Is Tesla selling on gimmicks?

[Joules Verne]

I'm going with "innovative".

Tesla is demonstrating that you can have an EV without compromise.
They are pushing the boundaries of innovation, making the car cool, fun, and desirable.

Attributes which define them.

 

[DDotJ]

The only thing I might say is "gimmicky" is the extending door handles. But they're awesome. And make me feel like James Bond. And they attract A LOT of attention. The #1 question I get asked is how the door handles work. At the car wash, in the grocery store parking lot, etc. It's free PR for Tesla. These people asking me about the handles don't know what Tesla is and they don't know it's an EV.

The 17 inch touchscreen is definitely not a gimmick, it's actually very useful. Touch panel isn't a resistive antiquated touchscreen like those in most other cars. Those drive me INSANE. They can add buttons for new features overnight, and the UI is so much easier to navigate. From homelink programming to navigation entry, everything just works. No need to read a manual, it's all so easy. I tried to help someone adjust their clock on a Porsche Panamera for DST (which on Model S is automatic). Jumped through hoops of settings menus and I couldn't figure it out. And I'm a programmer, so I'm a tech savvy guy. Finally threw my hands up after 10 minutes of searching and had to pull out the 3 huge paper manuals the car came with. After going into the rear index, searching for "clock" and flipping to the correct page, I finally found out that there is a SEPARATE settings menu, completely unrelated from the main settings menu on the main touchscreen that can only be accessed from the steering wheel scroll wheels and buttons on the tiny little speedometer. This whole process took like 15-20 minutes. Whereas on Model S, there is one central settings menu, and everything is logically placed and navigating through the UI is zippy fast. You don't have to push the same button 3-4 times for the touchscreen to register.

Falcon wing doors offer much more utility for easier entry/exit into the vehicle and it is also much easier to put you baby carrier into the seat since you can just climb in and place it down, instead of destroying your back trying the balance the carrier into the car like a crane.

Bio-defense mode, I'm pretty sure it's a joke (like a functional easter egg), but it could come in use in China where air pollution is a huge issue. I came across an article this morning that demand in China for Model X is huge due to the HEPA filter and "Bio-Defense Mode". Apparently the wealthy elite in China spend a lot of money importing food and beverages from foreign countries, as well as going abroad as long as possible to protect their health.
Source: http://www.teslarati.com/bioweapon-defense-mode-critical-chinese-customers/

 

[vgrinshpun]

• retracting door handles
• 17 inch touchscreen
• Falcon wing doors
• Bio defense mode

what else?

All are arguably nice features, but none are exactly exclusively required for an EV

I strongly object to the characterization of retractable handles as a "gimmick" i.e. useless feature.

 

[qwertzy]

The door handles are for aerodynamics to get the drag coefficient down to .24 , so you can get more range.

 

[ohmman]

The door handles are for aerodynamics to get the drag coefficient down to .24 , so you can get more range.

Ashlee Vance tells the story differently. The body model that they'd built didn't have door handles. Apparently Elon and Franz got so used to looking at it that way, they couldn't figure out how to put actual door handles on the vehicle. This was their way of working around it.

Quantifying the range gained by those door handles being retracted would be an interesting and enlightening exercise, though.

 

[Larry Chanin]

• retracting door handles
• 17 inch touchscreen
• Falcon wing doors
• Bio defense mode

what else?

All are arguably nice features, but none are exactly exclusively required for an EV

Yes, very nice features indeed and I agree they are not exactly exclusively required for an EV. ICE vehicles could have them too.

So what's your point?

Should Tesla only offer features that are exclusively required for an EV?

Larry

 

[bwa]

• retracting door handles
• 17 inch touchscreen
• Falcon wing doors
• Bio defense mode

what else?

All are arguably nice features, but none are exactly exclusively required for an EV

Yes, they are gimmicks to an extent, and other REAL things. Also, there's crossover: bio defense mode is both a gimmick and a really nice actual feature. Actually, of the 4 items you mentioned, only "retracting door handles" is the one that's not a really nice actual feature:

* Retracting door handles: Fail a lot, are dangerous, and have been better replaced with touch-handles on the X. Probably S will get that too.
* 17 inch touchscreen: many people like the big screen for visibility and readability of controls and readouts (maps, settings, conditions).
* Falcon Wing Doors: extremely flamboyantly marketable, and (a) that's a good thing and (b) they are also really useful in situations that are different than regular doors. I think FWD are more than just `,' material.
* Bio Defense Mode: this is actually useful. They created a competent air quality system, and when they were deciding what to call the buttons, the most exemplary name for the ultimate air quality option bubbled directly to the top of the design decisions, and for good reason. What they could call it is positive air pressure maybe it's filtered maybe it's not type of thing, but that's a lot more words. It's actually not a bad descriptor. Although, they might have made a "husbandry farm" button for those manure areas, and that would have a more appropriate feel to it (it's not super hazardous to smell manure, but it's slightly bad). A picture of three cows ought to do.

 

[Terra117]

I think a test drive with liberal application of the right pedal is what sells the car.

Call them gimmicks, but retracting door handles help with aerodynamics, Falcon wing doors help in tight parking spots and with clueless people who park far too close, and the 17 inch touch screen makes it possible to do things that wouldn't work as well on a 7 inch screen.

 

[30seconds]

the handles on the Model X are not retracting, correct?

 

[Soolim]

Tesla is demonstrating that you can have an EV without compromise.
They are pushing the boundaries of innovation, making the car cool, fun, and desirable. Attributes which define them.

Not quite without compromise. I would say that we love the extended range EV and super charger system so much that we are willing to live with the following compromises.
Navigation, EV trip planning, below par standard audio system, noisy drive units, etc.

 

[Vitold]

• retracting door handles
• 17 inch touchscreen
• Falcon wing doors
• Bio defense mode

what else?

All are arguably nice features, but none are exactly exclusively required for an EV

I think you're entirely wrong suggesting that features you listed are gimmicks:

1. If there was an option - would you buy Tesla w/o retractable door handles? I don't think many people would. Anyway, Tesla appears to agree that door handles are superfluous and model X does not have them. It's likely that Model S handles will be replaced with self presenting doors in a year or two.

2. 17 inch touchscreen actually saves money for Tesla. They don't have to deal with multiple suppliers and large screen offers more possibilities, including large screen rear view camera, maps and browser.

3. Falcon wing doors: the idea is great, we will see how it performs in real life...

4. Bio defense mode - I predict all cars will have it in a few years. Remember when cars did not have cabin filters at all?

 

[wdolson]

the handles on the Model X are not retracting, correct?

They are just hot spots on the door you touch and the door opens.

Going back to the original list, you have to realize Elon Musk is a Physicist by training, but he has the temperament of an engineer who is unwilling to make compromises between form and function. Elon Musk and the rest of the design team at Tesla realized early on that if their cars were going to be accepted, they couldn't just be the best EV ever built, the car had to be superior to every other car out there in every way imaginable so every counter argument against the car would be rendered moot before even starting. It led to some design decisions, each of which has a story.

• retracting door handles - Of the list, this is the most cosmetic and the only one that doesn't have a strong functional reason. As stated above, Elon and Franz got used to the look without the handles on the clay design cars and they figured out a way to do it. The touch spots on the Model X are probably more reliable, though I don't know with the automatically opening and closing doors. With just the touch spots, it does mean fewer moving parts.
• 17 inch touchscreen - This is actually a very functional design decision. It gives the car a certain character, but it vastly reduces the costs for the user interface and makes it possible to improve the UI over time. By having only a couple of mechanical buttons, that reduces the failure points and makes the whole UI very clean as well as highly customizable. Tesla is at least a generation ahead of the rest of the car industry with user interfaces, though some may say version 7 of the firmware was a step backwards, the really great thing is they could fix it with version 8.
• Falcon wing doors - This came about because Elon has 5 kids (a pair of twins and triplets) who are getting close to teenagers now, but he had to deal with 5 kids in car seats at the same time. He and the chief designer were talking about the back breaking job of strapping in a kid in the center seat when it dawn on them if the car opened upward, this would solve a lot of the hunching over. So they figured out how to make it happen. I would not be surprised if they have bugs with this that will need to be worked out in the next year or two.
• Bio defense mode - This is there to sell to China. Tesla has had trouble selling cars in China and a major concern among rich Chinese is the poor air quality. Having a car that is capable to keeping the air fresh inside the car in Beijing is a big selling feature. In many other parts of the world it is kind of gimmicky, but they are also selling the Model X to women who tend to be more concerned about health type things than men (on average, I can name many exceptions in both ends of the spectrum).

If you know why these things are there, they aren't quite as gimmicky. They aren't necessary for an EV, but they do add character to the cars. Many of these things are also things that make a good first impression when someone is looking at the car for the first time. A big thing when you're trying to get someone to put down $100K. Most cars in that price range have a number of gadgets and creature comforts. The people here who moved sideways from other $100K cars have complained the Model S doesn't have enough for their tastes. (I'm not one of them, my current car cost $22K new and is 23 years old, a Model S is a big step up for me.)

 

[mikeash]

Tesla has gimmicks, but they are not selling on gimmicks.

What they are selling on is:

• Extremely quiet, smooth ride.
• Environmental friendliness.
• Spacious interior and cargo capacity.
• Great looks.
• Ridiculous power.
• High-end driver assistance features.

And other stuff of that nature. The gimmicks aren't the foundation, they're just fun little add-ons.

Edit: Just to reinforce wdolson's point about Bio-weapon Defense Mode, pollution is a massive problem in places like Beijing. I just got back from about three weeks there, and it's completely ridiculous. On bad days, you'll see tons of people wearing filter masks in the street. The name is a gimmick, but the functionality is highly practical and useful in places like that.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

• retracting door handles
• 17 inch touchscreen
• Falcon wing doors
• Bio defense mode

what else?

All are arguably nice features, but none are exactly exclusively required for an EV

The items you list are items that have given Tesla an untold amount of free press. Tesla has recouped the cost of developing those features several times over with the amount of free marketing it has gotten. Did you miss the part during the X launch when Elon received applause for the bio defense mode? Were you aware that this is a much appreciated feature in highly polluted locations, as in certain parts of China?

Would the media be in a frenzy if Tesla launched Model X as a mini van?