answer: John apologizes for being late. Shelly thinks it's because he got lost finding her house and begins to talk about smart cars which can give directions. John tells Shelly he's late because the gas ran out.
documents: #Person1#: I'm sorry. I'm late.
  #Person2#: That's all right. John. My house is not that easy to find. But you know you wouldn't have gotten lost if you had a smart car.
  #Person1#: A smart car? What's that?
  #Person2#: I just read a magazine article about some new technology that can make a car smart. One device is a computerized map display and an artificial voice. You just enter the address for where you want to go and the voice will tell you how to get there,street by street.
  #Person1#: Hey, that's just like my brother. He never gets lost and he's always telling me the best route. So what else will the smart cars be able to do?
  #Person2#: Well, the article says there'll be a device with read-on warning systems that will warn drivers with a long signal if they're getting too close to other cars. And they will even put on brakes if the drivers don't.
  #Person1#: Tell me, Shelly. Will these cars be smart enough to fill themselves up with gas?
  #Person2#: Not by now. Why do you ask?
  #Person1#: I'm not late because I got lost. I'm late because I ran out of gas on the way over there.