997 blown away - just rode in a Tesla
 

2009 C2S 130K miles

Folks.... um.... the internal combustion engine will be dead. So will most of the automobile-related business in the USA and world.

My friend just got a new Tesla (traded in an older model). I don't know the model numbers... but four door sedan with all wheel drive. 0 to 60 in 2.5 seconds....... did you just read that? 0 to 60 in 2.5 seconds. Unbelievable.... just unbelievable. He put it in "ludicrous mode". Does anyone really know what that kind of full torque feels lilke? Sheesh.

Look, it is not a Porsche sports car ... the interior is still spartan... modern but you would never describe it as opulent... Good looking car... not spectacular, but a nice looking car. The car rode perfectly flat, no swish and was smooooth. Summary? I would never buy one... BUT... when this tech is properly applied to a sports car and my Porsche blows up.. well.... I will probably jump.

The big issue is how this disruptive tech will transform the auto-related industries all over the world..... and put millions out of work. Seriously.... just put people out of work. These cars have so few parts and subsystems.... the entire supply chain will be shortened. Maintenance costs will plummet... less parts and less complexity = less trouble. Electric cars will be, simply cheaper to buy and own.

As technology improves and innovation creates, job skills have always been upped. Each time this happens, millions of people lose their jobs and are simply left behind. Example: The industrial revolution put millions out of agriculture jobs.. the evil Henry Ford built tractors. Job requirements moved from physical strength to skills (agriculture to blue collar).... then to education-fueled skills (blue collar to white collar).... now to more complex education and flexibility skills (white collar to knowledge worker)....... The emergence of the electric car is the perfect example of an actual enabler of labor demand change.... and job loss... big job loss. The Grapes of Wrath all over again.

Change is a 'comin.

Peace
Bruce in Philly

That is only true if nothing important fails, but if it does... be ready to replace a myriad of sensors, controllers, cables, connectors, displays, etc., and open your wallet big time. Also... watch for Li-ion fires, not only your car, but your house if car is parked in garage. Be ready to enter the disposable e-car era.

If it doesn't make noise (not thru the audio speaker kind), I am not interested

Same here. Like that line from "Apocalypse Now"...I like the smell of napalm in the air.. Tesla no match for a flat six with the xpipe muffler delete or any Bmw inline six with the performance exhaust, V8/V10 sounds , smell of smoke/premium gas in the cabin, those mechanical sounds and rattles.etc. It's an event every time you drive. Tesla ludicrous mode is like a 3 second orgasm ....where as driving a 997 is the hour long foreplay/raw sex ..

My friends and I are going to open a chain of muffler/oil change shops specializing in Teslas...

We will see how these sell for 50-100+ k when the taxpayer supplied credits are gone. The affordable ones are econobox based. A low center of gravity is nice, in a car that weighs less than 4k pounds. Most cannot afford to upgrade electric in their homes to quick charge. The reliable Honda and Toyota versions won't be going 0-60 in 3 seconds, because that's ludicrous.

I do think a Porsche electric sportscar will sell, because there will buyers that don't mind paying top dollar for an automatic weekend driver that gets 2-3k miles a year that can outrun a Corvette stoplight to stoplight.

I just hope they are hacker proof.

Agree with Bruce that they are incredible machines and the future of transportation.
BUT they sure are f...g ugly! I don't get it that given a clean sheet and without
constraint they only came up with THAT. The model 3 is one of the ugliest designs ever IMHO>

Let's just say that the design of the S, X, and 3 will not endure the test of time. And let's not talk about production defects in a $50k golf cart:

I agree that the ICE will be dead in the near future. I think they're already obsolete. However, I had the opposite reaction you did after riding in a Tesla. The Tesla was amazing. It was nearly perfect: fast and smooth, like riding on a cloud. And I knew at that moment that one day a small, mechanical sports car that provided feedback to the driver would give something that no future car will be able to deliver. I bought the 997 a couple months later. Riding in a Tesla was the catalyst for me to pull the trigger on a 997.

When the hardware is too old and older model software updates aren't supported, they will be put in the crusher. In 10 years you have to wonder how much better it will work than a 10 year old iPhone 4.

I would tend to agree Bruce. My brother has the 80D(?) model. Amazing when you think about the fact that it needs no oil change, spark plugs, belts, etc...
What happens to oil filter manufacturers', distribution, and 'Jiffy Lubes', of the world?
Makes one wonder.

I'll risk getting flamed. I used to own a 997.2. It was awesome, but it was too compromised in terms of space and cargo capacity for my daily needs so I made the tough decision to sell it, fully expecting to replace it with something German and sporty like an Audi S4 or S5 Sportback... Curiosity got the best of me and I test drove a Model 3. The Tesla completely shattered my expectations and I now have a Long Range Dual Motor parked in my garage. I haven't been to a gas station since October.

The most surprising thing about the Tesla is the way it drives. If you miss the way German sedans used to feel, say 10-20 years ago back in the glory days of the E46, E39 and E90, you owe it to yourself to try one.