Cool car or tree hugger??

We had to really stretch for the Model S, and the major reason in the end, since the ROI didn't work, was to support Tesla in their goal of getting to the Model 3 and turning everyone else into tree huggers. Although every month more of ownership I actually feel a little more tree huggerish myself. Go figure.

EDIT: ok, maybe make that "excuse" instead of "reason"

If you're having a bad day and have just had enough, you might answer: Are you really a jerk or do you just talk to exercise your mouth?
If you're having a good day, invite them into the passenger seat and floor it.

I think if someone said this as a joke, I'd let it slide. Or even joke back "Bark gives me a rash".

If they said it with some bite in the "Tree Hugger" part, I would look them dead in the eye and say "As opposed to what, a poisoner?", or "Even a dog is smart enough not to sh-t where it sleeps", or similar biting phrase. And then just stop and let it be as awkward as possible.

There's a large irony in the "tree hugger" label being applied to early adopters of technology.

You could always respond that it's the least efficient EV out there, which is true! But it seems like accelerating away, with or without them in the car, is the best answer to the question :tongue:

lolgas said:

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?"

Feel free to share your stories...

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I tell them I bought it because it's the best car on earth, ten years ahead of it's time. Unless they have driven one, they won't know what I mean, and if they have, they will agree. If I have time, I will share the dozen items or so that prove my point.

The coolness factor, high quality, quick acceleration were all bonus items for me, but the primary reason I bought was the "tree-hugger" feature along with the practicality of long range and superchargers. I have been driving an iMiev (see my avatar) for 2 years before getting the MS as a daily commuter, but I could not take longer trips with that. Tesla is the only full solution EV currently on the market. The shorter range EVs are not suitable for road-trips even if level-3 (Chademo) chargers were available everywhere (which is not the case anyway), you wouldn't want to have half-hour stops after every hour of driving.

I wanted and all-electric driving solution (ideally powered by PV solar or other renewables) for all my car use, and Tesla is the only answer for that now. If a cheaper solution was available I would have gone with that even if it was slower / less cool etc.

ps: I have always been using an electric lawn mower :wink:, and I do have rooftop solar panels (self-installed).

Good post. We (early adopters) need to set the example, provide the leadership, and the support for Tesla to change the world. I truly believe in the next 10-20 years, the ICE will ONLY be in "classic" cars.

I'm an environmental engineer. I decided to go this route to leave this earth in a better place for my kid than how my parents handed it to me.

Charge On!

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.

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.

I bought the MS simply because I was sick of paying $550-$700/month in gas. I don't want to give big oil any more money. And I opted for the P85 model because I like driving faster and it was a great value at that time. I wouldn't say I was looking for the "cool" factor and certainly not the "green" factor. I'm a techie. And it's definitely the right car for a techie person.

lolgas said:

That's a ton of money in gas!

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range rover evoque 19mpg @$4.00/gallon (2012/2013 gas price) and 2800-3200 miles/month. it was a such piece of crap that I ended up lemon lawing it for a critical safety design flaw that the manufacturer couldn't figure out how to fix

and when you do the math, even though the Tesla was almost double the price of the Evoque, the Tesla is actually much much cheaper when you factor in how much I was paying for gas every month.

The association with environmentalism is the only thing about my car that I don't like.

100% "COOL CAR". I'm trading in a '13 Boss 302 for a Tesla, so that's where I'M coming from

Cool car for me too. Definitely cool car first. The "tree hugging" was a consideration but a distant second.

lolgas said:

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

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I go the tree hugger route. "If driving a luxury sport sedan capable of 0-60 in 4 seconds is what I need to do to help save the planet, that is a sacrifice I am willing to make for the betterment of all. No need to thank me, just the kind of guy I am "

But hey. I am kind of an aging hippie anyways.

Cool car 100%.