Even people who don’t follow celebrity blogs (or teen pop culture) have probably become aware of the momentous event rocking the headlines over the last few weeks: Justin Bieber’s 18th birthday. The teen icon, whose face has been a staple for papering the walls of adolescent female bedrooms over the last couple of years, has finally become a legal adult. Hooray! Okay, so most people don’t give a hoot how old he is. And why would they? It’s not like they’re listening to his music, much less following his rise to fame. In fact, you might be a lot more interested in what his birthday brought in the way of gifts, and one in particular was eminently wow-worthy.
Scott Braun, the manager who has made bank off of the international pop star’s name and image, decided to show his thanks by giving the teen the quintessential birthday present: a brand new car. But while most kids have to content themselves with a used vehicle (or a new Honda Civic if they’re lucky), the Biebs scored a swanky new Fisker Karma, a sporty electric with a price tag around $100,000. And for icing on this eco-friendly cake, Braun presented the car to his star client during his appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres show.
It’s an act that’s going to be hard to follow (is anyone else wondering what his parents got him?). When the vehicle was unveiled, Bieber himself appeared to be shocked. Even at his young age he is known as something of a car connoisseur, but still he seemed unprepared for the generous gift, and it’s not hard to figure out why. Aside from the hefty price point, this exclusive “luxury electric” was only released a couple of months ago (in December of 2011). And while this sexy car bears more than a passing resemblance to the Ferrari F12, it comes with a lot more than looks to recommend it. On electric alone, the car can manage a range of 30-50 miles. But the big claim to fame for Anaheim-based automaker Fisker is that the Karma comes with an extended range of 250 miles, courtesy of juice from the four-cylinder engine. So it’s a plug-in hybrid? Basically, yeah, but a very attractive one.
The car also comes with a solar roof panel that will continue to charge the battery (a bit) whenever the car is in the sun. But Fisker, a California company, claims that consistently bright locales like their home state could provide for up to 200,000 additional miles of range each year. Since most people only put about 15,000-20,000 miles per year on their car, this means that a driver could potentially get by without ever using gas, at least if the solar panel charges the battery more quickly than it drains, which is fairly unlikely. While the Biebs calls the relatively sunny state of Georgia home, he’s often away on tour, so car hire Portugal to Paris may still be necessary. But at least he can enjoy his new gem of a car during the rare moments when he’s not globe-trotting.
