The EV Futuristic Car: Tesla

As a young woman I’ve always wanted to have a car. Unfortunately my current situation does not require me to actually get one. When I was 17 I started taking driving lessons and by the time I was 18 I got my drivers licence. So, just like any young person I dreamt of having a luxurious car. In fact I wanted a Rolls Royce Wraith 2020. It is beautiful and of course, it is Rolls Royce! ;) Who wouldn’t want to have one, right?

One day, I came across my neighbour driving his new car. A Blue Tesla ! To be more precise it was the model Y. At that time Tesla was gaining more visibility on social media for its innovative features. I saw videos of young people of my age (I was 18) driving their Teslas to school, camping without worrying about the place they’d store their food, where they’d sleep, worry about having a second driver to help out on long drives, or even if they could entertain themselves because Tesla had a solution for all these needs. I had then asked myself if other luxurious cars were able to suggest such features which make Tesla so different.

I dug into Tesla's story and discovered that it is a clean energy car company owned by Elon Musk. The most known engineer of our times, the most wealthy man on planet and my secret crush.

So how sustainable is Tesla? Do we actually need to have one in order to improve our climatic crisis?

For starters we’ll see what Tesla provides to the auto industry and our environment before showing how these can backfire.

How are they built?

Cars require extraction of raw material and primary energy resources in order for the manufacturing to take place. So whether we want it or not we cannot prevent a general environmental impact. Indeed, once cars hit the road they have a greenhouse emission impact. What makes Tesla different according to the study conducted by the Union of concerned scientists in 2015, by the time a Tesla’s been used for 18 months, it make up for the manufacturing’s environmental cost.

How long can a Tesla last?

Tesla cars last for 22 to 37 years at most. Moreover, they’re reliable cars that do not breakdown often... At least they aren’t high maintenance.. 👀🍷

But in a worst case scenario you’re an activist and want to get rid of your car but want to make sure that your car is being properly recycled. Tesla reported that they use 10% of the battery house and 60% of a third party battery. In other words 70% battery is recycled and thanks to that landfills are prevented. And from a more capitalist point of view the Electric Vehicle suggested by Tesla have changed the auto industry and brought innovations.

Is Tesla that perfect though?

As I mentioned earlier in order to manufacture cars you need raw material. Wired Magazine claims that Jiangxi’s mine in China extracts massive holes in the ground, releasing toxic gasses for only 0,2% of usable energy. Where does the rest go? It is dumped into nature.

MOREOVER THEY USE GAS POWERED ENERGY OR COAL ENERGY MACHINES TO EXTRACT ALL OF IT. 😱

To wrap this whole reflection I do believe that Tesla isn’t THE MAGIC SOLUTION to an eco friendly lifestyle. It might even just be a trend. But it helps make the wold a better place and leaves room for thought and innovation for the protection of our planet! Thank you Elon :)

See you soon for my next article xoxo