Tesla Stories - First Day Out

Having taken delivery on Monday afternoon, I certainly wasn’t going to let my Tesla Model S collect dust in the garage. I drove it to school the next day in the heart of Philadelphia. Of course this meant I had to decide if I would street park it as I had with the Z4 or park it in a lot/garage. I felt squeezing her wide frame into a tight lot/garage space was asking for side door dings. So, as per my norm, I parked her on the street. As luck would have it, I got the spot closest to my office window.

At first you could probably say I was a little compulsive as I peered out my window to insure she was still safe and sound. However, it wasn’t long before a crowd grew. This wasn’t any crowd though, it was one filled with Philadelphia Parking Authority personnel. Having heard horror stories about Tesla owners with temp tags (of which I was still one) being harassed by the police, I figured I would check out the commotion. Remember, the Philadelphia Parking Authority was the stars of Parking Wars on AE. Their reputation preceded them.

As I approached the car, I still couldn’t tell. I should have snapped an early photo instead of the one shown here after ½ the people dispersed, but I was too concerned. Once I got close however, I could tell they were friendly not foe. Looking at the tires, the windows, the sleek lines of the Model S. These were not gazed of people readying their pen to disperse tickets. These were car enthusiasts! When they realized the car was mine, I was greeted with high fives and smiles. They peppered me with questions as well as statements they thought were correct about EVs and Tesla Model S’s in general. The most flattering was that one gentleman thought it cost over 200K. I wish I had that kind of coin to drop on a car or anything else. Suffice to say, it was and probably will remain, my most pleasant interaction with the Philadelphia Parking Authority.