Model X Falcon Doors

[robby]

IMO Tesla should design function first, form second.
The first generation Honda Odyssey minivan came with four standard swing doors. Honda spent weeks at the Disneyland parking lot viewing how people entered and exited their 2nd and 3rd rows of seating of compeditors' vehicles, and determined that the standard swing doors were best. They had a change of heart. The 2nd generation and thereafter all have sliding doors.
If Tesla concludes from their design and research that the falcon wing doors are the best option, given all factors and conditions (opened in driving rain, with 10" of snow on the top, ease of operation, how quickly one can get in and out, access to the 3rd row, etc), then so be it. If after extensive review it is determined that the falcon wing doors form will compromise function overall, then scrap them. Note the lack of conventional roof rack is already a function issue, not possible with the falcon doors.
Current ride: Honda Pilot (four swing doors plus rear lift door, seats 8 standard).
Model X will be my future ride, 2016 model (to purchase in 2020 after four year trade-in lease from Tesla). Can you say "delayed gratification"?

Tesla's head of product said there are no function sacrifices and specifically addressed that they have a workaround for the roof rack. My guess is it will support a roof rack with a single hinge opening requiring more horizontal space but we will have to wait and see what the exact solution is.

 

[mspohr]

Zero Emissions. Zero Compromises.

 

[Words of HABIT]

Tesla's head of product said there are no function sacrifices and specifically addressed that they have a workaround for the roof rack. My guess is it will support a roof rack with a single hinge opening requiring more horizontal space but we will have to wait and see what the exact solution is.

robby, thats great. Hoping Tesla works out rooftop transport for all types of toys (skis, bicycles, kayaks, canoe, storage compartment). Many people that can afford a 100k SUV have these transport needs back and forth to the cottage.

 

[pinguhk]

I'm new to the X model and I have not read all 70 pages so if it has been repeated I am very sorry.
I'm from Hong Kong and love to put a deposit down on the MX85D but the 1 main thing I have not done this is because of the rear door design. It is 100% useless in Hong Kong car parks.
99% of Hong Kong car parks will not fit this car in, the celing is way too low for the doors to be open.
most car park in Hong Kong are under 1.8 meter high.
Right now I own a Honda Stepwgn which is a 8 seater and have sliding door for the 2nd and 3rd seats.
I just hope the final design will be a sliding door, like most Japanese mini vans.

 

[JRP3]

Highly unlikely that a key design feature is not going to be implemented.

 

[yesup]

I just hope the final design will be a sliding door, like most Japanese mini vans.

This is exactly the reason why this would not happen.

The last thing Tesla wants is to have "Model X" and the term "mini van" in the same sentence.

 

[ElectricLove]

I think the Falcon doors are cool looking but are just a gimmicky way to sell a unique feature on a vehicle that really doesn't need anything to set it apart from the crowd when its already a freaking EV with incredible performance numbers and a huge amount of interest. Are there any "absolutely must have" reasons for these doors to exist on this vehicle? It seems that there are a few obvious flaws that just make them impractical enough that even if they were a simple design to integrate (and I don't think that is the case at all) perhaps they'd be better left to a small production exotic where quirks are sought after rather than a vehicle which we hope to see on the streets every day in every city in the world... Let's just put the doors to rest and get the X in people's driveways!

- - - Updated - - -

Yes, I know we have beaten this to death but it occurred to me that the Falcon-Wing doors only need 8" of clearance. And since I would never ride within 8" of a car anyway, the chances of getting hit by the Falcon-doors is practically nill. Compared to an average door opening of 36"-40" it means that not only can Elon claim that the Model S is the safest family sedan car it is also the safest car for cyclists getting hit by doors. Another 1st:smile:

Don't forget this is just the back doors not the front doors, they'll still open just as wide and every time the vehicle moves one of those front doors is being opened/closed...

 

[Merrill]

Please do not take offense to this but if you think the falcon doors are not going work correctly or you do not like they way they look, do not buy the Model X. Personally I like the idea and looking forward to having them, of course I have 21 inch wheels, use to own an Alfa Romeo and a Jaguar so I'm not very practical!

 

[JRP3]

In fact there will of course be cases where the falcon doors are not optimal, just as there are cases where conventional doors are not optimal, as in a narrow space, but we just take that for granted because it's familiar. In that case the falcon doors will be better than conventional. Every design is a compromise.

 

[aronth5]

I think the Falcon doors are cool looking but are just a gimmicky way to sell a unique feature on a vehicle that really doesn't need anything to set it apart from the crowd when its already a freaking EV with incredible performance numbers and a huge amount of interest. Are there any "absolutely must have" reasons for these doors to exist on this vehicle? It seems that there are a few obvious flaws that just make them impractical enough that even if they were a simple design to integrate (and I don't think that is the case at all) perhaps they'd be better left to a small production exotic where quirks are sought after rather than a vehicle which we hope to see on the streets every day in every city in the world... Let's just put the doors to rest and get the X in people's driveways!

- - - Updated - - -



Don't forget this is just the back doors not the front doors, they'll still open just as wide and every time the vehicle moves one of those front doors is being opened/closed...

Yes, except now there are only 2 doors that open that wide instead of 4 which makes it safer than other family sedans.
The point I was really trying to make was simply in response to the repeated concerns that the Falcon doors would be extremely dangerous to anyone on a bicycle.
I agree with others that every design has it pros and cons and I'm anxious to see how the Falcon doors work. I'm hoping for the best.

 

[Words of HABIT]

...The point I was really trying to make was simply in response to the repeated concerns that the Falcon doors would be extremely dangerous to anyone on a bicycle.
I agree with others that every design has it pros and cons and I'm anxious to see how the Falcon doors work. I'm hoping for the best.

aronth5, as stated a few times on this thread by others, Model X falcon doors open up, not out. Therefore they would be safer for cyclists than any outward swing door. If they cyclist is traveling too close to the car, they will likely hit the side view mirrors (I know Model X's spec is for cameras) before hitting the falcon door.

 

[aronth5]

aronth5, as stated a few times on this thread by others, Model X falcon doors open up, not out. Therefore they would be safer for cyclists than any outward swing door. If they cyclist is traveling too close to the car, they will likely hit the side view mirrors (I know Model X's spec is for cameras) before hitting the falcon door.

Agree which is what I had initially posted awhile ago.

Yes, I know we have beaten this to death but it occurred to me that the Falcon-Wing doors only need 8" of clearance. And since I would never ride within 8" of a car anyway, the chances of getting hit by the Falcon-doors is practically nill. Compared to an average door opening of 36"-40" it means that not only can Elon claim that the Model S is the safest family sedan car it is also the safest car for cyclists getting hit by doors. Another 1st:smile:

 

[Words of HABIT]

aronth5, thanks for your clarification. I responded to your previous post out of context.

 

[pinguhk]

Elon Musk shuts down speculation that Falcon Wing doors will disappear

 

[insiderinfo]

Falcon door openning

Actually, falcon doors will open out quite a bit. It all depends on the height you're talking about. At very low heights, the door hardly opens out at all, but if you stand next to the car at chin height the door easily stick out 2.5ft from the car. No way around it, unfortunately.

 

[Nixter]

Just as all automobile doors can be opened partially, this will probably also be true for the falcon wing doors. In situations where clearance may be an issue, it will (most likely) be possible to open any of the Model X doors less than the full amount to avoid contact with low ceilings, pedestrians, bicyclists, obstructions or dangerous situations. Because of the way the falcon wing doors fold at their mid point on a hinge, much of their travel is in the vertical plane, therefore most of the time it will be obstructions above the vehicle that will need to be avoided. It will be interesting to see how Tesla Motors equips the doors to handle these situations, they may have some kind of built in sensors to detect low ceilings, or have force sensors in the motors to feel when an obstruction is being encountered. The Model X will tend to blend in with other similar looking vehicles most of the time, but when an "X" opens it's rear doors it will instantly broadcast to everyone around that it is a Tesla.

 

[NigelM]

Picking up on an apparent point from another thread (my bold for emphasis):

Information received is that the launch of new Tesla Model X will be impacted by ongoing design changes (door opening mechanism to change from hydraulic to electric)....

If true, does this mean the falcon wings doors can be operated from the driver seat? Cool feature.

 

[Yggdrasill]

I've always assumed it would be possible to open the falcon wing doors from the front seat. I think it would be cool.

A person is standing at the curb at the airport, waiting, when suddenly a large-ish sleek vehicle approaches the person and glides to a stop right in front of them, but where's the door handles? The person can't open the door! But then, the spacecraft door swings open, and once the smoke clears, the person steps into the vehicle, the door slowly closes, and the vehicle glides away.

Would people stare? Yes. Will they have any idea what they just saw? Probably not.

 

[hobbes]

Picking up on an apparent point from another thread (my bold for emphasis):
If true, does this mean the falcon wings doors can be operated from the driver seat? Cool feature.

I don´t believe that poster Eds for a syllable he has said. It seems so obvious to me but looks like it isn´t.

That being said, I am sure the falcon wing doors will open automatically and were always meant to be. They have two independent hinges and sensors to make sure they don´t hit the car next to you or the garage roof. I have no idea how to combine that with opening the door manually! See this video for automatically opening doors (skip to 0:30) - must admit it is not current but from the first reveal (linked from the teslamotors.com blog entry). Doesn´t make sense to me to change it back to manual though.

 

[tescroft]

It seems Tesla still has production issues with the doors. Even on the last series of test vehicles, the falcon wing door obviously does not close perfectly. It looks disordered on almost every picture.

See here at the back part of the door, there is a 1 cm gap:

or see here at the front part of the door where the chrome line is, the door is not at the correct place when closed, there is at least a 1-2 cm error.

With this kind of mechanical door quality, it will be a hard time to convince as a premium product, especialy in Europe.

It's quite disappointing Tesla is not getting rid of this problem after such a long development time.