.

If you have a convertible, putting the top down doesn't fool the cops.

FlashSandbox

Re: the white car issue... Can't they find a way to duplicate that e-ink or whatever they use in that sony ebook reader?

lm

@MIKE FROM BOSTON
@MURPH1908

You've just raised an issue as to why these things may never see the light of day.

I hope they do thought, it'd be so awesome!

SnowLeopard

@Mike from Boston:

Yeah, how sweet would it be to see the cop that was headed in the opposite direction start to turn around to pull you over. You go around a curve and flip the switch, and he smokes past you with his lights on looking for the red car. Hehe.

Murph1908

I don't see that as a problem. Leave the store, press your key fob and your car changes to a preset color and really makes it easy to find your car among all the white ones.

Mr. Moto

Sounds like a problem for law enforcement as well.
I want one!

Mike from Boston

Something tells me Police Officers will become aware of this. Cars are licensed by make, model, year, and color. The color for these will simply read "var."

I would imagine that manufacturers will make it impossible to alter the color while the car is running. Cities and States will also worry that a color changing car will be too great of a distraction for other drivers and will make it illegal to change color while driving.

Ess

@prodigal_son: If there are even working gas stations left by the time this technology is available to consumers. Maybe by then we'll all have Mr. Fusion devices on our cars.

deusdiabolus

[en.wikipedia.org])

foureight84

man this would make one heck of a getaway car. this is like that show back in the 90's called "viper", [en.wikipedia.org]).

foureight84