Tesla Model S

I've had test drive with this car. Believe me. It's hot! ..like, really really, hot, looking sedan. EV is no longer a golf cart.

 I had a test driven the MINI and Audi A1 before, and believe me, Tesla test drive is the best!!!that gave me a heartthrob. The sales advisor sitting next to me goes crazy,

'faster, faster!! Just push hard the gas pedal after the light turns green!!'

Take that, petrol head. Tesla model S.

The idea is to build a luxury sedan with conventional looking , looks that consumer could relate to the current market. But that's where the similarity ends. It has no engine, no radiator, no propeller shaft, no oil lubricant, no exhaust pipe, no gas tank, no catalytic converter, no muffler. What's propelling the vehicle is essentially a plated of stacked batteries, a watermelon sized motor and tires with air suspension. The car's bottom structure is can be similarly compared with a skateboard shape, and everything that lies from the bottom upwards is called an opportunity space.

I guess Tesla's not only reinventing the car's structure, they also can get away inventing new words, as what they call this space the 'frunk'. 

Theres no engine! Well that's because the electric motor is actually backed by the rear axle. So you'll get another extra 5 foot cubic luggage room more.

Another trunk in the back would give another 26 cubic feet luggage room, and and total flat in the back would give a total of 60 cubic feet of space.

The model s front end looks conventional at a glance, but when you look at it more closely, you'll see the upper part is actually an opaque plastic. Its not a grill like it would be in a normal car, and that's because its an electric motor, no need for radiator. There are some space for heat conditioner and power electronics, but it doesn't really need as much airflow to cool the car as the regular one does.

Stepping into tesla, the one thing that you tend to do is trying to release the handbrake. Guess what, there's no hand brake!! And they make drive mode selector as another  signal lever. Mind boggling.

there's a lot of details I want to write in this blog, but lets just take most essential part. tesla model S performance can go from 0 to 60 in roughly 4 seconds, top speed of 209km/h. for the time being, there are only 20 supercharging stations in japan. And they plan to offer CHAdeMO adaptor(standard charging station in japan ) 

full attention are given to details here, even the door handle retract itself for better aerodynamic. cool.

At 23 years old, I already bought a car. Well its more like my parents help me buy the car (money..) and I’ve been lucky enough to live in Japan, where car price are relatively cheap.

But sorry japan,, I didn’t buy your car.I’d preferred the German.

Intoducing my (new) MINI.

One good thing about buying MINI is that you’d be boasting to your friend whenever they ask you:

‘ey bro, what car did you buy? Expensive one eh?’

‘uh-um,, I bought a BMW’

Well, now I can call myself a proud BMW owner.

Its cheap though,but buying car in Japan is a hell of a task. U’ll need to find a parking lot first. Then stamp register. Next fill up form and send them to the car shop. about a week later, you'll finally get your car.

Well, from the mark of the logo you’ll know it's a 2^nd hand car right away.

It's a 2002 production car, with 3 door and CVT transmission. 4 cylinder engine with single-overhead valve. It will get you from 0 to 60 in 7.4 seconds. There's no particular problem with the driving system, but it would be worth mentioning that its a 12 years old car, so the engine already registered a 9 thousand kilometer on its cumulative distance, and the transmission just feels too old.

One thing I like about it is its design. Other compact car, or in fact most car have the same interior.'there's the dashboard, speedometer, door lock should be over there,etc..'.But with MINI, its not the same. Rev counter sits on front of the steering wheel, speedometers at the center, together with the audio system, AC system, toggle and switch below. 

the back seat should be enough for 2 people, and you can fold it to make space for your luggage.  The luggage hold 5.3 cubic foot capacity, and if that’s not enough, folded back seat would make more space for 23.7 cu space, large enough for your surfboard, if you have one.

Well, honestly speaking, I'm a MINI aficionado. It may not be a head turner, but the small, compact looking iconic car are just enough for me to use in this country where compact and small engine cars are more of a preference. Plus in a country where most people used their national produced car, foreign brand sure makes people wonder if you earn more money than them.

In the upcoming month I’ll update more post, as I go through tuning and pimping my MINI. This will be fun.