A Driver's Car - The Polaris Slingshot Experience

After driving this engineering marvel for just under two weeks, I'm convinced that there's no other vehicle on the road that drives like this vehicle does. I'm also equally convinced that nothing else can solicit more thumbs up on the way to and from a 9-5 than a Slingshot. Taking it to the office was good fun.

During an otherwise mundane Tuesday commute filled with black, gray, and white crossovers with driver's anxiously speeding to work, the Slingshot seemed to bring a bit of joy to everyone who pulled up next to it at stoplights. One cohort that seemed to especially appreciate the uniqueness of the vehicle was the kiddos in the backseat of neighboring cars on the way home from school or baseball practice. I got tons of smiles, thumbs up and frankly just long staredowns from kids trying to figure out what they were looking at. I get it, if you haven't seen a Slingshot before, it is quite hard to determine if it's meant for this world. It's not a motorcycle... but it's not quite a car either?

I think that experience really represents the Slingshot. It's a fun, not-too-serious drivers machine that can be a bit nuts to see and drive at times and it's going to give you an experience that nothing else can offer.

After putting just over 300 miles on it, the engagement one feels through the steering wheel, braking and body is unparalleled. You do feel every bump in the road, but that's the other side of the "driving engagement" coin... it's a feeling that is so rare these days, and frankly one of one on the market.

During my time with the car, I gave a friend a ride and the comment he made whenever stepping into the frame and sitting in the passenger seat was, "this is insane." Couldn't agree more, Sir.

Top-of-the-Line

The Slingshot GT, which is the limited-edition highest-trim model that I was driving, comes with a few upgrades over the rest of the lineup. The most obvious is the two-tone Viper Black and Green Venom paint scheme which is unique to the GT model. There's a few comfort focused upgrades as well, such as vertically-opening T-top panels that have little windows in them to shade the driver just a bit as well as heated and cooled seats that are adjustable via buttons on the seat. There is also interior lighting in the cabin which can be controlled via an app, which pairs well with the upgraded sound system to give the car a proper party trick.

The GT, out of the Slingshot lineup, is the best-suited for long drives. The gas tank isn't huge though, at 9.77 gallons, so you may need to plan accordingly if you want to take it one a long trip.

The car performed well and was enjoyable everywhere I took it, and I did take it everywhere.

One afternoon I was in downtown Detroit, another morning I went to a big park an hour north of downtown. The car also made its way up near some lakes in the northwest suburbs, and got some interstate highway miles. Every environment brought its own experience. In Detroit I saw other Slingshot drivers and we waved, in the park and lake areas outside of the city I got to feel the fresh air and smells of nature more than ever in the daily, and on the highways the music drowned out all of life's worries (other than looking up at Hummer EVs and hoping their blind spot assist ends up working that day).

If you're craving a driving experience like no other and want to put on a show for a passenger, give one of these a try. I think my morning commute peaked whenever I showed up to the office in this thing, and for that, I'm grateful.

Thank you to Polaris for letting me try it out for a bit.