In 1931, Nikola Tesla, the inventor of the alternating current and the holder of some 1,200 patents installed a mysterious box in the front seat of the Pierce-Arrow touring car:
The box is said to have been 24 inches long, 12 inches wide and 6 inches high. Out of it protruded a 1.8 meter long antenna and two ¼ inch metal rods. Inside the box was reputed to be some dozen vacuum tubes -- 70-L-7 type -- and other electrical parts. Two wire leads ran from the box to a newly-installed 40 inch long, 30 inch diameter AC motor that replaced the gasoline engine.
As the story goes, Tesla inserted the two metal rods and announced confidently, "We now have power" and then proceeded to drive the car for a week, "often at speeds of up to 90 mph."
Five minutes of googling produces this. The nephew who supposedly took the ride and relayed the story later doesn't exist. Tesla never had a nephew named Peter Savo. The story is a fabrication.
Five minutes of googling produces this. The nephew who supposedly took the ride and relayed the story later doesn't exist. Tesla never had a nephew named Peter Savo. The story is a fabrication.