2022 Model X Plaid 30k miles, 19 month review

30000 mile review of my 2022 Model X Plaid. Just over 19 months of ownership and 30k miles so far and I enjoyed every single mile. Now for the good and the bad. Let's start with the bad: As we all know, fit and finish is not Tesla's strength, so, some of the trim really does not line up perfect even though it is "within spec". I had several mobile as well as service center visits due to minor issues like Yoke wear, weatherstripping coming loose, falcon wing doors metal on metal contact, center console issues and a dented front bumper when the car was delivered. Another issue is the factory alignment causing wear on the inside of rear tires. My tires only lasted 28k miles . Front ones still had life left but changed all 4. I did use spacers on the rear camber arms to reduce the inside wear. I also had a tear in the drivers seat side bolster that was not covered under warranty. The good: No major technical issues, insane acceleration and 7 drag strip visits with most runs in the 9.80 range. Very consistent times. Fantastic road trip vehicle with very fast charging and comfortable ride. While I paid a lot more than the current price for my Plaid (about $30k more than current price), I also got $30k more for my trade, so, for me it's a wash. Planning on keeping the Plaid at least until I'll get my Cybertruck in maybe 2 to 3 years (ordered Oct 2021). May even keep it and give it to the wife when I get the CT and keep the Plaid until the Battery/motor warranty expires at 150k miles. Certainly won't keep it past 150k miles. Degradation is just over 3% at 322 mile current full range (new was 333 miles).
Exterior holding up great. A few stone chips but otherwise still looks like new. Interior holding up good except for torn side bolster which I had fixed (replace the torn section) at a local upholstry store.

 

[FloridaSun]

Some pics taken right now..

 

[KL670]

279 wh/mi? How have you managed such efficiency? You don’t sound like someone who babies the car

 

[FloridaSun]

279 wh/mi? How have you managed such efficiency? You don’t sound like someone who babies the car

I do Mexico runs and have 27 drag strip runs BUT when I'm not racing someone, I cruise on Autopilot. Most of my driving is on Autopilot and traffic to work is heavy. I'm in Florida and 7 months of the year, no climate control. In summer, I have AC off on my morning commute but run the AC on the way home. When I'm not racing, I virtually never use the brake pedal. My braking is 99.9% regen. My morning commute averages 250 wh/mile on autopilot. I set autopilot to 75 but traffic is too heavy to drive 75 for 70% of my commute. I used to average 271 wh/mile but then went on a 2800 mile road trip, mostly 80 mph which increased my average to 279.

 

[BuffaloMS]

Thanks for the review! Which app is that for the battery details? Really nice to get the detailed information!

 

[FloridaSun]

Thanks for the review! Which app is that for the battery details? Really nice to get the detailed information!

Scanmytesla app. You need OBD2 harness and dongle

 

[Jayskywalker21]

Awesome review. In regards to being comfortable did you add any suspension upgrades to the vehicle? I did test a XLR two weeks ago and it was kinda rough then again it was on 22s.

 

[FloridaSun]

Awesome review. In regards to being comfortable did you add any suspension upgrades to the vehicle? I did test a XLR two weeks ago and it was kinda rough then again it was on 22s.

Did a 2800 mile road trip in comfort mode and it was wonderful. I'm sure that 22" vs. 20" plays a role.

 

[txxthie]

Are you hypermiling a Model X Plaid? I see you are using a scanner app, so you must like efficiency! Most Model Y LR owners with the standard 19" rims with caps will not even average 279 Wh/mi. Has the vehicle even been driven in freezing temps? Do you drive a lot in low mode? What % is highway miles? What % of charging at home? How often do you preconditioning the battery before travel? What are your tire pressure settings? Vehicle is parked in garage which helps a lot, as does 20" rims.

 

[FloridaSun]

Are you hypermiling a Model X Plaid? I see you are using a scanner app, so you must like efficiency! Most Model Y LR owners with the standard 19" rims with caps will not even average 279 Wh/mi. Has the vehicle even been driven in freezing temps? Do you drive a lot in low mode? What % is highway miles? What % of charging at home? How often do you preconditioning the battery before travel? What are your tire pressure settings? Vehicle is parked in garage which helps a lot, as does 20" rims.

Not hypermiling. I live in Florida and virtually don't use the climate control in 7 months, October to April. Even in summer, early morning drives are with just the fan blowing. No AC. No heater use in winter. Tires at 47 to 48 psi. Most of my miles are from my commute. Autopilot set to 75 but commute has bad traffic and highway flow of traffic averages 50 mph. When I'm not racing someone either in Mexico or the track, I don't drive aggressive and use regen braking/ one pedal driving. I mostly charge on free 50kw CCS chargers (60% and level 2 40%). Superchargers only on road trips and I navigate to the chargers, so I precondition when using Superchargers. Low mode is the default, so, that's what I use. Highway miles about 45% but often, the traffic is bad on the highway and can't drive too fast.
I was at 271 wh/mile before a 2800 mile road trip. 279 wh/mile after it. Road trip average about 325 wh/mile average at mostly 80 mph but no AC (temps in low 60's)
Car in garage at home and work.

 

[zivac87]

Thanks for review. What is your usual daily charge?

 

[FloridaSun]

Thanks for review. What is your usual daily charge?

I charge twice a week, Wednesday and Saturday to 90%, mixing in some small charges at local free chargers at places I frequent. Wednesday we usually have lunch at a Vietnamese Restaurant and there is a free 50kw CCS charger a block away. On road trips, I actually charge to high SoC to have fewer but longer stops.
I did 1000 mles with 4 stops, 45 + 45 + 20 + 11. We like to have longer food stops to have time to finish our food without a rush and stop fewer times. Tesla Nav suggested 7 stops for the trip and we did it with 4.

 

[MikeChicago]

Great write up. Thanks for sharing!

 

[rossjudson]

You mentioned you added a spacer to adjust the rear camber. Did you use the Macsboost spacers? Did you install yourself or have a shop do it? I bought the spacers, but haven't installed them yet.

 

[FloridaSun]

You mentioned you added a spacer to adjust the rear camber. Did you use the Macsboost spacers? Did you install yourself or have a shop do it? I bought the spacers, but haven't installed them yet.

My spacers are just home depot 2mm washers. I installed them myself.
Pretty easy to install.

 

[MikeEV]

30000 mile review of my 2022 Model X Plaid. Just over 19 months of ownership and 30k miles so far and I enjoyed every single mile. Now for the good and the bad. Let's start with the bad: As we all know, fit and finish is not Tesla's strength, so, some of the trim really does not line up perfect even though it is "within spec". I had several mobile as well as service center visits due to minor issues like Yoke wear, weatherstripping coming loose, falcon wing doors metal on metal contact, center console issues and a dented front bumper when the car was delivered. Another issue is the factory alignment causing wear on the inside of rear tires. My tires only lasted 28k miles . Front ones still had life left but changed all 4. I did use spacers on the rear camber arms to reduce the inside wear. I also had a tear in the drivers seat side bolster that was not covered under warranty. The good: No major technical issues, insane acceleration and 7 drag strip visits with most runs in the 9.80 range. Very consistent times. Fantastic road trip vehicle with very fast charging and comfortable ride. While I paid a lot more than the current price for my Plaid (about $30k more than current price), I also got $30k more for my trade, so, for me it's a wash. Planning on keeping the Plaid at least until I'll get my Cybertruck in maybe 2 to 3 years (ordered Oct 2021). May even keep it and give it to the wife when I get the CT and keep the Plaid until the Battery/motor warranty expires at 150k miles. Certainly won't keep it past 150k miles. Degradation is just over 3% at 322 mile current full range (new was 333 miles).
Exterior holding up great. A few stone chips but otherwise still looks like new. Interior holding up good except for torn side bolster which I had fixed (replace the torn section) at a local upholstry store.
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Appreciate hearing this review. Model X seems to get so many bad comments (premature tire wear, bad camber, FWD messing up, drive arm misaligned, etc) it makes one think twice about buying one. I have one on order. Thinking of canceling it. ??

 

[MikeChicago]

Appreciate hearing this review. Model X seems to get so many bad comments (premature tire wear, bad camber, FWD messing up, drive arm misaligned, etc) it makes one think twice about buying one. I have one on order. Thinking of canceling it. ??

I’ve had mine for a little over a month and like it so far. I did take my time inspecting the car. I’ve also heard a lot about FWDs being a pain but haven’t experienced any issues. Yesterday, I parked on a slight include from left to right. Both doors opened and closed fine. It’s a nice, sizable car but it’s not as quiet or as agile as our Model Y. It feels more like hefty by comparison, although the suspension does help a lot. I love that part of the car. Driving dynamics are superb for a car this size, in my opening. Only you can decide if it’s the right one for you. Have you done a test drive?

 

[MikeEV]

I’ve had mine for a little over a month and like it so far. I did take my time inspecting the car. I’ve also heard a lot about FWDs being a pain but haven’t experienced any issues. Yesterday, I parked on a slight include from left to right. Both doors opened and closed fine. It’s a nice, sizable car but it’s not as quiet or as agile as our Model Y. It feels more like hefty by comparison, although the suspension does help a lot. I love that part of the car. Driving dynamics are superb for a car this size, in my opening. Only you can decide if it’s the right one for you. Have you done a test drive?

Thanks for the feedback!
Yes, I did a test drive - gotta admit I was quite impressed. But, am uneasy about the various problems mentioned regularly in the forums. I live two plus hours from the nearest service center. Not realistic to be making regular trips for service. I haven't had to make any service trips for my Model Y, except when I damaged both left wheels hitting something on the highway. (Yuck.)

 

[DCGOO]

Appreciate hearing this review. Model X seems to get so many bad comments (premature tire wear, bad camber, FWD messing up, drive arm misaligned, etc) it makes one think twice about buying one. I have one on order. Thinking of canceling it. ??

You can cancel if you want. I have had mine since June of 2022. I took it in for a wheel alignment shortly after delivery (energy consumption was high. Fixed). Beyond that I have not a single problem with it. It has never been back to the service center, nor any mobile service.

It is completely quiet, no rattles, squeaks or whining. I did replace the tires at around 16,000 miles. Not because they needed to be. I just wanted to try out a set of Hankook ION EV tires. Definitely reduced the tire noise a lot. Highly recommended!

 

[MikeEV]

This sort of reliability has been my experience with my Model Y. Guess I have new car buyer’s pre-delivery anxiety. It doesn’t help that delivery window is still couple of months out. Thanks for the input.