DAVID Higginbottom owns the car you can drive without an engine.
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There’s no need for a gearbox or handbrake either.
Mr Higginbottom is the first Victorian to own the Tesla P85+, a zero-emission electric car.
The Melbourne resident is one of 10 Australians who bought the American-manufactured cars at the Sydney launch last week.
Mr Higginbottom showed off his new wheels at the Mount Mercer wind farm on Sunday.
Wind farm owners and green-electricity supplier Powershop organised the visit.
Mr Higginbottom’s new electric car is an “upper-range” model which retails between $100,000 and $200,000.
“It’s a fantastic car in its own right,” he said.
“It’s the most environmentally friendly car and is a step up from other electric vehicles.”
The Tesla P85+ can travel within a 500 kilometre range and requires 10 hours to fully charge using a 40-amp.
“It can go from nought to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds, but that’s conservative,” he said.
Mr Higginbottom even purchased personalised plates with the acronym SLNTBD (silent but deadly), but his family rejected the decision.
A 17-inch touchscreen acts as the dashboard, complete with GPS, rear-vision camera and internet access.
But Mr Higginbottom couldn’t drive his new purchase until it was registered on Monday.
“It’s the first car (of its kind) they have registered in Victoria,” he said.
Mr Higginbottom had been on a waiting list for two years before he could get behind the wheel of the car.
“Some people have been on the waiting list for six years,” he said.
“I did a lot of research before buying it.”
Mr Higginbottom’s interest in green energy sources factored into his purchase.
“People don’t realise the impacts of what is happening in the world now,” he said.
“What is more concerning is it’s going to take a major disaster before someone actually does something.”