Cool car or tree hugger??

[jordanthompson]

I answer "yes". I bought it for both reasons. I take our Roadster to muscle car and super car events and it's usually the quickest car there. I take it to EV events and it's always the greenest.
And it always gets the most attention

 

[LetsGoFast]

100% cool -- which I'm guessing includes both crazy fast and nerdy, both of which are big hot buttons for me. I'm glad its eco-friendly, but that was no factor in my decision at all. I would never in a million years buy a Prius.

 

[lolgas]

100% cool -- which I'm guessing includes both crazy fast and nerdy, both of which are big hot buttons for me. I'm glad its eco-friendly, but that was no factor in my decision at all. I would never in a million years buy a Prius.

haha yeah same here!

 

[mikeash]

Yes!

I love the Tesla because I can own a fantastic car and be environmentally responsible at the same time. I don't have to choose! I love that my car has almost 400hp. I love that it looks awesome. I love that it burns no gasoline and is extremely efficient. I love that it's so cheap to "fill up" that lots of places will give it to me for free. I love that it doesn't put out noxious fumes. I love that I don't have to choose between being responsible and being cool. The only downside is the price.

There's a lingering perception that being environmentally conscientious means making your life suck. Conservation meant sitting around in the dark and cold (or heat if it's summer time) and driving a horrible car, if you drove one at all. Not so anymore! I can conserve and still have a fantastic car (although I won't kid myself about the environmental impact, and I know that going without would still be far superior in that respect), LEDs have become good and cheap so my nights can still be brightly lit, my furnace and air conditioner are highly efficient and my house is well insulated so I use little energy for climate control....

So, yeah, bad question. Conservation is cool.

(If you can afford it. We should all have a goal of making it affordable to everyone. Which seems to be Tesla's angle.)

 

[rickgt]

Cool, fast, classy, techy, and then the green factor.... NO GAS....

 

[Half Dollar Bill]

I bought the car because I wanted to stop paying ridiculous gas prices. I wanted off gasoline totally, so was not looking for a hybrid. I found the Tesla and it met the requirements of range and no gas. After the test drive, I wanted it because it is the best car available now.
My better half wanted it for environmental reasons.

This.
And then I turned into a tree hugger.
I agree with the posts that this is simply the best car out there. If by talking to a few folks or giving a couple test drives I can sway people to either look at the car or EV's in general as a viable and incredibly fun transportation option, then I'm happy to do it. More people should be driving EV's and they won't regret getting an MS.

 

[Mr X]

Just tell them "hop in" or "lets go for a ride"


A Prius is a turd on wheels, Model S is a sexy spaceship/computer on wheels lol


and its kind of the best car available so there's that...

 

[dhrivnak]

I answer "yes". I bought it for both reasons. I take our Roadster to muscle car and super car events and it's usually the quickest car there. I take it to EV events and it's always the greenest.
And it always gets the most attention ��

+1

Same here, it is half the cost to drive as a Prius, and a lot more fun

And yes like most Tesla owners we have upped the anti by adding rooftop solar so we can drive emission free. I thought most American's wanted to be self sufficient?
Driving on Sunshine - Page 17 (at least most who have taken the poll)

 

[Max*]

Cool car mostly. My wife approved it because she's more environmentally friendly than I am.

Though I wouldn't spend this much money on an ICE...

And people who know I ordered one all tell me I could've gotten a Prius or Leaf for a fraction of the cost, as if I didn't realize?

 

[lorih]

I got into Tesla because it was green, and the coolest tech, and the best car on earth!

I am not ashamed that I care about people with respiratory problems that live in cities, or global extinction, or wars over oil.

The funny thing is I HATE oil and gas, but now I've gotten so into Tesla, I've also gotten more into cars in general. I love reading specs on expensive luxury sedans and super muscle cars and laughing at how silly it would be to spend money on that, when you could own a Tesla instead.

I go to car shows now with my sig (that is significant other, but he does own and Sig Model S), and I spend most of my time looking at the really classic cars (pre 1970's), or the really sleek new sports cars. My sig laughs at me because whenever I see a Lotus I tell him, "I feel bad for the car. It really wanted to be a roadster, but just didn't make the bunch."

 

[AmpedRealtor]

I love the Tesla because I can own a fantastic car and be environmentally responsible at the same time.... Conservation is cool.

I agree 100% and well said!

Performance isn't top on my list, my last car was a Prius. I bought that car because I couldn't stomach giving my money to another car company that did absolutely nothing to make its cars friendlier to the environment. In 2007 when I bought my Prius here in Arizona, I would get frequent waves and people asking me about the car. It felt odd getting that kind of attention for a car that cost under $30,000.

The Prius sort of parted the clouds for me and showed me that car companies can make a difference if they try. I decided that my next car would be all electric or nothing, because the Prius showed me that gasoline was on its way out. It's difficult to sink money into a dying technology after you've seen a better way. Unfortunately, no other EV fit the bill until the Model S. That's why I spent 2x-3x what I've ever spent before on my most expensive automobile. And since I was already spending so much money, what's another $10,000 for a performance model? lol

I dislike how the term "tree hugger" is used in a pejorative way by some. We should all be "tree huggers" to some extent, and we should embrace concern for the environment because we are a product of that environment and rely on the healthy continuation of that environment for life. I'm quite proud that I drive a car that is helping to clean up the air that we breathe, lowering the risk of cancer and respiratory disease, doesn't expose women to compounds that may cause birth defects, etc. The USA will never go to war with another country to secure a supply of fuel for my car - it's provided by the solar panels on my roof. When I see the brown ring of smog on the horizon when I look east towards Phoenix, I'd like to think I poked a tiny, little hole in that brown wall with my individual actions.

 

[Jaff]

I think for most Tesla owners, it is not an "either or" answer.

I think most really enjoy driving the car, and most are proud to be doing our part to reduce emissions.

So I've been getting this question a few times per week now and it's pretty annoying:

"Are you really a tree hugger or did you buy the Tesla because you think it's cool?"

Of course there's a cool factor by owning a Tesla, especially being an IT geek like myself since I'm essentially driving a computer on wheels, however what kills me is the tree hugger part. I think it's pretty important for everyone to care about the environment and the state we'll be leaving it in when we're long gone but I do also own a Tahoe for hauling around the family and I use a gasoline lawn mower so what does that make me... I feel there's a sense of jealousy, not to sound pompous, from those who take the time to ask such a silly question. I've also been told by complete strangers that I could have saved thousands by buying a Prius...SMH

Feel free to share your stories...

 

[Thud]

For me these are my reasons in order of priority (top first)

1) It's damn cool technology
2) It's fast
3) No more dealing with freaking car dealers!
4) Environment something something, I suppose

 

[Jaff]

I think that it is wrong to broad-brush those who have different levels of environmental consciousness as "tree huggers"...I find tree hugger to be a term increasingly used in a derogatory sense by knuckle-dragging, mouth-breathing Neanderthal ICE drivers...:wink::biggrin:

I have yet to have that comment, I'm not sure what a tree hugger is. There are extremes to everything in life, if you are concerned about the environment which everyone should be then you will try to do things that do not impact it in a bad way. I would say for me it is more about not supporting the petroleum companies who would like you to believe they are environmentally aware based on there commercials. I installed solar because I want to minimize my payments to our monopolistic power companies. Does it make me feel good to power my house and car with the sun and that I do not have to buy gas, absolutely, if that qualifies as a tree hugger then I guess I'm one.

 

[igotzzoom]

Certainly the environmental-friendliness aspect is appealing to me, but not at the expense of functionality or practicality. It's the same reason I won't drive a Leaf, e-Golf, Focus Electric or even a Soul EV (although I did look at and drive one). Still hypothetical at this point, since I'm holding out for the Model 3. But assuming it has 200+ mile real-world range, and will be under $50k equipped the way I want, it will definitely be my next car. I consider myself a gearhead, and like others have said, I would never consider driving a Prius. I briefly considered a Volt. If the M3 is more than 36 months away, then I might fold and get something else, but if deliveries will happen sometime in 2018, I'll wait.

 

[paulkva]

When I was car shopping, I was looking for something that's fun to drive and gets decent gas mileage. Unfortunately with ICE those are frequently mutually exclusive, but I couldn't justify the shorter-range EVs for a variety of reasons, one of which is very few models are even sold in Virginia. I was also hoping for a decent manual transmission (vetoed by my wife) or at least an automatic that you could manually shift to improve my level of control (and fun!).

Model S has the fun part in spades (with no need for shifting gears), and it completely redefined "decent gas mileage" for me. The cool technology and environmental aspects were just side-bonuses in my view. But I've since become a huge fan of the OTA software updates, and I've also started following environmental and energy issues a bit more closely.

I don't drive far enough in a year to make the Model S a financially sound purchase, but looking at any other performance or luxury car, even at half the price, I couldn't justify the expense to myself.

If that makes me a tree hugger, then so be it.

 

[brucet999]

A grateful nation thanks you for your sacrifice.

- - - Updated - - -

Lolgas, one other reason to drive an electric car is that it conserves non-renewable petroleum resources for future generations.

 

[kaiserpathos]

Tree hugger with a cool car, probably me in a nutshell according to my family recently. I recycle, too. lol

Drive The Car Around The World - YouTube

 

[Lerxt]

Tree hugger is a term that implies something to be ashamed of. On the contrary, I'm a proud tree hugger as well as a tech guy.

 

[bonnie]

Hahah. I get silly questions like that all the time when I'm driving my Roadster. Clearly it's someone's attempt to put you down. And answering their question allows them to frame the conversation. Don't fall for that. Own it!

My answer is always, "Have you driven a Tesla??!? OMG, it's so fun to drive. Why would you care WHY? The question should be 'HOW SOON CAN I GET ONE OF MY OWN??'"