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Model X First Reviews

Discussion in 'Model X' started by Qualchan, Sep 30, 2015.

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  1. Qualchan

    Qualchan Member

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    The first two comments below the Bloomberg video take issue with the displayed 2 hour charge time at the supercharger.
     
  2. Coolcarx

    Coolcarx Member

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    This lined up with my 1st trip experiance. Charging time is the main issue non electric car people need to deal with. Tesla is trying to make it as painless as possible but it's still a major difference from the 10min gas up. People would really be shocked to see her driving 50mph in a 70mph, freaking out about getting stranded in the middle of the cold night with little kids. Plus arriving to charger with less than zero. This all happened to me. It's not all roses with the electric car. There is no portable power to the rescue. Running out will always need a tow which is not covered by Tesla.
     
  3. ohmman

    ohmman Plaid-ish Moderator

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    To be fair, there's power almost everywhere. It's just very slow power. However, I am certain most anyone can find some kind of charge on the road between Superchargers if absolutely necessary.
     
  4. ecarfan

    ecarfan Well-Known Member

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    That Bloomberg "review" (woefully short on detailed analysis, long on superficial impressions) appeared to have been conducted by someone who did not understand the most basic things about EV route planning or Supercharging. She said she drove for about 4 hours, was down to 77 miles of range, stopped at what looked like the Atascadero California Supercharger, and then shows the center display screen stating that it was going to take 2 hours to charge. It would only take that long if she set the charge level to something very near 100% which of course is completely uneccsary. She should have charged to around 85% in less than 35 minutes and then continued on driving with well over 200 miles of range (note that there was a brief long shot of the car charging and it was not at a paired stall with another car charging).

    Unfortunately, many people viewing that video will take away the message that on road trips you have to charge your Tesla for hours before you can continue your trip. That is simply wrong.

    I am going to reveal my advancing years here: the reviewer appeared to be just out of high school. She clearly didn't understand how to use the car. Maybe Tesla didn't properly explain the basics to her, or maybe they did and she didn't absorb their instructions. But it appears that she didn't do her homework.
     
    • Like x 3
  5. loganintx

    loganintx Member

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    That part was really dumb. She wasn't doing something right or the supercharger was so crowded that she was barely drawing any power.
     
  6. Coolcarx

    Coolcarx Member

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    I have almost 4,000 miles on my X. The Tesla X P90d with 22" Wheels 100% charge gets 250-37(15%for 22"W)=212 estimated miles. Other factors like hills and temperature can bring that number much lower. During my first 600mi trip, the X kept telling me to go back to the charger, slow down, reroute to a different charger; so much for the onboard estimates. This was very confusing to me. I see her giving the basic pros and cons to the EV experience. I observed much worse than what she portrayed which was a real shock to me. What is the point of skipping over the real issues the prospective owner will encounter? Unless you have superchargers every 150 miles or less your going to charge longer than 35 minutes in the X. I think everyone can agree there are limitations for the EV today. You can't jump in an EV and drive 600 miles in any direction in the same time frame as an ICE car. It's possible but with time restrictions. I can only assume the 400,000+ model 3 crowd will not be expected to be engineers to drive the car appropriately. If someone would have asked after my first long trip "How do you like the car?" I would has said it totally sucks. I'm over that now. She had some details wrong or mixed up, but nailed the idea.
     
    • Like x 2
  7. ecarfan

    ecarfan Well-Known Member

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    No one believes you can drive 600 miles straight in a Tesla or any EV. It only takes a few minutes of instruction to grasp what the uninterrupted travel limitations are in a Tesla, or any EV. Nor do you have to be an "engineer" to understand the concepts.

    That Bloomberg review was uninformed and almost content free.
     
    • Like x 1
  8. ohmman

    ohmman Plaid-ish Moderator

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    @Coolcarx has a legitimate point, based on his experience on a long road trip in horrible conditions in the X. The fact that Ms. Elliott was in California, in ideal conditions, and still ran into trouble does tell us something, which is that a tiny bit of extra education at delivery (or press handoff) would mitigate this kind of thing.

    I think she exaggerated to emphasize the point she wanted to make, but the point itself is pretty valid. You have to be willing to make some changes to drive an all-electric vehicle, even a Tesla with the provided infrastructure. She highlighted the biggest change, which is that you do indeed have to plan your trips more than you did in a gas vehicle. She left out what a lot of us would have liked to see, which is that you wake up with a full tank and you never visit a gas station, and that most people overall will spend less time waiting at a filling/charging station over the lifetime of the car than in an ICE. However, that's irrelevant, because people take road trips and "making good time" is valued.

    Personally I think she could have made the point in a less dramatic fashion. But I'm not selling clicks.
     
    • Like x 1
  9. Coolcarx

    Coolcarx Member

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    Well said
     
  10. Takumi

    Takumi Member

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    It's funny how a lot of these reviews have charging-on-the-go complaints of taking too long. I, on the other hand in real life, take too long charging because people ask questions about the car (LEAF). By the time I'm done answering their questions, I'm way over what I expected to end up with. Go figure! :rolleyes:
     
    • Funny x 2
  11. mikevbf

    mikevbf Supporting Member

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    A little bit of a longer review with some extra time on autopilot:

     
    • Like x 1
  12. EinSV

    EinSV Active Member

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  13. gmtom1

    gmtom1 Active Member

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    Edmunds has also started posting their thoughts on the X as part of their long-term fleet updates, similar to what they did when they had an S. Check it out here. I really liked their updates on the S a few years ago when I considered my purchase of the S, and they do a really good, balanced job of reporting.
     
  14. Electrifying

    Electrifying Member

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    How can Edmunds get away with this blatant lie: "The Model X 90D starts at $132,000, while the zestier P90D starts at $142,000. " . My X 90D cost only $106,450.00 with 6 seats and Ultra White seats and AutoPilot options. These editors have completely lost their credibility!
     
  15. Electroman

    Electroman Supporting Member

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    At supercharger, I saw the message on the dash, "2 hours to charge" ? really? It appears she had around 50 miles remaining and so why 2 hours?

    Also she made it sound as if electric cars are not every one, unless you are a part of an EV cult. - well not quite, but it was couched in phrases like, "the real question is do you want to join the electric life-style'?". And the reason for that is the wait time to charge in superchargers, as the video showed her getting completely bored and wasting her time.

    This is the biggest mistake short-term reviewers make. They take it for a day or two for test drive. and then drive it somewhere around 200 odd miles within their neighborhood and sit in a supercharger, and come to conclusion this is what we do every day. They simply DO NOT GET or understand the amazing benefit of charging at home and never go to a gas station, and waiting at the superchargers is only on the occasions where you do a road trip. That message is simply lost with these short term reviewers.

    Any newbie listening to her in this video, will turned off by her last two sentences.
     
    • Like x 2
  16. aesculus

    aesculus Still Trying to Figure This All Out

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    Perhaps she was charging to 100% and she was also the second person on the same pair of superchargers?

    Also I wonder if she was really at a supercharger? Maybe she was at a Destination Charger and was only putting out 40 amps.
     
  17. Electroman

    Electroman Supporting Member

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    I didn't read the whole thread. ecarfan already articulated all the same thoughts as mine on that Bloomberg video
     
  18. mikevbf

    mikevbf Supporting Member

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  19. anticitizen13.7

    anticitizen13.7 Not posting at TMC after 9/17/2018

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    Car & Driver review:

    2016 Tesla Model X - Instrumented Test

    It was almost exactly what I expected: criticism of the falcon-wing doors, but exceptional praise for powertrain and suspension tuning, which they describe as "genius". Other items of note: C&D found the seats comfortable and enjoyed the expanded view of the overhead windshield.
     
  20. aesculus

    aesculus Still Trying to Figure This All Out

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    Oddly the FWD's are now getting more accepted in general. But we are now facing many owners who have poorly performing front doors. Some cannot get in and out of their own cars. Wait until the media gets hold of that.
     

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