In the sleepy Boston suburb of Brookline, tucked up on a hill, the Larz Anderson Auto Museum hosts some of America’s oldest cars. The collection dates back to 1899, boasting Fiats, Renaults, and Lincolns, as well as cars from independent companies that barely saw the second half of the 20th Century: Winton, Gardner-Serpollet, and Panhard.
But one car stands out from the impressive vintage collection of long carriages and big, wooden wheels: The 1905 Electromobile.
Electric cars have a long and sordid history. From the Larz Anderson collection to the GM EV1, a bulbish wanna-be spaceship yanked from the market amidst bubbling controversy, they have spanned decades, automakers, and techniques. But, despite their longevity, electric cars were simply never as mainstream as their gas-guzzling counterparts – until today.
While a revived interest in alternative energy transportation stems from the understanding that the world is running out of resources, the future of the alternative energy’s success comes from a much more basic ideology — They’re cool.
In the world of the Toyota Prius and the Chevy Volt consumers anticipate lackluster designs, from flat, uninspired grilles, to rear spoilers that do little more than block visibility. They stand out obnoxiously on the road, but the electric car has always been desperately associated with the future. Up until now the design inspiration of the Jetsons and Marty McFly has taken on Big Oil in one space pod after another.
The days of those spastic, futuristic pretenders playing mascot for the alternative energy movement, are over, however. Welcome to the world of the big players, the beautiful, luxurious, fearless hypercars, supercars and sports cars. They, like First Ladies and celebrity endorsers, have power in their campaign.
Prius has been usurped as the face of hybrid cars. Zooming down the highway at 218 miles per hour, the McLaren P-1 upsets the seat, and rewrites the status quo. Its design swoops in superb elegance, with curves so organic it looks as though it is pumping out all 727 horses while standing still.
But the most fantastical element of a car that can go from 0 – 60 in 2.8 seconds does not derive from design or power, but rather energy source. For all its innovation in speed and elegant curvature, and strict adherence to the McLaren personality, the car is also a hybrid.
The segment of high class hybrid cars includes others, as well. The Porsche 918-Spyder owns the futuristic design that Toyota and GM searched desperately for in the ‘90s. With a massive, air sucking grille, impossibly low ground clearance, and a rear end that looks likely to detach itself from from the body, the Porsche 918 Spyder seems better suited to the launch pads of NASA than country club parking lots.
Like the McLaren, the Porsche delivers in spades – forcing out 875 horsepower to a top speed of 214 miles per hour. And there’s a new kid on the block, as well. Even without a long standing history Tesla came to the market ready to play hardball. Unlike the P-1 and the 918, Tesla’s Model S is all electric. But unlike the electric cars that came before, Tesla is exotic, interesting, and untamable.
More to the speed of average consumers, the Tesla taps out at 130 miles per hour in the performance model, still delivering a 0-60 time of 4.2 seconds. Unlike the $1.5 million and $845,000 McLaren and Porsche respectively, the Tesla weighs in at just $70,000 starting price. Keeping in mind the $7,000 – $15,000 tax deductions of electric vehicles, it’s a serious deal. But the enormity of price only adds to the desire to own. These are the cars kids pin posters of to their bedroom walls. Supercars, better suited for the tracks of Formula 1 than the plebeian streets of every day, they remain untouchable, celestial – the perfect fantasy.
In fixing their lineup to meet emissions standards, and recognizing a gaping hole in the market, McLaren, Porsche, and Tesla have changed the tides, giving car enthusiasts and environmentalists alike reason to rejoice. Instead of starting on the ground floor, convincing consumers to buy electric cars no matter what they look like, these giants have taken the marketing campaign to the very top. They are cool and they just happen to be electric or hybrid, elevating the popularity of the green car all the way down the line, from Prius to EV1 to Electromobile.
The ability to purchase a P-1 or a 918 remains off the table for most of the consuming world. Even Tesla, with its more moderate price-tag, has a waiting list in the thousands. But no matter the cost, desire for these wild beasts comes absolutely free, a salivating, lustful hunger for the supercar you can only dream of. For the first time in alternative energy history consumers want the car – and not the energy source.
These cars will not turn to relics, collecting dust in an old museum on a hill. These cars will be the face of the future – the supercars that saved the earth.
Image top center selected from McLaren Media Center.
Image middle left by RightBrainPhotography via Creative Commons.
Image bottom right selected from Porsche Press Gallery.
