Every time someone asks me what I want to do with my life, I always say, “car journalist.” The usual response is, “What are your thoughts on Tesla?”
So, I thought I would address the masses at once instead of saying the same thing all over again. Tesla is one of the most disruptive, transformative, and coolest car manufacturers in history.
Tesla cars manage to pull something off that an extremely low number of other cars can: effortlessness. This is the key to Tesla’s “cool factor.”
The minimalist interior design that involves almost or all of the controls living in one massive central screen and the hidden air vents, among other elements, all give an aura that says that the car isn’t even breaking a sweat.
The electric powertrain only adds to this. One of the defining traits of electric motors is that they create almost no noise. The Model S makes going from zero to 60 miles per hour in a bit over two seconds (one of the fastest production car times ever) look like child’s play.
This acts as the icing on the cake, and the fact that it does this in complete silence puts the cherry on top.
Being an almost 5,000-pound luxury sedan that does this just adds to the sense of extreme capability.
There is nothing wrong with the look of the Model 3, but there’s no art. Nothing that makes my jaw drop and my heart sing. It looks like it was designed by spreadsheets and shaped by the almighty dollar.
The Model S though is what has my attention. It was designed by Henrik Fisker, one of the all-time great automotive artists. It is simply a design of beauty and is easily one of the top 10 coolest cars ever.
That brings us to the Cybertruck; call me crazy, but the first thing I thought of when I saw it was a Lamborghini Countach on stilts. I love the fact that it’s different, and utilitarianism in its most tasteful and artsy form. However, that sloping roofline renders the rear seats useless. It needs to perform, not just as good as, but better than its competitors in order to back up those ambitious lines.
The final reason Tesla is so cool is its CEO, Elon Musk. That man has a gift; there is no reason a normal human should be this eccentric. He laughs in the face of danger and appears to be so unconcerned with not just his company’s, but also his own downfalls, that the rest of us begin to feel the same way.
Now please, ask me something else.
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