Tesla’s Macintosh 190
that seated seven together with their luggage. “That’s an
SUV, not a sedan,” von Holzhausen replied.^210 Elon told
him he wanted to redefine the sedan concept and he also
needed a car with a capacity to carry himself, his wife,
and his five children. So von Holzhausen set out on the
mission to design Model S together with a team of de-
signers. “We immediately began building the design team,
which eventually grew to eleven people,” von Holzhausen
said. “We worked grueling hours, fueled by countless take-
out dinners, lunches and breakfasts, not to mention ample
caffeine and snacks in the SpaceX cafeteria.”^274
Before Eberhard co-founded Tesla, he wondered why
no one could build an electric car with the same perfor-
mance and design as one powered by gasoline. “When I
looked at so many electric cars out there, it seemed to be
that they were built by people who considering driving a
necessary evil,” Eberhard said. “You really shouldn’t drive.
You should walk or take a bike or ride the bus. And if you
must drive then a little glorified golf cart would be fine.”^200
Nor von Holzhausen understood why an electric car
couldn’t look like a gasoline car. “What we set out to do
for the Model S was to be the cornerstone of the brand,
to identify the building blocks,” von Holzhausen said. “The
Model S does not look like a science project, you will be
comfortable parking it next to a brand with 100 years of
experience.”^239
To design Model S, Tesla interacted with the early
customers, they spent a lot of time at the stores, and
they developed a short feedback loop. Concerns, ideas, and