Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors, introduces customers to the Model S sedan at the company's Fremont factory.

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FREMONT, Calif.— Five years after shocking the automotive world by unveiling what was basically a battery-powered Lotus Elise, Elon Musk, CEO and founder of Tesla Motors, debuted his electric car company's first all-original car, the Model S, and announced that it "will build a high-performance version of the Model S that will go zero to 60 (mph) in 4.5 seconds. That's faster than a Porsche 911 Carrera."

Click to view the Tesla Model S image gallery.

The crowd, naturally, went wild. Hundreds of deposit-paying customers had already taken quick rides around the parking lot at speeds over 70 mph when Musk drove a red pre-production Tesla Model S "Beta" show car — albeit somewhat less quickly — up the ramp and onto a stage inside Tesla's U.S. factory (formerly known as NUMMI, the facility Tesla purchased from Toyota just last year and revamped for a fraction of what a new car factory normally costs to build). Production versions of the Model S will start rolling out of here in mid-2012.

"The oil companies said electric cars can't work, but the truth is, they don't want them to work," Musk said.

"But here it is," he continued. "They would say this car is the equivalent of a unicorn. Well, tonight you had the opportunity to ride a unicorn."



After driving the Model S onto the stage, Musk exited his seven-passenger sedan along with seven other occupants (and their luggage), three from decidedly unconventional spaces: two children climbed out of optional rear-facing bucket seats and through the rear hatch, and a surprising eighth guy popped out from beneath the hood carrying a backpack. Check out the video:

And here's Musk demonstrating the interior controls in the Model S:





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