David Letterman And O’Reilly Tear Into Electric Cars

5
by Michael dEstries December 10, 2010
Categories: Film/TV
Tags: , .

Bill O’Reilly appeared on Letterman last night — and as anyone could predict, as soon as the conversation shifted to electric cars, the jabs came quick and heavy.

When Letterman wondered aloud where all the electric cars were, O’Reilly mentioned the Chevy Volt — to which the host immediately dismissed as only a hybrid. “It can go only 40 miles on electric alone, I’d have to recharge it to pick up my mail,” he said, recycling a stale joke used previously. (For the record, nobody mentioned the Nissan Leaf.)

The conversation then shifted to Letterman’s ownership of an electric car — presumably the Tesla Roadster that he picked up a few years back. He did that particular groundbreaking vehicle no favors by not answering O’Reilly on “is it fast?” and “is it a good car?” and later saying that he was an “idiot” for buying one.

Check out the full video over on Gawker.

About Michael dEstries

Michael has been blogging since 2005 on issues such as sustainability, renewable energy, philanthropy, and healthy living. He regularly contributes to a slew of publications, as well as consulting with companies looking to make an impact using the web and social media. He lives in Ithaca, NY with his family on an apple farm.

View all posts by Michael dEstries →

  • Pingback: Revenge Of The Electric Car Trailer Hits! « ecorazzi.com :: the latest in green gossip

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Remy-Chevalier/754430220 Remy Chevalier

    This is the problem. Letterman lives in New Canaan, CT. He commutes every week into New York, and drives back to CT on the weekends. He loves to drive fast. Used to own a Nissan Z. But then he got married, had a kid, and like all suburban fathers, is probably under pressure to take the entire family out dining or shopping, which you can’t do in a two seater.

    The car was also probably custom fit so he could sit and drive it. Letterman is very tall. Anyone over 6 feet has a hard time in the roadster, and there’s no room to push the seat back any further, even if you modify the track. Which means his wife probably can’t drive it, nobody else can, because their foot can’t reach the pedals.

    I think Letterman enjoyed the car for a little while, for the fast standing start, and the flash quotient, and now finds himself looking at the practicals of where he lives, he’s right, where everyone lives in the woods, a round trip to the corner store just running errands can fetch 30 miles.

    Bottom line is Letterman is too old, and too conservative in his lifestyle now to enjoy the roadster. I suspect Tesla isn’t helping him find another buyer because they’re focused on selling new vehicles, and the relationship between him and the company may have soured a bit, otherwise he wouldn’t be trashing them in public if it wasn’t a ploy to get something out of them.

    Letterman thinks he’s pushing the envelop… but he’s just being childish. Maybe he’s trying to trade it in for a Model S and get some money back. This is just part of the negotiations. The Model S would suit his lifestyle and his geography much better.

    • http://www.ecorazzi.com Michael dEstries

      Completely agree, Remy. Thanks for the info!

    • biggyfries

      “Letterman thinks he’s pushing the envelop… but he’s just being childish.”—I think you have summed Letterman up perfectly in this sentence. Dave is a good jokester but has little else to offer. He has aquired much wealth and I used to be a fan, but when he delves into politics he is stunningly shallow. O’Reilly is a serious commentator and Dave knows he is not in Bill’s league so he relies on witty but silly remarks.
      Dave’s Tesla has been an expensive failure for him, and I don’t blame him for being sore about it. E-cars will not be competitive with ICE in our lifetimes because of the energy storage issues (batteries).
      Letterman should get more informed about politics and rely less on the ex-hippie element he uses to aquire his philosophies.
      Did anyone catch his recent interview with Donald Rumsfeld? Rumsfeld is in his 80′s but has a mind that dwarfs Dave’s. He even had the biggest laughs between the two of them. Rumsfeld was very good natured and patient with Dave–Dave really had little to say to Rumsfeld beyond some weak jokes. Dave knew he was in the presence of greatness.

  • http://maxwelldog.wordpress.com/ maxwelldog

    Davvid was correct for his remark about it being a mistake.
    #1 It goes faster than ANY speed limit in the USA
    #2 It costs more than most houses’ values.

    Tesla is for someone who regularly commutes in the states of Wyoming, Montana, Nevada…Not New York City.

    Well, there IS one more thing…but, it’s a touchy subject for some.
    OK, what the heck…
    You know how when you turn 40 that you start to grunt when you sit down or stand up from a chair?
    Well, Tesla would be about another foot lower. The grunting alone would be an exercise.
    You end up practicing falling into the car…a controlled fall down, if you will.
    But there’s no help up.
    Like bench pressing yourself everytime you get out.
    Oh, sure. Pretty “leg shots” when you’re dating…but an RV would be more comfortable.
    Not particularly easy on the fuel situation, though.
    But, remember the VW?
    That bug commercial with Wilt Chamberlain driving and Magic Johnson in the passenger side? Comfortable.
    I got about 40 MPG in mine.

    Or the GEO Metro? 58 MPG.
    Easy sit. Fast enough for American streets. Maybe too fast, sometimes.

    But then, I may have struck on something…huh?
    Danged if we aren’t a nation of speeders.

« PREVIOUS POST
NEXT POST »