Over the weekend, a video of driver raging his Model S through a flooded tunnel in Almaty, Kazakhstan caught the attention of Internet users and car enthusiasts alike, including that of Tesla Motors' own Elon Musk, who tweeted a response by explaining how the automobile can run through water in just one sentence.
We *def* don't recommended this, but Model S floats well enough to turn it into a boat for short periods of time. Thrust via wheel rotation.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 19, 2016
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Model S's ability to run on water is thanks to the absence of a tailpipe. It is also more watertight than its gasoline-powered counterparts because it features a "bio hazard mode" that shuts off the ventilation system.
Musk added in a follow up tweet that he would love to create a submarine-like vehicle such as that in the 1977 Bond film, "The Spy Who Loved Me," Mashable reports. He wrote, "If curious abt TSWLM car, am still planning to do a sports sub car that can drive on roads. Just a side project. Limited market potential."
The Tesla Model S was first announced in 2008 introduced in June 2012, later becoming the first electric car to hit the number one spot in new car sales, as per Green Car Reports. The vehicle did so well that it was named as the world's best selling plug-in vehicle last year, Hybrid Cars reports. The warm response to the Model S comes despite its relatively high price tag.
Musk told CNBC last year, "The Tesla Model S is currently a relatively expensive car, but we expect to come out with our high volume, sort of more affordable car in approximately 2017. If we could do so sooner, we would do so sooner. But the nature of technology development and the need to achieve economies with scale prevent us from coming out with a compelling, low cost electric car right now."
With the current Model S' driving-on-water capability, it might as well be worth it.
