When legendary hillclimb champion and 40-year motorsport veteran Nobuhiro ‘Monster’ Tajima entered into the 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, it was the first time he had raced in an all-electric car.
Sadly, Monster was forced to retire from the event, but last week, he got to put another electric car through its paces: the 2012 Tesla Model S.
Visiting the Tesla factory in Fremont, California, Monster was eager to put the luxury sedan through its paces in the nearby hills surrounding the factory.
“The reason I have loved hill climbing for so long is because it puts a lot of burden on the cars,” Monster said. “I feel a new era of mobility has come, especially when driving an EV like this, and it is very exciting.”
Clearly pushing the Model S into every corner, the video of Monster’s test drive shows him laughing with glee at every twist in the road.
Monster Tajima Drives 2012 Tesla Model S
“The car I drove today was extremely well tuned and balanced,” he said afterwards. “The [body] rolling is very controlled, which is a direct result of the super low center of gravity and concentrated mass. The quality of the handling is really incredible.”
Impressed by his experience behind the wheel, Monster called electric cars like the Model S “the most important parts of the solution” against climate change and global warming.
“Thank you very much for today,” he told Tesla after the drive, adding “Please give me one!”
Given the fact that only one person in the history of Tesla Motors has been given a car, we’re not sure Monster will get his wish, especially as that person was Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda, whose company had invested $50 million in the automaker.
But could this be the start of a wonderful relationship between the 9-times Pikes Peak champion and the luxury automaker?
After all, how awesome would it be to see Monster drive a custom-hill-climb car built with Tesla technology?
Let us know your thoughts in the Comments below.
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