TEST DRIVE: Inhabitat Takes the Tesla Roadster for a Spin in Silicon Valley

Inhabitat recently had the opportunity to take a <a title="Inhabitat: Tesla Roadster EPA sticker rates Tesla Roadster at 119mpge" href="http://inhabitat.com/new-epa-fuel-economy-window-sticker-rates-tesla-roadster-at-industry-topping-119mpge/" target="_blank">Tesla Roadster</a> electric sports car for a spin around Silicon Valley. How could we turn down a chance to have some <a title="Inhabitat: zero emissions car" href="http://inhabitat.com/index.php?s=zero+emissions+car" target="_blank">zero emissions</a> sports car fun? We headed to Palo Alto and accepted the keys for a day of green driving fun.

Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto has a row of EV chargers in the parking lot, for juicing up cars like this one: the car Tesla CEO Elon Musk drives when he is in town.

We took the Tesla on winding roads to a nature preserve, where the car attracted just a tiny bit of attention.

A closeup of the car reveals plenty of carbon fiber bits to reduce weight, both on the hood and in the interior of the car.

The author Laura K. Cowan's family was on a business trip/vacation during this test drive, making her daughter one of the first two-year-olds to get a close look at a Roadster. Here she is admiring the Tesla visitor pass.

The trunk lid of the Tesla Roadster is a bit floppy, but that's because it runs the full width of the car. See how even the top of the wheel well is incorporated into the trunk lid, a unique feature.

Not a lot of room in there for your golf clubs, sorry. But the next-gen Model S sedan stores the batteries in a shallow case under the floor of the car, so this won't be an issue with all Teslas.

The automatic transmission shifts by push button on the center console, and drivers get not one but two small digital displays to monitor all their gadgets.

The thin racing bucket seats sit just 2-3 inches from the floor of the car. It really is like driving a carbon-fiber go-kart with a rocket engine.

The push-button door handle on the left is nestled into a stylish groove built into the side of the car.

We love the rocket-style taillights that stick out from the rear panel just a bit to hint that this is no ordinary convertible.

Beautiful and simple wheels: check. Brakes that really bite: check.

No one mistakes the Tesla Roadster for an ordinary roadster, though hints of Lotus styling do appear in the body, which was assembled by the company for Tesla.

Is that a tiny bit of Ferrari in the back end? The styling of the back of the car is truly beautiful, with different details revealing themselves up close and at a distance.