Tesla Model S reviews are in: it's a bona fide, unbelievable smash hit

At the big launch event Friday for the Tesla Model S, invited journalists were able to get just a few precious moments behind the wheel. The drives were far too short, everyone agreed (most were just 10 minutes long), but people made the best of it, including our companions over at Engadget, where Myriam Joire says, "you don't have to be a car nut to appreciate all the innovation and technology that's gone into Tesla's sophomore vehicle." She continues, "So what's it like to drive the Model S? In a word: amazing. ... The Model S is surprisingly nimble for such a large and heavy automobile, and it doesn't sacrifice ride quality for the sake of dynamics – it handled rough roads with composure and just the right amount of stiffness." Our favorite bit is this one: "Acceleration is where the Model S shines. The electric motor dishes out gobs of linear, head-snapping torque, quickly propelling you past the speed limit – you've been warned."

We're working on getting some real Autoblog seat time, but for now we look at other first impressions from around the internet, which are universally positive, something that's darn hard to come by in this day and age:

• Motor Trend calls it, "an out-of-this-world sedan that happens to be electric" and adds that, "after a walk through the factory, a visit to a dealer showroom, and an hour-and-a-half spent driving the car on a mix of roads, my eyes are wide and my jaw has dropped."
• CNet says that upon, "seeing a straight road ahead I ... let the pedal meet the floor. The Model S felt like a freight train, with inexorable acceleration pushing forward without a break. There were no power peaks – it was all torque all the time."
• GigaOm says, "The low center of gravity, smooth ride, and lack of vibration were pretty amazing."
• Yahoo! News reports that, "the Tesla Model S successfully challenges a century of assumptions about what a great car can be" and that, "from behind the wheel of the Tesla Model S, you feel you're driving the future, instead of burning increasingly limited gallons of the past."
• Our old friend Damon Lavrinc, now at Wired, says, "if our brief seat time is any indication, Tesla hasn't just delivered a functional, all-electric sedan – it's made a luxury EV that can outpace and outclass the stalwarts of the premium sports sedan segment, while changing the perceptions of electric mobility. It's also a complete hoot to drive."
• USA Today makes it simple: "There's no other way to put it: Tesla's Model S luxury sedan is spectacular."

What you read there, in other words, is a paradigm being shifted.


Source: Autoblog Green