Zero to 60 in a little over four seconds. Consumer Reports raves about it. Motor Trend's Car of the Year. Large wating lists as stock prices rise. In short, Elon Musk sems to have come up with something that has never been done before - a paragon of a car that combines safety, speed and durability. There hasn't been a car like it since ....1948.
The Tucker Torpedo, birthed by Preston Tucker and officially called the Tucker 48, set the automotive world on fire. A center headlight that swivled with the steering wheel in addition to the normal two. A revolutionary suspension. Quick acelleration and loads of headroom. And a price of about $2500. Given all this, there were only about fifty of them ever made and some of those that are left have been sold for upwards of one million dollars.
Should Elon Musk be nervous?
Preston Tucker was effectively sabotaged by an alleged conspiracy between the Big Three auto makers and government agencies that accused him of fraud. The accusation was that Tucker never really intended to produce a car, but leased a huge factory, hired the best designers he could find and actually went into production solely to bilk investors out of their money. Hard evidence was not produced, but the pressure was enough to topedo Tucker's Torpedo. So does Elon Musk have to worry?
Well, yes and no. Unlike Preston Tucker, Musk has a couple of billion dollars to spend and it's not terribly easy to shove billionaires around. On the other hand, like Tucker, Musk is in a position to make a huge set of enemies - and not only in the car business. You see, nobody has asked the Big Question yet: What took everybody so long?
We're asked to believe that one man - even though a visionary - was able to produce an automobile that the best minds in the United States, Europe and Asia failed to produce over decades. This leads to one of two conclusions. Either Musk is a genius iin the Da Vinci mold or he's the Maverick of Mavericks - a capitalist who doesn't believe in designing something to wear out. Actually, this is how capitalism worked in the old days. WOrkmen built their own cars and signed thier work. There was pride in product. Today, there is only a desire for as much money as possible. To convince people of quality, advertisers preface each model with the label "all-new," even though this may mean a half-inch wider front seat or an extra piece of plastic along the window.
Musk isn't willing to play. He's pioneering the concept of quality rather than built-in obsolescence. He's advocating pride over profit, although he'll get plenty of that, too. We seem to be a little short of pride in our country lately.
This man Musk is dangerous. Imagine if things actually retained their value merely through intrinsic quality instead of mindless slogans, idiotic ads or PR gimmicks. People have been bumped off for less than that. Elon Musk is a throwback and if there's one thing modern capitalism hates, it's a return to the way things used to be. The next thing, people will be asking themselves why they're going into hock so that they can buy garbage. We live in an era of disposability wherein if you get tired of something - or someone - you discard it, or him or her. Musk is trying to sell you something you'll want to keep.
God, I hope he succeeds!