March 28, 2013: Steve Gets A Model S . . . Fnord!

In Car Wars, the vehicles don't burn gas. They're pure electric.

I am SO there.

This is my new ride. I've been driving a Toyota Corolla for more than ten years. Now, the Corolla may not have any Elvis in it, but it's really a very fine little car. I bought it used and intended to keep it only long enough to shop for something bigger. But the Corolla worked, and just kept working, and there was never any real need to replace it.

Then I started reading about the Tesla Model S. It's not a hybrid. It doesn't burn gas at all. It's a pure, 100% electric car. And it's not small. There's a lot of space for passengers, and lots of cargo space both fore and aft. There's no engine, so what it's got under the hood is . . . luggage. Or, in my case, a dozen boxes of Lego.

You may have heard about the Tesla waiting list. Some people waited more than three years after they put down their deposit. I finalized my order on January 30 of this year and took delivery March 1. How did this happen? Perhaps I ordered exactly what their factory was ready to build right then. Perhaps it was the Illuminati.

So what's it like to drive? Niiiice. The only noise inside is the tires. With a half-ton of batteries under the floor, it has a low center of gravity, so it corners well. Tesla claims it does 0-60 in 5.6 seconds. It feels like less. And I didn't even go for the "performance model." In the picture, I look kind of serious. This is an illusion. When I am behind the wheel, I am grinning.

Executive summary: This is not exactly the Car Wars future, and I'm glad. But it is definitely the future.

-- Steve Jackson