My roadster's first car show. Lots of Love plus some animosity from a few.

[coolVariable]

That looks like a ton of fun. I am also in LA. Will have to check this out when it happen next.

 

[strider]

Around here they don't call it Cars & Coffee - they call it Caffeine & Gasoline. Yes, EVs have a long way to go here... I do plan to show up at some point (I love educating people about Tesla's and EVs), just hasn't bubbled up to the top of my list for a Saturday morning.

 

[PhilMantel]

Definitely encountered the "animosity" you mention. Try entering your Tesla into a World of Wheels in the buckle of the bible belt. For 5 years I have entered my 69 Mustang Convertible, which always gets either first or second place. Last year I added a last minute entry with the Tesla, which is flawless. They didn't know it was an electric car, so I won first place under the "exotic car" category.

I love how you mention they way in which older people react to the car. When going to one of these car shows and just listening to people from various ages, you definitely would conclude that Tesla is the future. Seems like anyone around 40 and over knew next to nothing about Tesla or even that there was such a thing as an electric car, but if you listen to the around 30 and under crowd, they just gush over it.

This past year I entered the Tesla again, but with the following upgrades of fiberglass front spoiler and body side ducts, thus completing all of the exterior carbon fiber pieces available and I had gotten the R80 upgrade. However, this past year, they knew what the Tesla was and would be damned to let this impostor of a vehicle win. The Tesla got second place in just one category, losing to an ugly Corvette with a rebel flag painted on the underside of the hood.

 

[Roadster]

I submit the following to all the EV haters out there...

 

[gregd]

Mahatma Gandhi Quote: “First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win.”

 

[RossRAllen]

Pathetic old tech response to new tech! Even 10 year-old electric tech.

I’ve ridden in friends’ Ferraris. Most felt like a kit car with enough cargo capacity for a child’s lunchbox.

My SigX eats Ferraris for lunch.

 

[Tex EV]

We have Coffee and Cars here in Houston as well. People generally react well to the car. The only animosity I've noticed (toward EVs generally) was overhearing a couple of spectators say "that's the only Tesla a car guy could own". In the car enthusiast circles I've been around, Tesla owners are generally seen as gadget junkies who have no passion for "real cars". No ICE, no soul. Horse lovers probably said similar things about early adopters of automobiles at some point in history...

 

[nowtleft]

I took my newly purchased roaster to it's first car show this morning. Got lots of love plus some unexpected animosity from a few. It is a monthly show, called Coffee and Cars, just a couple miles from my residence. Probably more than 250 exotic plus many older restored cars showed up for the event. Needless to say, there was a lot of nice hardware there. A few things I learned. Many of the attendees were aware that some type of Tesla is scheduled to be launched into deep space. They did not know that it was the roadster that will be making the trip. Others thought that they were viewing a brand spanking new model just released by Tesla. When I told them they were viewing a 10 year old car they were very surprised. On the downside, some of the owners from the Ferrari group came over and were criticizing the whole concept of electric sports cars. Quite frankly, the tone of their voices was quite nasty. When I spoke of the 2020 Tesla roadster with a zero to 60 mph speed of 1.9 seconds, one of the guys face turned red and I though he was going to have a stroke on the spot. He replied that Tesla was just a tree hugging fad and walked away. Personally, I think many of these guys feel threatened by Tesla and the future of EV's. With that said, the other 90 percent of attendees I talked were very impressed with the roadster and really loved the styling. Just wanted to share with others here.
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I have a friend who owns 6 Ferrari’s worth a fortune but he smiled like child when I took him out in my modest p85. He is a real petrolhead but said he will replace his wife’s Range Rover with a model x in a couple of years. He was genuinely amazed at the acceleration of my car. He took me out in one of his Ferrari’s, rear engine, 500 made only.....very noisy and fast but felt old fashioned but I do understand the excitement of what he described as “having a rock band in the boot”. I prefer my shopping in my fruit!

 

[mpt]

I have to disagree with the notion that you should stay away from "...shows were most dudes are wearing Depend undergarments or look like a collection of old, fat gray Teletubbies." We have Cars & Croissants here in NJ and, not only do all the car guys show great interest in the Tesla (even the historic rodders... especially the ZZ Top ones), I even have one guy blast in on the back of a 911RS, crank his window down and shout, hey, hang on, we just got a new LEAF, let me go get it! He returned 15 mins later in the brand new LEAF. We have everything from Smart to X join. At the end of the day, these are 'car' guys, and they seem to come with far few prejudices than people who attend the NDEW events or even some green fairs.

The only 'faux pas' you can make (IME) is to try and tell them that your car is better. Just give them the stats, they'll come around, and they do, EV ownership amongst our owners of Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, Lotus, etc. etc. has climbed and climbed.

The best part of the events though is that they're respectful of the cars - they don't try to get in or let their children climb all over!

Cars & Croissants is the new show ground for EV adoption!

 

[ion_1]

I agree with @mpt, we don't live to far away from each other and I have to say it is age independent, at least around here. I've made it a point to have my most ICE oriented (race part fabricator/porsche-M3 owners), EV questioning friends drive my roadster. You don't understand seemless, shiftless application of torque until you drive. Everyone had a blank questioning face until I told them to open it up from near standstill. No matter how hard they tried they could not cold back the smile and near giggles. They were won over. At car shows it is a discussion of mutual respect. Most attendees want to learn, but don't preach, it goes both ways. I certainly appreciate the mechanical symphony of a Ferrari or silky boxer 6, but those days in terms of performance are basically over. However, they are still works of art (also).

 

[Roadster]

When I spoke of the 2020 Tesla roadster with a zero to 60 mph speed of 1.9 seconds, one of the guys face turned red and I though he was going to have a stroke on the spot. He replied that Tesla was just a tree hugging fad and walked away.

There are two Tesla Owners Clubs (we organize by County in Southern California) our friends in LA County and I help organize the Orange County one.

Ya know, we are overdue for a Roadster rally. RPV next month SoCals?

 

[Stewie26]

Ya know, we are overdue for a Roadster rally. RPV next month SoCals?

I am up for it.

 

[David0934]

I took my newly purchased roaster to it's first car show this morning. Got lots of love plus some unexpected animosity from a few. It is a monthly show, called Coffee and Cars, just a couple miles from my residence. Probably more than 250 exotic plus many older restored cars showed up for the event. Needless to say, there was a lot of nice hardware there. A few things I learned. Many of the attendees were aware that some type of Tesla is scheduled to be launched into deep space. They did not know that it was the roadster that will be making the trip. Others thought that they were viewing a brand spanking new model just released by Tesla. When I told them they were viewing a 10 year old car they were very surprised. On the downside, some of the owners from the Ferrari group came over and were criticizing the whole concept of electric sports cars. Quite frankly, the tone of their voices was quite nasty. When I spoke of the 2020 Tesla roadster with a zero to 60 mph speed of 1.9 seconds, one of the guys face turned red and I though he was going to have a stroke on the spot. He replied that Tesla was just a tree hugging fad and walked away. Personally, I think many of these guys feel threatened by Tesla and the future of EV's. With that said, the other 90 percent of attendees I talked were very impressed with the roadster and really loved the styling. Just wanted to share with others here.
View attachment 277894
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I took my newly purchased roaster to it's first car show this morning. Got lots of love plus some unexpected animosity from a few. It is a monthly show, called Coffee and Cars, just a couple miles from my residence. Probably more than 250 exotic plus many older restored cars showed up for the event. Needless to say, there was a lot of nice hardware there. A few things I learned. Many of the attendees were aware that some type of Tesla is scheduled to be launched into deep space. They did not know that it was the roadster that will be making the trip. Others thought that they were viewing a brand spanking new model just released by Tesla. When I told them they were viewing a 10 year old car they were very surprised. On the downside, some of the owners from the Ferrari group came over and were criticizing the whole concept of electric sports cars. Quite frankly, the tone of their voices was quite nasty. When I spoke of the 2020 Tesla roadster with a zero to 60 mph speed of 1.9 seconds, one of the guys face turned red and I though he was going to have a stroke on the spot. He replied that Tesla was just a tree hugging fad and walked away. Personally, I think many of these guys feel threatened by Tesla and the future of EV's. With that said, the other 90 percent of attendees I talked were very impressed with the roadster and really loved the styling. Just wanted to share with others here.
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Car Show: Besides Coffee and Cars in Colonial Williamsburg, we have an annual car show in Merchants Square. My roadster (#934) always draws a lot of attention and questions. For fun, I loop, The Electric Slide recording through the JVC.

 

[Sheila111000]

I took my newly purchased roaster to it's first car show this morning. Got lots of love plus some unexpected animosity from a few. It is a monthly show, called Coffee and Cars, just a couple miles from my residence. Probably more than 250 exotic plus many older restored cars showed up for the event. Needless to say, there was a lot of nice hardware there. A few things I learned. Many of the attendees were aware that some type of Tesla is scheduled to be launched into deep space. They did not know that it was the roadster that will be making the trip. Others thought that they were viewing a brand spanking new model just released by Tesla. When I told them they were viewing a 10 year old car they were very surprised. On the downside, some of the owners from the Ferrari group came over and were criticizing the whole concept of electric sports cars. Quite frankly, the tone of their voices was quite nasty. When I spoke of the 2020 Tesla roadster with a zero to 60 mph speed of 1.9 seconds, one of the guys face turned red and I though he was going to have a stroke on the spot. He replied that Tesla was just a tree hugging fad and walked away. Personally, I think many of these guys feel threatened by Tesla and the future of EV's. With that said, the other 90 percent of attendees I talked were very impressed with the roadster and really loved the styling. Just wanted to share with others here.
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Stewie26, I love your roaster. Please don't let the EV haters keep you from showing off your car. My husband and I, 68 & 67 yrs. old take our 1962 Ford T-Bird convertable to car shows where I saw my first Tesla Roadster, Model S and Model X. I was immediately in LOVE. I was sad for my kid because I knew I had to own one and I would be spending their inheritance. Will my husband and I test drive a Model S and Model X. I am impatiently waiting for my Model X ti be delivered the end of Feb. first of March. If it had not been for that car show, I may have never learned about these beautiful and highly technical cars. So thank you for taking your car to the car show so this senior citizen could admire it.

 

[Roadster]

Welcome to TMC @Sheila111000 and congrats on your pending MX acquisition! I'm sure one of our Roadster brothers/sisters in Tampa or Sarasota would be happy to take you and your husband for a spin.

 

[jkennebeck]

I would get red faced too if I spent $750,000 on my car and I got smoked by a $120K ten year old car. Wait until the Next Gen Roadster comes out, the Ferrari cry babies will need a Costco sized pallet of Kleenex tissues to manage their frustration and anger.

The 15 Most Expensive Ferraris Ever Built | Elite Traveler

In 20 years, the racing circuit will have electric smoking everything. ICE will be like a steam engine that everyone remembers as slow, inefficient and noisy.

 

[RubberToe]

Hahaha. Because Ferraris are so mainstream.

But congrats on surviving your first car show. It's a lot of fun. One tip to keep people from deciding to get in your car (though their prob better behaved at a Cars & Coffee) ... fill the inside with balloons. It's colorful, and it keeps people from getting in. (I started doing this at a Girl Scout expo where everyone was coming by with ice cream cones, freshly painted nails from a booth nearby, and sugary treats stuck to their hands. It worked.)

 

[Xenoilphobe]

I have to disagree with the notion that you should stay away from "...shows were most dudes are wearing Depend undergarments or look like a collection of old, fat gray Teletubbies." We have Cars & Croissants here in NJ and, not only do all the car guys show great interest in the Tesla (even the historic rodders... especially the ZZ Top ones), I even have one guy blast in on the back of a 911RS, crank his window down and shout, hey, hang on, we just got a new LEAF, let me go get it! He returned 15 mins later in the brand new LEAF. We have everything from Smart to X join. At the end of the day, these are 'car' guys, and they seem to come with far few prejudices than people who attend the NDEW events or even some green fairs.

The only 'faux pas' you can make (IME) is to try and tell them that your car is better. Just give them the stats, they'll come around, and they do, EV ownership amongst our owners of Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, Lotus, etc. etc. has climbed and climbed.

The best part of the events though is that they're respectful of the cars - they don't try to get in or let their children climb all over!

Cars & Croissants is the new show ground for EV adoption!

I was overly harsh and you are absolutely right. I’m an old fat gray teletubbie and I get it. I must have been drinking and posting again! Mea culpa

 

[Xenoilphobe]

Great song. This is why I have a Miata and a motorcycle!

Red Barchetta - Wikipedia

"Red Barchetta"

My uncle has a country place
That no one knows about
He says it used to be a farm
Before the Motor Law
And on Sundays I elude the eyes
And hop the Turbine Freight
To far outside the Wire
Where my white-haired uncle waits

Jump to the ground
As the Turbo slows to cross the borderline
Run like the wind
As excitement shivers up and down my spine
Down in his barn
My uncle preserved for me an old machine
For fifty odd years
To keep it as new has been his dearest dream

I strip away the old debris
That hides a shining car
A brilliant red Barchetta
From a better vanished time
I fire up the willing engine
Responding with a roar
Tires spitting gravel
I commit my weekly crime

Wind
In my hair
Shifting and drifting
Mechanical music
Adrenaline surge...

Well-weathered leather
Hot metal and oil
The scented country air
Sunlight on chrome
The blur of the landscape
Every nerve aware

Suddenly ahead of me
Across the mountainside
A gleaming alloy air car
Shoots towards me, two lanes wide
I spin around with shrieking tires
To run the deadly race
Go screaming through the valley
As another joins the chase

Drive like the wind
Straining the limits of machine and man
Laughing out loud with fear and hope
I've got a desperate plan
At the one-lane bridge
I leave the giants stranded at the riverside
Race back to the farm
To dream with my uncle at the fireside

 

[jkennebeck]

I still have my BMW K1600 GTL. Never thought I'd own a car that was faster than it!