Cars
Published in June 24, 2020 |
by guest contributor
June 24, 2020 by Guest contributor
Originally posted on the EV Annex blog.
By Charles Morris
Dan Neil, who writes about cars for him Wall street journal, has evolved from a Tesla skeptic to an enthusiastic convert. In his new revision of the Model Y, he reaches new heights of colorful praise, and manages to avoid losing control and proclaiming Tesla’s new offering as “the best car in the world”.
Tesla Model Y at the Tesla delivery center, courtesy of JRR, CleanTechnica.
Neil gives us reasons why such a pronouncement would be reasonable: Model Y is “the most technically advanced electric car ever made,” and electric cars are “functionally superior to those with internal combustion.” The latest Tesla EV “[beats] competition in core technology like a drum, “beating gas offerings in the same segment, such as the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300, Range Rover Evoque, Jaguar F-Pace and Porsche Macan.
Model Y “fierce, velvety acceleration, deep stack powertrain isolation [and] absence of friction and friction “places you in a different class from” the current generation of stuttering gas “.
So why can’t Neil go all the way and declare Model AND GOAT? It lists a few drawbacks: “It’s not exactly charming,” and some buyers will find the minimalist aesthetic of the Tesla interior to be “severe.” Not everyone understands the fact that almost all controls must be accessed via the touch screen. (In fact, this is also becoming a trend for other automakers, and one that some car insiders abhor.)
Wall Street Journal … pic.twitter.com/056boh3yDq
– FullyChargedDanCæsar🦠🔫 (@FullyChargedDan) June 7, 2020
Of course, more than a few “car types” will regret the removal of loud and noisy gasoline engines, just as previous generations lamented the loss of draft horses and sailboats. However, as Neil shrewdly observes, dinosaur combustion engines will be phased out over the next decade, as hybrids, soft hybrids, and slow-start-slow technology slowly introduce themselves to more vehicle segments. “The final oil game will be a decade of dizzy and overloaded turbocharged four cylinders, turned off and on at stoplights, shuddering like washing machines,” he writes.
Mr. Neil’s latest work is both an ode to the Model Y and a compliment to the internal combustion engine. There’s also a third theme: it highlights the California automaker’s competitive advantages over the Dinosaurs in Detroit and Germany, including the Model Y’s highly efficient climate system, its “playful and situation-aware” touchscreen, its capable voice command and of course the industry leading battery technology company.
Mr. Neil’s criticism is not only delusional, but very eloquent. You may not be able to call Model Y “the best car in the world” yet, but if not the best, what is it? Neil considers it “debatable” whether the legacy brands will ever catch up with Tesla in the electric vehicle segment, and it certainly doesn’t sound like any gasoline-powered vehicle, which he calls “slow and sloppy antiques,” are contenders for the title. I suspect that Neil’s reluctance is just a matter of principle: he’s like one of those teachers who just don’t give Ace.
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