Last Saturday night I fell in love.
With a car.
At the Detroit Auto show.
As my friend and I entered the showroom from the windowless grey office where our free-pass credentials (procured through her job at Ford) were approved by a weary, kind man with a plastic badge, I expected to be amused, entertained, intrigued - possibly even inspired, in a detached, aesthetic kind of way. But not certainly not impassioned.
And yet: just three steps into this indoor Times Square of automotive overstimulus, and my heart rate soared, my face popped a smile - like, a big goofy smile! - and I could almost feel my pupils dilate as my eyes darted from shiny surface to to chrome detail to sleek metallic-coated curve. But none of the beauties surrounding me - not the Ferraris, not the Minis, not even the Bentleys, posed so smugly in all their champagne-sleek, pale-butter-yellow-leather-interior glory - captured my imagination like the sculpted red temptress who lay in wait beneath a graphic chrome T, all blood-red glow and curves like cut muscle, with a bright yellow extension cord plugged right into her pert little rear.
With a car.
At the Detroit Auto show.
As my friend and I entered the showroom from the windowless grey office where our free-pass credentials (procured through her job at Ford) were approved by a weary, kind man with a plastic badge, I expected to be amused, entertained, intrigued - possibly even inspired, in a detached, aesthetic kind of way. But not certainly not impassioned.
And yet: just three steps into this indoor Times Square of automotive overstimulus, and my heart rate soared, my face popped a smile - like, a big goofy smile! - and I could almost feel my pupils dilate as my eyes darted from shiny surface to to chrome detail to sleek metallic-coated curve. But none of the beauties surrounding me - not the Ferraris, not the Minis, not even the Bentleys, posed so smugly in all their champagne-sleek, pale-butter-yellow-leather-interior glory - captured my imagination like the sculpted red temptress who lay in wait beneath a graphic chrome T, all blood-red glow and curves like cut muscle, with a bright yellow extension cord plugged right into her pert little rear.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you: my heart. my temptation. my shiny red revelation: the reason I can no longer call myself indifferent to all things automotive.
The Tesla Motors Roadster Sport Coupe.
A zero-to-60 in 3.9 seconds, 2x as efficient as a Prius wet dream of a gorgeous 100% ELECTRIC automobile, named after one of science's most brilliant madmen, who patented over 300 inventions (and in his later years fell in love with a white pigeon).
Sure, it costs over $120,000. But thanks to a government incentive (see below), you can get a $7,500 tax rebate with purchase, and pay just (!) $1,700 a month. And in 2011-2012, Tesla will bring out the Model S, a relative steal at $57,000.
OK yeah. So it's highly improbable that I'll ever be able to afford to take Ms. Tesla out for anything but a test spin. But I can't resent her for being out of my league. It wouldn't be fair. I respect her too much. C'mon, how can I not? She's first fully electric, highway-ready car in the US. No gears, no clutch. Flat-out acceleration with full-on torque as soon as your foot touches the gas.
Here's a Canadian car expert waxing technically poetic on the technology and the performance:
http://watch.bnn.ca/after-hours/november-2009/after-hours-november-17-2009/#clip236431
And here's the bite-your-knuckle website:
www.teslamotors.com.
Mind you, this is love at first sight, so I haven't done a full background check on the car or the company. But my Ford-employed friend did remind me that Tesla is the first new American car company since the Big Three, and noted that by deciding to produce a small volume of nothing but gorgeous electric-powered sports cars, they are carving out quite a niche for themselves.
And check out THIS out, posted on their webpage today:
U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced today that the U.S. Department of Energy has signed a $465 million loan arrangement agreement with Tesla Motors under the ATVMIP.
"We are honored that the US government selected Tesla to be among the first companies to participate in this visionary program. This loan will allow us to further accelerate the production of affordable, fuel-efficient electric vehicles."
- Elon Musk, CEO
This juicy little posting tells us two things: one, that the CEO of Tesla Motors has a name like a character out of Twilight, which only adds to the intrigue of the whole operation; and two, that the Feds are loaning this company money not because they might go under and bring the country down with them, but because they're doing something new, and green, and ballsy, and beautiful.
Be still my heart.
Be expansive, my wallet.
And be patient, my pedal foot.
A zero-to-60 in 3.9 seconds, 2x as efficient as a Prius wet dream of a gorgeous 100% ELECTRIC automobile, named after one of science's most brilliant madmen, who patented over 300 inventions (and in his later years fell in love with a white pigeon).
Sure, it costs over $120,000. But thanks to a government incentive (see below), you can get a $7,500 tax rebate with purchase, and pay just (!) $1,700 a month. And in 2011-2012, Tesla will bring out the Model S, a relative steal at $57,000.
OK yeah. So it's highly improbable that I'll ever be able to afford to take Ms. Tesla out for anything but a test spin. But I can't resent her for being out of my league. It wouldn't be fair. I respect her too much. C'mon, how can I not? She's first fully electric, highway-ready car in the US. No gears, no clutch. Flat-out acceleration with full-on torque as soon as your foot touches the gas.
Here's a Canadian car expert waxing technically poetic on the technology and the performance:
http://watch.bnn.ca/after-hours/november-2009/after-hours-november-17-2009/#clip236431
And here's the bite-your-knuckle website:
www.teslamotors.com.
Mind you, this is love at first sight, so I haven't done a full background check on the car or the company. But my Ford-employed friend did remind me that Tesla is the first new American car company since the Big Three, and noted that by deciding to produce a small volume of nothing but gorgeous electric-powered sports cars, they are carving out quite a niche for themselves.
And check out THIS out, posted on their webpage today:
U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced today that the U.S. Department of Energy has signed a $465 million loan arrangement agreement with Tesla Motors under the ATVMIP.
"We are honored that the US government selected Tesla to be among the first companies to participate in this visionary program. This loan will allow us to further accelerate the production of affordable, fuel-efficient electric vehicles."
- Elon Musk, CEO
This juicy little posting tells us two things: one, that the CEO of Tesla Motors has a name like a character out of Twilight, which only adds to the intrigue of the whole operation; and two, that the Feds are loaning this company money not because they might go under and bring the country down with them, but because they're doing something new, and green, and ballsy, and beautiful.
Be still my heart.
Be expansive, my wallet.
And be patient, my pedal foot.
An autoshow entry. Now, I know for certain that Detroit is in your heart.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I get a little excited whenever I see a new Maserati around town. Or an Audi R8.
Going to read up more on the car now. ...
ReplyDeleteEnjoy...& thanks for the comments. I'll keep my eyes open for you, in case there are any used Maseratis for sale at bargain prices in Detroit...:)
ReplyDelete