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I think Tesla even surprised itself that it could be perceived as such a high end car company. Talking to some people many do think Tesla is on a level higher than your ordinary Mercedes or BMW...and that's from owners of those cars too. It certainly surprised the hell of BMW, MB or Porsche, they never thought that could be possible. The Japanese, with all their engineering and manufacturing prowess, still could not break into the true high end market after tried very hard for more than two decades. Imo it's always a good thing when you can be accepted in as high end a market as you can. It's much easier for a high end brand to sell a less expansive car than the other way around. The only thing is Tesla should not forget the more affordable segment. It did revive the RWD S70 so that can be seen as a good sign.
I just wanted to point out that the "bike in the back" picture clearly shows that the backs are separate all the way down to where they go behind the folded 3rd row. It would be highly unlikely to produce separate seatbacks like that if they were locked into a single moving bench. Even a 60/40 split would attach the middle seat to one of the others for improved strength.
From the front (3/4 view) pictures of the middle row (which are fairly close), the cushions all have separations between the 3 seating posititions, and the overhead picture on the config thread showing the heated surfaces (which is at more of a distance) clearly shows that the cushions separate very linearly along the entire length of the seatback and the bottom cushion.
Unless they created 3 independent shells and then bolted them together, or unless there is a 3rd piece of hardware where they are all formed as one piece, I doubt there will be a "locked bench" seat.
So this 6-seat configuration matches that of our current Town and Country.
To sum it up:
-Lose armrests on captain second row seats (huge comfort while riding)
-Lose recline of both 2nd/3rd row (another comfort and necessary for proper installation of various car seats for proper leveling/fit)
-Lose flush fold down feature of 2nd, possibly 3rd row
-Lose large well storage in rear and in front of 2nd row with seats in upright position.
It seems like the functionality on this vehicle is extremely limited barring some extraordinary surprises on the reveal. Was hoping for replacement of the minivan with the X but doesn't look like this will fit our needs. Far too many compromises. Been very happy with day to day life using our Town and Country through summer and winter. The versatility of seating/storage is much appreciated. Will just have to wait and see what Chrysler will come up with for their Plug In Town and Country hybrid in the works or logical improvements on the X in '16-'17 --- Seems like any reservations now are for Beta vehicles.
I share some of these same concerns. I held off on a reservation until January of this year, though I had all but pushed the button several times last year. The 2d/3d seat issue and its evolution have been of particular concern for me, because the X is intended to replace an aging Escalade in our family. That car, though it has plenty of compromises and is a hassle to switch seats, and is long past being fun to drive, does what we need it to do. It will be a hard sell to spend this kind of money in exchange for significantly less day-to-day functionality. Looking forward to the Reveal.
Not sure what you're talking about. There was never a 2nd/3rd row seat issue until a few weeks ago when the first design was shown.
Always welcome the first post of a new registrant though.
Sounds like little Johnny needs a lesson on touching seat controls. As a father of two, I don't see this being an issue. We don't set our kids free in the car as a playground (though I played in our family van a lot as a kid myself). That said, when things are used improperly, it's always time for "let me give you a lesson on how to use that properly."
When it comes to mass produced safety, what 99.9 percent of responsible parents do is almost irrelevant. If one in a thousand kids move the seat with a sibling's arm in it; Tesla is practically chopping off kids arms. Design has to speak to the lowest denominator and I think there is some value in what BerTX said and Tesla should think about some safety control over how the three seats move.
To be fair, the average sale price of an Audi is around 48 thousand. Tesla has done amazing things by being able to sell its product at such a high price and the high price automatically gives Tesla some credit as luxurious and exclusive. What will happen when all automakers are playing on the same 40-55 thousand dollar playing field is a different matter. I think Tesla will do well, I just wouldn't underestimate the power or a German Badge.Agreed. Yesterday a guy in an audi told me he was envious of my Tesla. They have built quite the brand...
There could be a failsafe mechanism wherein the seat sliding mechanism disengages beyond a certain threshold of "resistance/obstruction". Somewhat akin to torsion control screwdrivers (?)
Unless the seats have Ludicrous acceleration, little sister (we're assuming she's younger than Johnny, right?) should have time to extract her arm from that padded, artfully sculptured maw of seatback pincer doom. I am more concerned about Johnny (or Mom&Dad) closing car doors on either kid, but ironically not so with regard to the X's rear doors, with the obstacular sensors I am imagining they have.... independently movable power seats that kids will be sitting in. How long before little Johnny moves the seat while his sister's arm is between gap of the backs of the two adjacent seats?