Do you yearn for the top-down thrill of a convertible, but hate the fact that conventional thinking has you in something that belches CO2 emissions and only comes in two doors? Fret no more, concerned citizen, a firm in California has made the dream you never knew you had into the reality you never knew you needed.
The Tesla Model S is a stellar car. It's game changer, an earth-mover, and a people-shaker. It's an automotive journalism cliche with a steering wheel. But for many owners, the Model S experience, even with a mode called "Insane" that makes the car *wait for it* faster, can get boring. That's why Newport Convertible Engineering, a California firm hell bent on destroying the resale value of your favorite cars, has made an aftermarket convertible option for your brand spanking new Tesla. In fact, the first one they've ever made is for sale, right now on eBay.
How it works is that you bring in your Tesla, ready for choppin', and have the guys at Newport delicately remove the roof with a sawzall and various hammers and chisels. There's a $29,000 soft top, or a $49,000 hard-top option. The madness does not stop there, not by a long shot. For You also have the option of a Tesla Convertible Coupe.
Although I'm not sure that the company has made any coupes yet, they have made at least one Tesla four-door convertible, and although it may look a bit ungainly, the work at a cursory glance seems to be of high quality, garnering local news attention.
What would honestly concern me is that the Model S has a great rollover crash test rating and was designed with the strength of the roof as a major stress member. When this is removed, I'm not sure what this means to the handling of the car and how safety is hindered. I'd love to see one of these up close, so if anyone has any first-hand pictures of the build quality, feel free to post them up in the comments!
Tavarish is the founder of APiDA Online and writes about buying and selling cool cars on the internet. He owns the world's cheapest Mercedes S-Class, a graffiti-bombed Lexus, and he's the only Jalopnik author that has never driven a Miata. He also has a real name that he didn't feel was journalist-y enough so he used a pen name and this was the best he could do.
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