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"If you think about it, the electric car is an incredible act of deception. Sure, the vehicles may look pretty much exactly like the sedans that have filled our roads for the past hundred years, but once you scrape away the shell, their streamlined electric drivetrains and battery packs have almost nothing in common with the pistons and gears of a gasoline-powered car. At their core, electric cars are remarkable pieces of technology, masquerading as the unremarkable vehicles of decades past. And this deception doesn\u2019t stop with appearances. You only need a couple of minutes behind the wheel of an EV to realize its designers did just about everything they could to make these machines feel like the cars we\u2019re familiar with. Of course, the impetus for this is obvious. Car makers need to convince a skeptical population that EVs won\u2019t bring them too far outside their comfort zone. Only once car makers have gotten a potential buyer behind the wheel can they blindside them with the benefits. I\u2019m not just talking about the obvious energy efficiency. If you\u2019ve never driven an all-electric car, the first time you hit the accelerator and feel the instant torque that EV engines can produce is nothing short of a thrill. Which brings us to one of the most important innovations in the EV industry\u2019s journey to get these things into our comfort zones \u2014 and eventually our garages: the Tesla Superchargers. If you haven\u2019t read, the EV manufacturer recently announced plans to build a network of 100 or so so-called \u201CSuperchargers\u201D around the country and in Canada, which will allow drivers of the Tesla Model S sedan to fill up for free, forever.\nSEE ALSO: Tesla Model S Voted Motor Trend Car of 2013\n\nSo far, six of these 90-kilowatt charging stations are up and running in California (two of which get some of their power \u2014 and green cred \u2014 from their use of solar panels), and the rest of the 100 or so will be installed by the end of next year, according to Mateo Jaramillo, Tesla\u2019s director of powertrain business development. Although Tesla has not yet announced the specific locations for the planned supercharger sites, Jaramillo told me they are scattering them in locations that will allow you to drive pretty much anywhere in the country, and always be within range of the next station once you\u2019ve filled up.\nThis is very, very important. Drivers are used to having easy access to gas stations, so giving them a network of free charging stations that are always within range of a single charge should ease some nerves. And never mind the fact that cross-country road trips (one of those luxuries that many folks assume will be impossible with EVs) will not only be possible \u2014 hey\u2019ll be doable without spending a cent on gas. And, just as EV makers have intentionally designed their vehicles to remind us of the combustion cars they are replacing, Tesla is building their Superchargers to look, feel, and behave as much like a traditional gas station as possible. In conversation, Jaramillo is fond of calling the rollout and use of these stations \u201Cunremarkable.\u201D\nSEE ALSO: Spending a Week With an Electric Car: Is the 2013 Chevy Volt Worth It?\n\n\u201CA light goes off in people\u2019s heads the first time they use it,\u201D Jaramillo says. \u201CIt\u2019s one thing to consider it and talk about it. But once you do it and see how easy it is and unremarkable it is... the first time i actually used it, it finally made sense to me.\u201D But, like an EV\u2019s resemblance to a classic Chevy, any similarities between a Tesla Supercharger and a Shell station are purely superficial. The idea, once again, is to trick people into performing a familiar act in a familiar setting (in this case: filling up their car at a station), and then blindsiding them with the benefits. Not only are the Tesla stations free for Model S users (a fact that has got to be pretty mind-blowing if you\u2019re used to spending $50-plus on a tank of gas), but they also have the potential to tap into the Tesla mobile app \u2014 which feeds customers a wealth of information and control over their EVs \u2014 in some very interesting ways.\nJaramillo wouldn\u2019t give specifics on what the company is working on in this regard, but it isn\u2019t hard to imagine the app notifying you when the 30-minute charge is done. Go grab a burger (many of the stations are located at shopping centers) and do some shopping, and the app will let you know when your car's fully charged.\nThat's the promise of the Supercharger: Set it and forget it. It only looks unremarkable.\nPhoto via Bryan Mitchell/Getty Images News/Getty Images\nBONUS: First Tesla Model S Rolls Out of Factory\n\n\nInside the Tesla Model S Factory \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nFactory entrance\nA rare look at the world beyond the Tesla visitor center.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nConcept Version\nAn early Model S at the factory entrance shows a design flourish soon abandoned: a windshield that covers the whole top of the car.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTesla Factory or Prometheus Set?\nIt's hard not to think of shooting a science fiction movie here.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAlmost Ready\nRobot Crawlers deliver a near-complete chassis.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAcres of Space\nThe Tesla factory's main building is an astonishing 5.5 million square feet.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nBikes\nThe factory is so large -- and the floor so smooth -- that beach cruiser bikes are the transport of choice.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nStill-life: Crawler with Car\nThe magnetic robot crawler awaits a delivery.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTireless:\n...both this car and the machines that make it.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMag Track\nThe robot crawlers that dominate the factory run on thin magnetic tracks.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTraining Wheels\nHere's where employees put the chassis through its paces.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTesla Employees Wait\nThe more than 2,000 employees of the fledgling electric car company line up for the official delivery of their first Model S sedans.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nModel S Front\nPure gorgeousness.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nModel S Interior\nAll the essentials: steering wheel and giant tablet for navigation.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRear View\nNothing shabby about this car.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nReady to Go\nEmployees line up in front of two of the first Model S electric sedans to go out for delivery.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJerry Brown\nGiven his interest in electric cars -- and the fact that Tesla is hiring thousands in a state with 10% unemployment -- it was a given that the California Governor would show up to say a few words.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMusk Speaks\nElon Musk would be the first to admit he's no great public speaker -- and seemed ill at ease in front of an audience of thousands -- but his achievements speak for themselves.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nKey Ceremony\nOne of the early customers is presented with a key by Elon Musk. The car keys are in the shape of a car themselves.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nWhite Lightning\nThe very first Model S rolls off the factory floor. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMusk's Words\nQuite the mission statement at the factory entrance.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRear underbody\nWelding machines await another client.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nToy Roadsters\nThe Model S isn't Tesla's first car. Here are stacks of toy versions of its first two-seater sporty car, the Roadster. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSpider Vehicle\nThese red robotic crawlers do all the heavy lifting. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nWelding Area\nIt's all done behind large red eye shields.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nBooties\nGet used to this odd-looking machine: it's the future of car production. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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