The driverless car: tech's gift to those who like to get frisky in the backseat

People have sex in cars. Period. At car washes, in car parks, at scenic lookouts and even, sometimes at full throttle, on the road. A survey conducted by sex therapist Justin Lehmiller found 77% of participants admitted to fantasising about having sex in vehicles.

These stats made an impact on a newly published paper in the Annals of Tourism Research that reviewed studies relating to both cities and autonomous (or driverless) vehicles to identify growing trends.

Researchers found that autonomous vehicles (AVs) could have a profound impact on the way people conduct their sex lives.

"Besides sleeping, what other things will people do in cars as soon as they're free from the task of driving?" asks Scott Cohen, who led the study. Cohen is the deputy director of research of the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the University of Surrey in the UK. "And you can see that in the long association of cars and sex that's represented in just about every coming-of-age movie. It's not a big leap."

AVs interiors will be better designed for a range of activities that involve less stick shift and more space. But it's not all hands off deck just yet. Even with the most advanced AVs, like Volvo's semi-autonomous vehicles, there should be a human being behind the wheel to take control in case something goes wrong.

Still, despite having to watch the road, a study found nearly 60% of all Americans have had sex in their car. SA is no different. Police spokesperson senior superintendent Vish Naidoo told Sowetan a few years ago that "parked cars are arguably the most popular place for couples to engage in public sex".

Artificial intelligence will no doubt soon lead to new embarrassments, interesting car-crash insurance statements and create subject matter for movie scenes as it monitors the road leaving our hands free.