SEE HOW THEY RUN

Idealog’s Johan Chang tested out two vehicles on the electric spectrum – the 2015 Toyota Camry Hybrid and the Tesla Model S full electric car.

TESLA MODEL S

Back in 1884, English inventor Thomas Parker produced the first electric car. (He also electrified the London Underground, introduced overhead tramways in Liverpool and Birmingham, and invented the smokeless fuel coalite.)

By the turn of the century, 38% of American automobiles were electric, while only 22% ran on petrol (and the rest were steam-powered).

Fossil fuel technology soon overthrew electrical vehicles’ golden age, however, and it is only in the last decade or so that electric cars have started to make a comeback.

Tech maverick Elon Musk’s sporty 2008 Tesla Roadster was the first electric vehicle that could be called aspirational. And when Tesla’s current flagship, the Model S, was first shipped in 2012, it came with a long waiting list, a range of over 400km and a gas equivalent of 2.64 l/100km.

But for me, at the wheel, if I am being truthful, it is neither the environmental holiness, the surprising range, nor the fuel economy that is important. What is exciting about the Tesla is the instant torque afforded by an electric drive train. This is car enthusiast-speak for the entire force of the motor being available the instant the accelerator is pressed, meaning the Model S goes from 0-100 km/h in 2.8 seconds, which is almost as fast as a $4m Bugatti Veyron. Take that, petrol heads. Sadly, I don’t get to drive the very latest update of the car, the one which comes with

“ludicrous speed”. Still, I am impressed. Even with my beginner’s timing, starting from zero at the top of a motorway on-ramp I still get to 100 km/h in under four seconds.

The problem, really, is never whether the car will go fast enough, but more rather whether my instincts will be able to handle it.

The most noticeable thing is that the car is eerily silent; the only sound being the friction from the wheels against the road.

It’s also a car without keys, start button, or clutch. Walk up with your remote and the door handles automatically extend. The moment you sit down in the cockpit the engine is ready to go. Putting it in “park” and getting out effectively turns it off.

Which is nice, but unimportant the moment you press the pedal to the floor and get slammed into your seat.

Still, at nearly $200,000 to import into New Zealand, it probably requires a bit of your soul.

TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID

Toyota’s Prius (“the hybrid that started it all”) got a bad rap. First created when petrol was cheap and “sustainability” was for hippies and ecoterrorists, it would have fitted right in if it were invented today. (But didn't then.)

Still, it allowed Toyota to experiment and play with hybrid technology as if it were a “science project”, (as General Motors’ Bob Lutz once said).

Fast forward to 2015 and the latest edition of the Toyota Camry hybrid is benefiting from what the Prius had to suffer through.

The Camry is a smooth ride. After spending a week with the 2015 model, including a road trip from Auckland to Matakana, its 2.5-litre, fourcylinder, petrol-electric drive system performed well both in the city and around the countryside.

At no time did I feel the need to push the pedal in any exaggerated way. At low speeds and going downhill, the electric motor did most of the grunt work. Moving a bit faster and uphill, the petrol engine kicked in.

A hybrid Camry will set you back $44,000, as against the normal model at $39,000. In terms of fuel economy, while Toyota touts the car as using 5.2 litres of petrol per 100km, I used 7.4l/100km, which is a fairly significant difference. Don’t get me wrong – I drove over 300km over the course of the week, and needed only around $50 of fuel.

For a mid-class sedan that’s not too bad at all.