The 2010 Tesla Roadster doesn't use a drop of gasoline; it gets power from 6,831 lithium-ion batteries.

It was clear the middle-age lady in the restaurant parking lot was having difficulty grasping the concept.

"How can you drive it if it's not turned on?" she asked.

"Well," I replied hesitantly, considering the key that was rotated to the second notch of the switch, "it is turned on."

"But it's not running," she countered.

Sensing this exchange could quickly devolve into an Abbott and Costello "Who's on first" routine without any of the ensuing hilarity, I decided to let actions speak louder than words and just punched it.

Now, one of the defining elements of the Tesla Roadster is that it punches really, really hard. In fact, one with the company's new Sport option--with which our test car was equipped--reportedly bolts from 0-60 in 3.7 seconds, a figure matched by only a handful of exceedingly expensive exotics, all of which rely on boatloads of gasoline to achieve the desired results.

Not so the Tesla. Because powering its 288-horsepower motor are 6,831 lithium-ion laptop batteries.