The First Model S Goes to the Petersen Museum

Making history never looked so good.

I always knew the first Model S would end up in a museum, and I am happy to say it now resides in the Petersen Automotive Museum, along with the other early Teslas I donated to them.

I have compiled some reviews from its 2012 release… and they still give me goosebumps today. Rarely does a new product release get these accolades as a first reaction:

“One-hundred years from now, the Smithsonian museum at our nation’s capitol will host a display of history’s most revolutionary automobiles. Most certainly included, among the dozen or so other pioneering automobiles, will be a 2012 Tesla Model S.” — Autoblog

“The Model S isn’t just the most important car of the year. It’s the most important car America has made in an entire lifetime.” — Road & Track

“The mere fact the Tesla Model S exists at all is a testament to innovation and entrepreneurship, the very qualities that once made the American automobile industry the largest, richest, and most powerful in the world. That the 11 judges unanimously voted the first vehicle designed from the wheels up by a fledgling automaker the MotorTrend Car of the Year should be cause for celebration. America can still make things. Great things.” — MotorTrend

“We have been testing cars at Consumer Reports for a very long time, but we have never seen anything quite like the Tesla Model S. This car performs better than anything we have ever tested before. Let me repeat that. Not just the best electric car, but the best car. It does just about everything really, really well.” — Consumer Reports

“The Model S feels and drives like the future. It’s a rolling testament to the potential of automotive innovation, and a massive leap forward” — WIRED

“The Model S could become the Model T of an approaching petroleum-free era.” — NYT

“What is the bottom line on the Tesla Model S? It’s an eye-opener like the automotive world has never seen in its entire history.” — The Street

“The Model S changed the way the world thinks not only about electric cars but also about cars in general. It remains clear there isn’t another vehicle created during our 70 years of existence that has had a truly comparable effect on automobiles, the automotive industry, and society at large.” — Motortrend