Neil Vorano takes a trip with a group of Tesla drivers from Markham Ont. to Kincardine, Ont.Neil Vorano
When’s the last time you heard the phrase, “I’m not a car guy, but I love this car”? If you have recently, chances are you were talking with a Tesla owner. People who plunked down money for these innovative electric cars are absolute fanatics about them, giving Tesla a genuine cult-like status.
But why is that? To find out, I went deep undercover behind the secretive walls of what is colloquially known as the underground sect of the Teslerati.
Actually, I accepted a friendly invitation from Aaron Brighton, a Model 3 owner from Ajax, Ont. Last month, I joined him and a small group of Tesla owners on a drive from Markham, Ont., to Kincardine, Ont., a roughly 460-kilometre round trip meant to display the cars’ capabilities and act as a fun getaway.
For me, it was also a chance to see what the big deal is. Social media and online story comments are rife with Tesla owners who go on about their cars with a smug sense of EV superiority, punctuated by rabid defences of controversial Tesla chief executive Elon Musk and the occasional jab against the oil and car industries. What gives?
Tesla's over-the-air software updates continuously add features such as Smart Summon, which allows the car drive on its own out of a parking spot.Neil Vorano/The Globe and Mail
“Most Tesla owners will tell you, you can’t go back [to a gas-powered car],” Brighton says with not a hint of smugness as we hit the highway. “You get used to a different feeling of how it drives, and obviously not paying for gasoline.”
Brighton is a software developer. Tellingly, almost all of the owners in this 14-car group are or were in the tech industry in some way – prime early adopters. Over the course of the day, many of them fawn over the whole Tesla experience, from software to acceleration to customer service. They love to talk about their cars.
One big talking point for everyone is the Supercharger network Tesla has set up across North America, in mall parking lots and close to other infrastructure.
“I chose the Tesla specifically, because of its range and its charging network,” he says. “The chargers are always located where there is something to do. When I travel with my wife, we stop for breakfast, we stop for lunch, and that’s usually the charging I need for the trip.”
Tesla's Supercharger network, stretching across North America, is a big talking point.Neil Vorano
Then there are the fuel and maintenance savings. Schader says he’s saved a whopping $29,000 in fuel costs compared with the Mercedes S-Class he used to drive. Another Model 3 owner recounts paying just US$56.50 for charging on a 2,100-km return trip from Florida. Brighton even set up a web page that will calculate overall savings of a Model 3 compared with other cars. That’s pretty eye opening for me.
But for IT aficionados, it’s still the technology built into the cars that makes Tesla stand out from other companies dipping their toes into EV production. The automatic, over-the-air software updates, for example, continuously adds features such as Smart Summon, which has the car drive on its own out of a parking spot. Even the fact that Musk regularly answers tweets helps make this a match made in geek heaven.
Kelvin Yong is another Model 3 owner along for the ride, and he’s right in Tesla’s wheelhouse. This is the first car the 30-year-old photographer from Markham, Ont., has ever owned. He stood in line for hours at a Tesla store in Toronto for the pleasure of putting down a $1,000 reservation when the car was announced – much like you see people standing in line for the latest iPhones.
Early adopters crave radical change, and Tesla is certainly that in the traditional auto industry.Neil Vorano
“I’m a tech person, I’m not a car person,” Yong says. “And this is like a new tech toy for me; it just happens to be a car. Everything just sounded like something that could be a part of my life. Realistically, I wasn’t thinking about performance, or AutoPilot; at that point, it was just cool tech.”
Indeed, the analogy of Apple is a far closer comparison to Tesla than any other car company is for these fans. Much like Steve Jobs created a niche you didn’t know you needed with the iPhone, Tesla’s Musk created more than just a car when he joined the company in 2004: He created a whole different user experience for vehicle ownership, electric or otherwise.
It’s finally clear to me how Tesla has found a niche with modern, tech-savvy people that other car companies have struggled with. While the other manufacturers might tout their SUVs or adventure hatchbacks as “fitting your life,” only Musk and Tesla have hit the mark with those willing – physically and metaphorically – to stand in line for the latest iPhone. Early adopters crave radical change, and Tesla is certainly that in the traditional auto industry.
“To me, electrification of vehicles is inevitable,” says Anthony Kay, an IT professional from Milton, Ont. “I’m not in any way under the impression that Ford or BMW or any company will ever get their act together. These are companies who have made a certain kind of vehicle a certain type of way, and they just don’t have the same mindset as Tesla.”
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