Tesla Model X - Not the car of my future

A couple weeks ago some friends and I were blessed to be offered a 2020 Tesla Model X as a loaner for a weekend cabin getaway. Several hundred miles of driving to a remote North Carolina AirBnB with an electric car that we weren't familiar with. What could go wrong?! Well, it was a great trip but we came away from it feeling.... I don't want to say unimpressed, but definitely mixed. I know 650 miles in one weekend isn't enough time to know how you'll like a car long-term, but I'm a believer in "when you know, you know" when it comes to cars. Here are my thoughts, I'm curious to hear from anyone else with similar or radically different impressions.

First, the car:

• 2020
• 2800ish original miles
• Performance model, with Ludicrous mode and full "self-driving."
• All black, except the white interior

Charging
Very impressive! I've only used a supercharger once before when riding in a friend's Model 3, but never tried it myself. Besides the awkward feeling of it automatically charging the car's owner ever time we topped up, the experience couldn't be easier. The fastest charging we experienced claimed almost 500 miles/hr, but we also saw 50-75 a few times. At most of the 6 charging stations we visited, at least 1 charging station didn't appear to be working. Unclear if they were user error or actual technical issues. Rarely any waiting for an open spot. Do all Tesla owners sit quietly in their cars when they're charging? One of our trip members decided to start making friends when we stopped. Turns out Tesla owners like talking about electric cars, so we had that in common! Overall, no complaints except from the elderly woman who pulled up in her brand new VW ID4 who didn't understand why it wouldn't hook up. She left to use the "America" chargers across town.

Power
Well, obviously this part is great. We exercised restraint and launched the X a mere 35-40 times over the course of the weekend. Only one was a hard launch, the rest were from a dig. The power delivery made our eyeballs hurt. Even without engaging the warp speed dash animation, it feels like you're breaking some magical laws of physics slingshotting a 5500 pound wheeled egg with a rail gun. Can we break 60 in this drivethrough? Probably! We spent the entire weekend hoping some insecure Mustang or Challenger owner would want to "get it" so we could indulge in flexing someone else's money, but all-black wheeled eggs that don't make engine noise are remarkably low-key and no one took us up on it. We didn't dare engage Ludicrous+ mode, partially because it supposedly has to wait for a while to warm the battery up, and partially because it felt like having a heart attack in peasant Ludicrous mode. Even Chill mode, designed to prolong your tires and license, feels about as quick as a non-S Macan. To be fair, the car's owner isn't very into cars and this was the sole feature they used to sell us on borrowing it, so they seemed happy that we enjoyed everything it had to offer.

Handling
The adaptive suspension is solid. When you consider the X is the size and weight of my Land Cruiser, the fact that it feels planted on narrow backroads and doesn't hammer the occupants is incredible. We struggled to decide between all of the different heights and damping options. We wasted time in a Starbucks drivethrough raising the suspension so River-Fording height (so we could lower it back down), and other than the confused looks of the drivers around us, it seemed to feel about the same at most heights. I'm fairly new to adaptive suspensions in sporty SUVs, but the 2015 Macan Turbo I rented in Oregon felt significantly better. The steering is best thought of as a very precise joystick. Not once did I have any idea how the front tires felt, but it also wasn't hard to feel confident in turns and precisely nail apexes on the few times we tried driving like it was a 6-figure fun vehicle. 

Cabin/Features
Here's where things start going downhill. While some features are great like wireless charging pads, navigation maps in the gauge cluster, and the ginormous front windshield and its visibility, there were a lot of decisions that confused us. Would I trade the glass wraparound roof portion of the windshield for sun visors thicker than a ruler? Yes. Why are the seats so...warm? Even the 3rd row is heated, but no cooled or even perforated seats? Cubbies in the gullwing doors are problematic and you should be expected to make storage sacrifices so you can embarrass the wives every time you open the rear doors for them in parking lots:



Similarly, within 5 miles both wives pointed out that not only do the middle bucket seats offer no adjustments beyond reclining the entire seat as one unit, they also don't have armrests. How are you supposed to ride for hours with no armrests, no adjustments, and 2 Subaru-spec tiny cupholders? Behold, the rural center console of choice:

Moving back up front, I'm admittedly an audio snob, but the sound system sounded like it would be the premium option on a Corolla, at best. We tested it with NPR and it did sound especially well-suited for podcasting, so perhaps Tesla knows their target demo better than I do. The trick adjustable front cupholders aren't bad, but I wouldn't mind some more usable cubby space. I also wouldn't mind real armrests up front. Is the front dash wood real or molded plastic? Either way, it was bizarrely rough and also not good-looking. Also... the interior noise was a little much. I wasn't expecting my LS 430, but it was genuinely hard to hear middle-row passengers without everyone raising their voices. Thank the 22" wheels and wide tires necessary for making the egg stay on the road in corners, but this part certainly doesn't feel like luxury.

Beyond the undeniable cool factor of the giant screen, glass fishbowl, and eternally patient eye-rolling from the middle row as the gullwing doors triumphantly swing skyward, the X feels like a 35k SUV on the inside (not a CX-5, those are great).

Self-driving
Not-real-self-driving disclaimer aside, I was pleasantly surprised at how good this system is if you just treat it like cruise control. After some initial hesitation, we easily covered 100 miles without having to give the X any more input than resting my hands on the wheel and occasionally changing lanes. Even on backroads the system worked great, aside from a few panic-braking false alarms. On the way home we hit some stop-and-go traffic and I was able to appreciate how smoothly the X takes that aggravation off your hands (I still kept them on the wheel). I wasn't at much risk of being tempted to surrender full control to Tesla, but as a driver aid I was impressed.

If it wasn't obvious, I am not in the position where I'm seriously weighing $100k vehicle purchases. But, even if I was...I don't think I'd be tempted. The power gets old after a while when you realize all it's good for is stoplight and roll racing (but I'll launch it one more time to make sure), and there isn't much passion in the X to make you enjoy driving it on a daily basis. If I was mostly driving around town and wanted to enjoy the comfort and quiet, I'd drive the LS 430 (it's not like you can hear the engine much more in that). 

Am I missing it? Does more time reveal hidden beauty that we missed? Or is this a fun technological toy that is best only compared to designer furniture and Silicon Valley rent prices? I'm very open to being wrong, and would welcome more experienced opinions.

I don't think the X is Tesla's best. It's a generation behind and they went a little nuts with things like the doors. I think the 3 and Y are better cars and the market agrees. I'm surprised it's still available. They did actually stop production for a while because they're basically a hand-built car as opposed to the production line 3/Y twins.

The glass roof is to aid in passive heating, I think. The cooling system is far more efficient than the heater is, so using solar gain is a way to get better range. And some light in the cabin is kind of nice.

The "wood" in a 3 is basically a sticker, albeit a fairly convincing one. I don't know about the X.

When we're at a Supercharger, we usually wander off to get something to eat. The only time we've sat in the car was when we were doing a quick precautionary top-up during a blizzard. And I don't see the problem with the car paying for its own electricity instead of making me mess around with payment. Expect this to spread to other charging networks, payment authentication is integrated into the latest standards.

The audio system and the ambient noise levels in our 3 are quite good. This may be a matter of lessons learned since the time the X was designed. Since almost all the noise comes from the tires, it's highly dependent on road surface. It would be interesting to check actual decibel levels, I've found over the years that people are not good at perceiving different sound levels if the noise is different. An NA Miata, for example, doesn't sound that much quieter with the hardtop on vs the soft top up. But if you check the numbers, it is. 

There are multiple levels of assisted driving. There's autopilot, autosteer, full self driving (these are not technical terms) and probably others. The "autopilot" adaptive cruise is quite good, it leaves steering up to you and does a good job of matching speed to other traffic and will even slow on corners where other Teslas have slowed. Our car has Autosteer as well (sounds like what you tried) - I'm looking down the road anyhow, the car follows my eyes when my hands are on the wheel so I keep it turned off.

It's too bad you didn't try one-pedal driving. It has the byproduct of making you very smooth and anticipate what's up ahead, it's almost a zen thing. Not so much for highway use but it's great around town.

The seats are weirdly warm in the 3 as well. It's odd.

What you find over time with EVs in general is that they're just...easy. You never have to think about filling up unless you're on a road trip, it's always charged in the garage. They don't have to warm up, they don't make a fuss doing what they do, they're totally silent when you're stopped at a light, they've got consistent driveability throughout the range and one-pedal driving is really nice. With most of them you can pre-warm or pre-cool the interior so the car is welcoming when you get in it. A lot of the character you get in other cars are noise and uneven power delivery and vibrations. Flaws, basically. Take those away and EVs can feel sterile at first. 

You both make your points well. In the time that I spent in a dual-engine 3, my sense was that it was a very fast, bland car. Other than the acceleration, I prefer my son's new Sonata. That said, I'd like to try a model Y before we decide on the next car for my wife.

I liked the one pedal drivin  as well. It's weird. But it makes you smooth. 

The blandness only matters to guys like us. The general populace find cars and driving a tedious chore. They welcome blandness. How else does one explain the proliferation of Camrys and Accords?

I'm curious about Teslas, but not curious enough to put money down on one.

In reply to Keith Tanner :

I forgot to mention the one-pedal driving, thank you for the reminder. I switched to the more aggressive mode and left it there for most of the trip. I do like it, but I got used to it quick enough that it didn't register highly on my overall impressions. 

The passive heating with the glass roof makes sense, the sun wasn't annoying shining through the top tinted section but it did feel like a retractable sunshade would have helped. I was thinking sticker/veneer as well for the wood, and maybe the one in this particular car is out of spec for how textured they're supposed to be. I've only sat in one more X and that was years ago, so I don't have enough experience to know.

On the tires - the brakes are huge but it does look like 20s" would fit. Those combined with a less aggressive tire would likely make a noticeable difference. 

On EVs being easy - I switched to an electric mower a few years ago and that's been my experience with it. Mowing the grass has gone from being something I have to actively pay attention to the tools to make sure they're ready to go, to now just throwing the battery on and going. I full expect to get an EV for around-town driving sometime in the next 5 years, but I'd prefer it be more "normal." There are so many EVs coming out from different manufacturers in the next few years (a lot of that thanks to Tesla's influence) that I'm sure I'll find something that clicks.

Maybe the Model X will go down in history like 80s supercars - not that great in some large areas, but inspirational and iconic from a historical perspective.

ddavidv said:

The blandness only matters to guys like us. The general populace find cars and driving a tedious chore. They welcome blandness. How else does one explain the proliferation of Camrys and Accords?

I'm curious about Teslas, but not curious enough to put money down on one.

I don't know, I don't think modern Camrys and Accords are that bland. The average new car is seriously impressive compared to moderately sporty cars of 15 years ago.

You were driving the top spec version, it's possible the "lesser" models have smaller wheels that work better. That's a mistake many automakers make, probably due to market pressures. People equate bigger is better with wheels.The first modification I recommend for the Mazdaspeed Miata is to lose the 17s and bolt on a set of 15" wheels :)
 

You can get clip-in sunshades for the roof. We run one in our car all summer and remove it in fall. It's a mesh that looks at home - you forget it's there pretty much immediately. Lots of people tint although that may be for style as well. 

The Model 3 "wood" has a lot of texture, it's definitely not trying to pretend to be super-glossy sanded wood with a half inch of varnish on it. More like a split bamboo, maybe? That's a stylistic choice. Someone matched it to an architectural veneer. 

In reply to Keith Tanner :

It looks like there are 19" and 20" models for different trims, although none look as good as the 22" black Turbines. And agreed, 22" wheel sizes are a little silly, I can't see that ever being the "best" option for anything but subjective looks. 

I think you might also be right about the textured wood. Not the stylistic choice I would make, but I also don't know what the other options look and feel like beyond pictures.

I've seen a few cars with the 20" Induction wheels and they do seem to change the overall look of the car. They match its futuristic look. 

From what I've read/been told, the seats are made of a high-tech foam that's used in the spacex rockets somewhere, and it doesn't wear out like leather and it's very difficult to stain.  I was told you could pour a cup of black coffee right on the white seat and wipe it off no problem.

In reply to infinitenexus :

I can confirm that when I detailed the car before returning it, the seats cleaned very easily. We hadn't added any stains in a few days, but it didn't feel as porous as traditional leather or synthetic seat coverings. 

Maybe the seats are warm because the foam is designed to be used in space, then?

ddavidv said:

The blandness only matters to guys like us. The general populace find cars and driving a tedious chore. They welcome blandness. How else does one explain the proliferation of Camrys and Accords?

I'm curious about Teslas, but not curious enough to put money down on one.

people don't like Accords and Camrys because they're boring. Camrys and Accords are boring because regular people want a car that just berkeleying works every morning, doesn't cost an insane sum, and is not a penalty box. Driving a E36 M3box is fun but you have to worry about the car and the car not starting. Not getting to work makes a car very not fun.

Even those of us that like cars can appreciate a car that just works and doesn't get all in your face all the time. When I'm buzzing around town doing errands or at the track or just plain driving for fun, I can appreciate the nutty cars. But when I'm trying to decompress after a day at work or I'm facing 5 hours of interstate, I want the car to disappear.

Keith Tanner said:

Even those of us that like cars can appreciate a car that just works and doesn't get all in your face all the time. When I'm buzzing around town doing errands or at the track or just plain driving for fun, I can appreciate the nutty cars. But when I'm trying to decompress after a day at work or I'm facing 5 hours of interstate, I want the car to disappear.

That's exactly why I bought my LS 430. I do happen to like how it looks and it's not a slouch, but the main reason is it's a sensory deprivation chamber where I get to sit on a couch, have cool air wafted up my back, and listen to a beautiful sound system in peace and quiet while I drive wherever I need to go. It's the "I just want to get there feeling less stressed than I do now" car that never asks for anything and always does a great job at being a car.