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Comment by davidgould | Hacker News Reader

Surely some of those autopilot miles involved drunks, so they shouldn't be excluded entirely.

Indeed, but likely at a lower rate than the general public. In any case the general idea is to find as fair a comparison as possible with the Tesla published numbers.

I suspect $60k BMW owners driving on the highways in good weather are much safer per mile than random folks in random cars on random roads in random weather.

while I generally agree with your point, that new cars with great braking, enhanced safety and in perfect technical conditions are safer than average, I'm not entirely convinced if BMW is the right make for this kind of examples

edit: typo

Heh, ok, pick any luxury car priced similarly to the Tesla.

It's odd that so many of the comments on the self driving threads make this assumption that drivers of expensive cars are safer than drivers of inexpensive cars. It is just part of the classist bias that attaches virtue to wealth? Or is there some data that suggests that a Mercedes driver is a better driver than a Kia driver?

BMW drivers are stereotypical bad...

I don't know of data, but the high cost of a Mercedes over a Kia means that the average driver is likely to be older and young drivers are a known risk factor in accidents.

It's a combination of things. For instance drivers are statistically more likely to have accidents at 18 than 50. Drivers are more likely to have an expensive car than 50 than 18. Being less financially secure often means you are trying to keep an old junker with crappy brakes going when young.

Also risky behavior like speeding, DUI, driving aggressively, passing when unsafe, etc are generally more common when young.

Sure individuals vary, but just look at the cost of insurance to verify.

Do BMWs have a bad safety track record?

I believe the parent poster is referring to the stereotype that BMW drivers have an aggressive and selfish driving style, and that they never use their indicators/blinkers.

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