The Tesla Roadster Tricked Enthusiasts Into Loving EVs — Jason Cammisa Revelations Ep. 30

This is the story of the Tesla Roadster — and thus, the beginnings of Tesla, which has grown to be the most valuable automaker in history. If you like this content, consider becoming a member of Hagerty Driver's Club! More info here: https://bit.ly/Join-HDC-Cammisa-Rev Tesla's promised new roadster is a very different thing — this Roadster went into production at a time when electric vehicles weren't just in their infancy, they were a joke, disregarded by enthusiasts and regular customers alike. The story begins with the Piontek Sportech, which was a home-built tube-frame sports car created by Ford Engineer Dave Piontek in his garage in Michigan. It used a 1300-cc Suzuki 4-cylinder motorcycle engine (with Nitrous injection) and could hit 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds, weighing only 1234 lb. A California-based startup called AC Propulsion bought one of the Sport-Techs and converted it to run on Optima Yellow-Top lead-acid batteries. They called it the tZero, and a prospective customer, Martin Eberhard, drove it and wanted to buy one — but only if it used Lithium-Ion batteries. Bypassing the expensive Nickel-Metal-Hydride batteries that were leading edge, Eberhard helped AC Propulsion go straight to small-format cylindrical Lithium-Ion batteries, which had vastly more capacity, were much lighter, and were ultimately cheaper. The result was 60 mph in 3.7 seconds, and a newly minted millionaire named Elon Musk wanted one, too. He joined forces with Eberhard, who had created Tesla Inc., and they worked directly with Lotus to extensively modify the Elise to become the Tesla Roadster. In the end, the Elise's fundamentals remained, but the details didn't, and the Roadster emerged its own car. Tesla, at the same time, emerged the most valuable car company in the world. And the Roadster became the proof-of-concept that showed enthusiasts that an electric car could be fast and fun. Next up was the Model S, the first part of the the S3XY product line that has catapulted Lotus to previously unknown valuations. And it all started here. === Subscribe to our YouTube channel for new videos every day! http://bit.ly/HagertyYouTube Visit our website for daily automotive news, cars stories, reviews, and opinion: https://www.hagerty.com/media Stay up to date by signing up for our email newsletters here: https://www.hagerty.com/media/newsletter/ Follow us on social media: Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Hagerty Instagram | https://instagram.com/Hagerty Twitter | https://twitter.com/Hagerty If you love cars, you belong with us. Hagerty Drivers Club is the world’s largest community for automotive enthusiasts. Members enjoy valuable automotive discounts, exclusive events and experiences, roadside service created specifically for collector vehicles, and a subscription to the bimonthly Hagerty Drivers Club magazine. Join Hagerty Drivers Club here: https://www.hagerty.com/drivers-club Like what you see? Watch our other series including: Redline Rebuilds | Time-lapse engine rebuilds from start to finish http://bit.ly/RedlineRebuild Barn Find Hunter | Tom Cotter searches the country for abandoned cars http://bit.ly/BarnFIndHunter Jason Cammisa on the Icons | The definitive car review https://bit.ly/JasonCammisaICONS Revelations | Untold Stories About Automotive Legends with Jason Cammisa https://bit.ly/JasonCammisaRevelations Contact us: Suggestions and feedback - [email protected] Press inquiries - [email protected] Partnership requests - [email protected]