Are Teslas banned for the elderly?

Absence of gears, power always on the rise, incessant updates… Are Teslas only cars for the young?

Before starting this highly intellectual study, let’s establish a reference for “oldness.” Are you old when, like your servant, you are closer to half than a quarter of a century? Certainly not! Do you become old after 60? Ask Carlos Sainz, recent winner of the Dakar driving his hybrid Audi, what he thinks from the vantage point of his 62 years, but beware, the Iberian is proud! So, are you old when you have to wear glasses to drive, when you lift your foot at night or on wet roads, when you take breaks on the highway to catch your breath and relax your back? No, no, and no again; you’re just being cautious, and that’s good.

But one can legitimately feel old when after several decades of driving, you enter the cabin of a Tesla Model 3 Highland Performance. Not finding the turn signals at an intersection, failing to activate the wipers during a heavy downpour, or not being able to flash your headlights to signal a danger are all accident risks unique to these new electric car models. And with a speed limited to 260 km/h, 460 horsepower underfoot that propels the car from 0 to 100 km/h in 3 seconds and racing car-like acceleration, the slightest moment of inattention can be very costly. And we’re talking about a car priced at €55,990, not an Hypercar unattainable for the average driver’s license holder.

Why not a Tesla license?

Tesla enthusiasts will reply that all these actions are now automatic thanks to the wonderful technology embedded in their cars, and they would be right. But one must also know how to activate these automatic modes and regularly update the car as one does with a Smartphone or a computer. These are things we aren’t taught when obtaining a driver’s license.

So it’s not a problem of age, but rather a problem of training. We need to learn to handle a Tesla like we used to learn to use a gearbox. Embarking on a 600 km journey without having read the manual of the screen that consolidates all the controls is simply dangerous. How many times will you take your eyes off the road to try to find the right menu? You don’t need to relearn how to drive; you need to learn how to use the car. And in this little game of understanding the digital and the tech, younger generations are much better equipped as they have been raised on these technologies from a young age.

So of course, anyone can drive a Tesla at any age, but you must demonstrate humility and especially patience to learn to use it. Two virtues sadly on the decline in this fast-paced world. And in this game of application, the “old” might just make a difference and give a few lessons to the young! Ultimately, once the automatism is acquired and the vehicle’s manual is well understood, all expiration dates fall away.