Model X - doors...in real conditions/family life?

[PJ1978]

Hi

Long time lurker, first time poster. We put our deposit down for a model X in November last year, but we are having cold feet about the doors and in particular the falcon wing doors. We live in Europe and often park on the street, including for the school run. In our current car, a fairly standard hatchback, the kids can simply open the doors by themselves and get in and out without any issues. We are worried that the process on the X for opening the doors, standing in the correct position, and then closing the doors, with four kids in tow, plus people walking on the sidewalk may create more stress than it is worth.

This has been an ongoing debate between me and my wife over the past few months, and whilst it may cost more (because of tax) we may end up with a Volvo XC90 or Audi SQ7 (neither of which I really like) simply because they have normal doors! And normal seats on the second row that fold flat - another irritation with the X - but one that we can live with when compared to the doors.

We love the technology, performance, and looks but my wife wants normal doors. We live in relatively wealthy area, but it is still mixed, and for some people spending over 100,000 on a car is an amount they cannot comprehend. It is a lot of money for us, but affordable, but we don't want the added attention. I know some posters love Tesla time, and I get it, but we are immigrants posted in Europe, and don't want to re-enforce the image of rich foreigners. I always think of Tesla in a positive light, but am just concerned that the falcon wing doors are overly flash.

It is all incredibly frustrating. We can deal with the range issues, and the slight leap into the unknown as all of our experiences with Tesla have been absolutely fantastic, and I am confident that they will resolve any issues that occur, but we are really struggling with the FWD. It seems crazy to have solved one problem - electric cars, indeed range anxiety has never been an issue for us, to replace it with a new (unnecessary) one with the doors - even if they will fix them - I have never had to get a car sent back for a door to be fixed, or even had to think about the possibility of a car door not working! We have even tried to convince ourselves that the Model S would work, but with four kids and dogs it is just not big enough. In an ideal world we would like an X with normal doors (and the Volvo interior), but I know this will not happen.

So in summary:

1/ the falcon wing doors - do they work in real family conditions, in particular in crowded areas e.g. pedestrians walking by, narrow roads parking on the side of the road, underground car parks with low ceilings, and how easy has it been to adjust to the doors, if you have had to adjust?;

2/ If you had the choice the now of FWD or normal doors - what would you select?; and

3/ the attention? I know some people have said that they felt like a rock star upon receiving the model X. Has this now died down? This is something that we don't want, we would prefer to be ignored and that the car is just a way of getting from A to B.

Thanks for all your help. As a said above, am keen to finalise the order, but as I would only drive the car at the weekend, I want my wife to be happy, and comfortable with the doors. We have never had any issue with putting our kids in our current car, so feel that this solves an issue that never existed for us.

Want to positive, and I am excited about confirming the order, but will certainly not fight my wife over this one if she cannot get comfortable with it, as she uses it far more than me.

 

[kazkioken]

I live in LA, where you see multiple X's everyday everywhere. The car is new enough, and with such a veneer from the aura of Tesla-Musk that even last night people start take pictures of it whenever it is parked.

Will you be the only one around with the X? The fwd's don't help your cause...but simply having an X itself will draw attention. The doors work very well out in the open when you don't have to worry about things hitting it. When you are in garages and low ceilings mine have never misbehaved but it's just another thing to worry about. I love mine, can't see myself getting a standard SUV after this. You might feel the owner benefits far outweigh the social implications.

So to your ?'s. No I would not change the doors to standard, I don't have children but just the ease to get in and out is noticeable. You will not get away with sneaking under the radar. It will garner lots of attention...there are people even in LA who have never heard of the Model X - and they kind of freak out when they see the doors. I say do it, life is short.

 

[spkonda]

I agree with kazkioken, just do it,
life is short

 

[PJ1978]

Thanks. Wow, even in LA. I was hoping that after the hype it would calm down, but it does not sound like that this is the case. Have you had any negative comments? To date all I am hearing about Tesla is positive, but I fear this may also be more down to the attitudes in the US - of great car, what can I do to afford one, as oppose to the attitudes in Europe which are often more negative.

Unfortunately we live in a sleepy small town, and the only other Tesla owner has now moved away. Thanks to the tax position 120% tax rebate as a company car in Belgium the S is becoming popular(ish) normally I see 1 or 2 per day, and suspect the X will be similar. Certainly have not seen an X on the road in person yet, but they have only just started to deliver them in Belgium.

If it was down to me, I would do it. But as my Wife is the main user of the car, and it will be used as the school bus it will be her decision. No offence to Volvo or Audi but feel a part of me inside slightly dying if we have to get one. I know Tesla is the future, and the technology is simply incredible, but as I said above...the doors...without them we would have already but our order in.

 

[kazkioken]

Yeah as someone who only has read what you wrote, you might be overthinking this. I have not had one negative comment, they are usually high fives, smiles, thumbs up, looks of envy, etc. I am sure if I drove it enough (only had it 6 weeks) I'll eventually get something strange but, that's just people being humans. But sure this comes down to personality and comfort as well, some people don't want to wear a flag out in public. I personally think it's worth all that- don't slightly die inside be happy, you're only here once lol.

 

[DriverOne]

All I can add is my sympathy. My wife & I have the same reservations. Tesla perhaps could use some more women in their design team; in our small set of 2 data points, it is the wives who dislike the FWD most! We all wanted an electric car that wasn't goofy looking. With the S, Tesla delivered. With the X... it's not so much goofy but it is attention-getting. Electric + normal, please. Not everyone likes being the center of attention.

Will likely still get an X, as there aren't any other electric choices with more room than an S.

 

[Super_Popular]

You can not go wrong with the Volvo

 

[SW2Fiddler]

Normal couple, two small boys, and a Model X. Regularly post videos of the good, the bad, and the interesting...

 

[andrewket]

If I had the option, I'd get normal doors. The FWDs have been annoying during drop off at school, or anywhere else where speed is important. We definitely get some looks of annoyance from people. The doors mostly work, but you have to think about where you are, space, etc., whereas a normal door you don't.

As far as drawing attention, it's been getting better in places we normally travel, but don't kid yourself, the doors get people looking.

Having said the above, I'd still buy the X. An XC90 etc just doesn't cut it from an environment perspective, and is nowhere as much fun to drive.

For us, the model S was a no sacrifice car. The X has trade-offs.

Andrew

 

[proven]

1. We have 2 kids and the doors are easy. They are not as slow as people make them out to be--yes they are a little bit slower than our old Odyssey minivan doors, but not by much. At the school carpool line they are certainly slower than normal doors, but I think the ease of entry/exit makes up for the speed. They open up a lot more than they open out, so it has never been a problem with pedestrians. Our 4 and 5 year old kids both learned how the doors worked after about 10 minutes and have never had a problem (and our 4-year old is low-vision).

2. Given the choice I would choose the falcon wing doors again.

3. They will attract attention, but I've been surprised that for the most part we are left alone. Once in a while, someone stops you and asks you about it and seems oblivious to the fact that you have waiting children in the car while they ask 20 questions, but overall it's not that often. That being said, they will attract attention so if that's a big problem for you then maybe it's not the best choice.

 

[ModelX]

I like the doors, and the X doesn't seem to draw much attention in my smaller town.

 

[electricity]

The X gets alot of attention but its not a "wow he is rich has a ferrari atention". Its a wow what is that ? What ? Electric ? Suv ??? Whats the range?? Wow those doors are sooo coool type atention, not the destructive kind u are thinking. I get a ton of thumbs up and smiles from passing cars daily. I personaly love the doors and would not change the for normals ever. Im coming from a porsche cayenne. Fantastic SUV, but the X just blows it out of the water 10 times.

 

[UnitaryExecutive]

1. Love them for small kids. No more struggling to not bang the kid's head on the door when putting him in the car. It also rained tonight and I stood under the cover of the FWD and easily got him in and out. We live in a condo complex and the doors work great in tight parking conditions where it'd be really hard to get him out normally.
2. FWD - it really makes a difference with our 11 month old.
3. Some, not a whole lot. Several sweet car remarks and some fist pumps from other tesla drivers.

I actually love being open all the doors from the center console and closing them all with the keyfob while walking away even more than the doors. We pretty much take the kid out, don't have to worry about how to shut the door and I just reach in my pocket and hit the keyfob once while walking away.

 

[commasign]

1/ the falcon wing doors - do they work in real family conditions, in particular in crowded areas e.g. pedestrians walking by, narrow roads parking on the side of the road, underground car parks with low ceilings, and how easy has it been to adjust to the doors, if you have had to adjust?;

2/ If you had the choice the now of FWD or normal doors - what would you select?; and

3/ the attention? I know some people have said that they felt like a rock star upon receiving the model X. Has this now died down? This is something that we don't want, we would prefer to be ignored and that the car is just a way of getting from A to B.

1. The falcon wing doors work just fine. The sensors are quite sensitive and the current firmware opens the doors in a very conservative manner so the risk of the doors hitting cars, walls, and ceilings is very low. Pinch sensors and resistance detection works great when someone happens to get in the way of the door opening or closing. Still, kids will need to be taught to back off when the door is opening or closing, and adults will also need to learn to stand further back than they might initially think due to the door opening arc (i.e. it requires surprisingly little clearance as it first opens mostly in the upward direction but then requires a lot more clearance as it reaches upper chest and head level and is opening much more laterally; you could get smacked in the face if you stand too close). Again, something you just learn after using it a few times. Once you've gotten use to the quirks, there are two usage scenarios that are the real payoff. The first usage scenario is being able to plop an infant or toddler into an outboard (or middle) 2nd row carseat without breaking your back. The other usage scenario is being able to engage easy access and step-in to the 3rd row even if front-facing carseats are installed in the 2nd row. For us, these two usage scenarios make up for the quirkiness of the doors.

2. Would prefer minivan-style sliding doors if they could make it open wide enough to allow step-in access to the 3rd row the way the falcon wing doors allow.

3. Yeah, the extra attention is a little annoying for us introverts. But it's mostly "wow, that's cool" rather than "you're just showing off" type comments or reactions.

 

[Bishop]

if it helps i live in south Carolina and im pretty sure i have the only model x remotely near me the only time anyone ever notices is if/when i open the fwd and its not all that often most of the time i get the random " what kinda car is that" and once i took the kids to the moves and on the way out some teenager was taking pictues with the doors open ( i had to let the kids back in )

 

[Matias]

I don't know whether it is relevant in Brussels, but to my understanding no one has yet used FWDs in snow and icing conditions.

 

[PGeer]

We live in a small town. I've gotten over my shyness (almost, anyway) about people looking at the car and have enjoyed the conversations that have resulted. It has been gratifying that everyone seems to come from a place of delight rather than resentment (despite the Tesla-hating crowd in the media.) I'm always quick to point out Elon's strategy: prove the concept with high-end cars, then mass produce to make affordable by most.

And yes, most of the attention comes with opening the FWDs. But I absolutely love the access they give to the car. Had my 4y/o granddaughter in booster seat for first time last week and was amazed how much easier it was getting her in and out.

 

[VerityZooms]

I live in a large city, but one that isn't San Francisco or L.A.; and I still feel like I have the only Model X in town. Before I got her dipped pink, I would get endless attention and questions / comments.

I really don't think it's died down.

The doors are precisely as annoying as you think they are: They have huge upsides, but you have a very clear conception of the downsides, IMHO. (While I don't have small children, I do have small dogs; while not the same thing, there's at least some similar concerns there.)

Edit: In elaboration: The posters above me aren't wrong; you're just, also right.

1. The doors, mechanically, work better than you'd ever expect: the sensors are very sensitive, nobody's going to get hurt, or crushed; and as long as you develop the slightest situational awareness and don't treat the car as a living, thinking pet instead of an algorithmic machine, they're not even gonna run into stationary things.
2. That said, however, they are: excruciatingly slow (not the first time you open them; but the 100th time? Or the 1,000th time, and you're sitting in the back row, so you both have to wait for the doors to open, allowing the middle-row riders to climb out, and then for the middle-row to move forwards so you can egress? Yikes, it's an ordeal.)
3. I've received absolutely no negative, judgmental attention; but I suspect the other posters are privileged, affluent, white people in privileged, affluent, primarily white communities. You can make your own judgements as to the effects of drawing additional attention to yourself; but unless you live in a very tech-centric city (i.e. one already flooded with Teslas, like San Francisco), yes. expect lots of attention. even if it's going to be positive attention.
4. Re: if given a choice … if I were leasing this car, sure, I'd go with the falcon-wing doors. They're cool, and fun, and do have advantages, several of them! But honestly? Mine's already been in the shop a few times; and I'm *terrified* of a few years down the road, when all that unnecessary-but-cool mechanical complexity becomes my problem, financially, instead of Tesla's. As an outright-cash purchaser of a Tesla, if I had the option, I'd go with traditional, swing-out doors, if I could.

 

[Bishop]

I live in a large city, but one that isn't San Francisco or L.A.; and I still feel like I have the only Model X in town. Before I got her dipped pink, I would get endless attention and questions / comments.

1. I've received absolutely no negative, judgmental attention; but I suspect the other posters are privileged, affluent, white people in privileged, affluent, primarily white communities

im actually non of this ...Im not white, i grew up in the system,im not privileged and most likely to get shot if pulled over, and i dont live in a "white community " i got and education and work very hard for what i want.

 

[FarmerDave]

I don't know whether it is relevant in Brussels, but to my understanding no one has yet used FWDs in snow and icing conditions.

I have used my X in snow/icing conditions. No problem whatsoever with the falcon wing doors.