Tesla have just announced that their Model S sedan will now come with an optional ludicrous speed mode. This promises to push the hyperactive buzz box to 100 kph in around 2.8 seconds. To put that into context the quickest bus I have owned will do it in about 4.4 seconds and a $3,000,000.00 plus Bugatti Veyron will do it in about 2.7 seconds. The table below which I snipped from Bloomberg is a little bit embarrassing for some vastly expensive European makes.
The video below shows peoples reaction to Tesla’s current insane mode offering
A work colleague and his dad test drove a tesla on the Kew Boulevard in Melbourne recently. They don’t want any other car than that now. The silence and performance have won them over, combined with the price. A very different driving experience they both said, ie not using the brakes just pushing or lifting the accelerator to go or slow, and everything in silence with no engine noise.
I wonder will this be the norm for all cars soon or will internal combustion/hybrid remain? Retooling manufacturing lines and plants around the world is a big cost, but if Tesla keeps selling like it does, manufacturers might have to or lose significant market share. Like my work colleague, who wants nothing else.
The world is changing but very few people seem to understand that. The car industry has had over a century to do something interesting but all we got were engines that converted chemical energy into noise and this occurred simply because they were lazy and it was easy. As Henry Ford said – “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”
The car industry has for decades simply given us faster horses.