NSW Energy Minister Loves His New Tesla Model 3: ”Best Car I’ve Ever Driven”

Featured image: Car Advice

Minister of Energy and the Environment at the New South Wales State Coalition Government, Matt Kean has chosen the Tesla Model 3 as his official car. The Minister became the first state or federal politician in Australia, to sign up a Tesla as a government car.

The Driven reports that the lease for the previous Kean's car has expired, and Tesla has become an obvious replacement, saving money for the government, while still having excellent environmental results. “And guess what! Is it damn cheap? Is it’s fun? I’m told that it goes very fast. Not that I would know yet, but it is a great car to drive.”

The minister said that this is the best car he has ever driven. “I’ve recently got the first ministerial EV anywhere in the country, not because of some attempt at virtue signaling, but because it’s a great car to drive, it’s the best car I’ve ever driven to be honest," said Kean.

During the working week, the government fleet driver drives the car, but on weekends the minister can take it home. “The running costs are virtually zero,” Kean says. “I’ve got a charger here at Parliament House, so we charge it up pretty quickly."

Source: Car Advice

“I am the member for Hornsby in Sydney’s northern suburbs, so it’s about 40kms from the CBD. I think we can make three or four return trips on a single charge. So it’s great value for money. It’s good fun to drive. And I highly recommend that your listeners go and do a test drive,” he said in an interview with the Energy Insiders RenewEconomy podcast.

This Model 3 is the first Tesla to be acquired in Australia as an official car for a politician. New South Wales recently increased its state park target to 30% of electric vehicles, including 10% of all-electric ones.

“That’s a good thing,” Kean said. “The government is a huge buyer of these things, but we’re also making sure that our buildings are ready [for charging].

“So we’ve got a number of systems and processes and policies in place to encourage the uptake of EVs. But it all comes back to the single source of truth, and that is the need for cheap, reliable, clean energy, which is exactly why we’re transitioning our grid.”

New South Wales government rules allow ministers and members to choose their own leased vehicle - but one of the parameters is that it must sit under the luxury car tax thresh-hold, currently $68,740 for petrol and diesel cars and $77,565 for electric vehicles. Model 3 SR Plus in Australia costs $73,900, so politicians can choose it.