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Model X optional with non Falcon-Wing-Doors

Should Tesla make "normal" doors optional on the Model X

  • Yes

    Votes: 98 37.4%
  • No

    Votes: 164 62.6%

  • Total voters
    262
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Just think about the amount of tooling, design and certification expense involved in having two completely different openings. I hate to speak in absolutes but I am reasonably sure no start up car company in their right mind would ever consider NHTSA certification of two very different structural designs. Of course, I could be wrong. It would not be the first time.
 
Just think about the amount of tooling, design and certification expense involved in having two completely different openings. I hate to speak in absolutes but I am reasonably sure no start up car company in their right mind would ever consider NHTSA certification of two very different structural designs. Of course, I could be wrong. It would not be the first time.

Your thought could be right. From our side of potential Tesla client it is right to suggest our proposal. Eventually it is up to Tesla to take the right choice of course.
 
There are 2different matters when we're discussing the falcon wing doors:
- The design
- The functionality

If tou like the design or not is more of a question of taste than anything else. I did not like the doors first, but have grown to get used to them, and seeing the car myself at the Geneva show, I was convinced. I've put down a reservation for a Signature X.

When it comes to the functionality of the doors, I can clearly see that they have their postive and negative aspects. Most of them discussed here and in other threads. I do however see one issue that needs a solution; the hight necessary for opening the doors are higher than quite a few parking houses. Not being able to open the doors in these parking houses, could be a dealbreaker for many, myself included. Sensors stopping the doors before they hit walls/ceiling would fix this issue, I suppose.

The height problem is why it is has articulation. It's important for home garages, parking garages and shops.

The big issue to me is how well they'll function with roof racks, the answer to which is probably mutually exclusively. That's why I'd say make it an option. The only oroblem is that for a small volume vehicle the cost, including for safety testing could be prohibitive. So maybe they'll start with wings and then add an option.
 
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The height problem is why it is has articulation.
I don't understand what you mean by this. Could be due to the fact English is not my main language :)
The big issue to me is how well they'll function with roof racks, the answer to which is probably mutually exclusively. That's why I'd say make it an option. The only oroblem is that for a small volume vehicle the cost, including for safety testing could be prohibitive. So maybe they'll start with wings and then add an option.
My understanding after talking to the Tesla reps at the Geneva car show is that they are working on solutions for this. I have read about solutions like locking one of the falcon doors in order to make this fit. I believe Bonnie posted this in another thread, but I may be wrong.



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There are 2different matters when we're discussing the falcon wing doors:
- The design
- The functionality

If tou like the design or not is more of a question of taste than anything else. I did not like the doors first, but have grown to get used to them, and seeing the car myself at the Geneva show, I was convinced. I've put down a reservation for a Signature X.

When it comes to the functionality of the doors, I can clearly see that they have their postive and negative aspects. Most of them discussed here and in other threads. I do however see one issue that needs a solution; the hight necessary for opening the doors are higher than quite a few parking houses. Not being able to open the doors in these parking houses, could be a dealbreaker for many, myself included. Sensors stopping the doors before they hit walls/ceiling would fix this issue, I suppose.


I think both points don't really matter as much as the gut feeling of the average consumer (who is not so much of an early adopter of new technology and also not a Tesla enthusiast like most people here)
and if the avg. consumer will write the Model X off because he doesn't like the Falcon Wings its a major problem for Tesla.

Infact I would go so far as to say that the Falcon Wings are a bad Idea in general.

There are defiantly more people out there that are very sceptic about these doors than people that are thrilled to finally use such doors.

Also I think the perception of these doors would change in major was if they would be declared as a 3-4k$ option, that would make them really special.

People here have to understand that the mainstream market is NOT the early enthusiast early adopter type of Customer.

Everytime I tell people about Tesla (most people in Europe never heard of them) I have a hard time to convince them that EVs are a real alternative and people are still not sold, and some "weird" doors wont help that.

And as an other poster mentioned, Tesla is the first EV that has a nice traditional design and thats also a part of the success while all the others EVs or PluginHybrids have weird designs that scare people off.
 
Plenty of discussion about the doors over here: Model X Roof Rack|Hitch Rack|Trailer|Toys

And lots of options for roof racks in that thread ...

Oh gosh, multiple solutions ... doors that hinge from the top AND the side (see pics of station wagon rear doors in this thread), doors that don't articulate in the middle when a rack is on the car and only open straight up until even with the X roof, a half rack that goes on one side of the X & that door becomes inoperable, a rack that raises as the doors raise .... the question isn't CAN they do it, it's how will they do it.

- - - Updated - - -

And I'd like to emphasize (again), that these doors are NOT some weird new technology.

The only 'new' part is that they're on the side of the vehicle, instead of the back. It's not like the hinging mechanism isn't well tested. Hatchbacks, SUVs, station wagons, .. and oh yeah, Model S .:) all have a door that hinge at the top. The only thing new is the articulation in the middle, which makes it possible to open the doors in tight spaces. (And no one is bothered by that.)
 
I see nothing that is abnormal with the falcon wing doors. How many times did I or my wife bang our heads getting in or out the car with our child. This is an answer to a big problem to all families.
 
Ok, I'm not buying the "they are not different" argument. They are different; full stop. Watch any Tesla presentation on the X and Tesla will tell you just how different they are.

Now if you want to insist they are not different, well then ok.........

I think herbvdh is on the right path. Tesla needs to sell the difference as a plus. They specifically avoided doing this on S but now they have a real car delivered in real numbers so they can afford the experiment. Time will tell if they are/were right.
 
...if the avg. consumer will write the Model X off because he doesn't like the Falcon Wings its a major problem for Tesla.

Infact I would go so far as to say that the Falcon Wings are a bad Idea in general.
...

I tend to agree with people that I think the falcon doors will be a great asset to the car. That was one of the reasons I put a signature deposit down on it. So I would be majorly disappointed if they removed it as a final option.
In regards to the average consumer, I think the people who keep getting drawn the an all electric car are already taking a bigger leap than someone looking at the way the door opens.

Finally, in America, the biggest consumer of SUVs, I think it will appeal to both males and females alike.

They can get rid of the falcons later, but I would keep them for the first run.
 
Ok, I'm not buying the "they are not different" argument. They are different; full stop. Watch any Tesla presentation on the X and Tesla will tell you just how different they are.

Now if you want to insist they are not different, well then ok.........

I think herbvdh is on the right path. Tesla needs to sell the difference as a plus. They specifically avoided doing this on S but now they have a real car delivered in real numbers so they can afford the experiment. Time will tell if they are/were right.

My point is that for all the people saying 'just one more new untested thing to break', they are forgetting it's not new, it's not untested. Tesla can market it however they want. But from a customer POV, I'm not worried that these doors will be problematic.
 
I do like the doors but wonder how cold snowy climates will take to it. It will be very interesting to see if the California centric engineering which likely led to some cold weather problems with the Model S will also affect the X? When those falcon doors open when its really cold outside the car's inside temperature will probably drop much more than a car with normal doors. The warm air is going to go up and out very quickly and the door will be open far longer than regular doors. (sliding or not) I hope Tesla has done some cold weather testing of this. And with both doors open brr:smile: Better have a good heater! That along with the snow may be more of a problem than Tesla realizes.
 
Nooooo .... when I open any of those vehicles from the back, it opens the same as the Model X from the side (well, without the articulation). That was one of those 'aha' moments one day when I was sitting outside in the rain, under the shelter of the Prius door.

My first reaction when I saw the door was not positive. And then I realized it was only because I wasn't used to seeing it on the SIDE of a vehicle. It's not new.


Having taken shelter under many a rear gate, I'm with Bonnie
 
we would have a deposit down on the X if regular doors were an option. the falcon doors solve a problem we just don't have, at least not often enough to give up the ability to put our kayaks, skis and cargo carrier on top. the falcon doors are too ostentatious for our tastes as well. The S is beautiful and ultra functional, the X is just too exotic with the falcon doors. As someone said in another thread on this a while back, I'd like the stop at the local store to not become a spectacle. I'd put money on it that there would be many times the reservations on the X if regular doors where an option, and that production would be on schedule, rather than pushed back.
 
What is it with Tesla and doors? They seem to avoid normal ones :)

The Falcon doors will be terrific, once they get them working. Remember all the troubles early buyers had with the Model S door handles? Prepare yourselves for the same stuff with the Model X falcon doors. Early adopters will likely experience non-opening doors, non-closing doors, doors randomly opening, and whatnot.

Or perhaps Tesla have learned from the Model S door handle experience and test the falcon doors more extensively.
 
I'd like the stop at the local store to not become a spectacle. I'd put money on it that there would be many times the reservations on the X if regular doors where an option, and that production would be on schedule, rather than pushed back.

Thats so true

My guess is also that an announcement of optional normal doors on the Model X would bump up the stock price.
 
X development was pushed back because the focus has been 100% on Model S production. An announcement that Tesla was changing the doors would not bump the stock price, it would be just as likely to take it down as investors speculated that Tesla couldn't deliver or got the design wrong.

Here's what we see/hear daily (yes, literally daily) in the school parking lot and other places: parents calling out to their kids to open the doors more slowly/carefully/watch out for other cars. I suspect the soccer moms/dads of this world will love the X doors.

If you're transporting adults around on a regular basis and want faster ingress/egress consider an S instead.
 
X development was pushed back because the focus has been 100% on Model S production.


In all due respect to Elon, are you really taking his official statements serious?

What else do you expect him to say regards the Model X delay

"well we still cant figure out how to build this doors"

"well we realized that the most customers aren't thrilled by the falcon wings, so now we develop an alternative with traditional doors, so keep waiting more"


Also the vote show clearly that the customers want an option with traditional doors, given that the user on this board can be described as the pinnacle of early adopters which usually welcome alternative solutions.


from 11:35

 
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In all due respect to Elon, are you really taking his official statements serious?

What else do you expect him to say regards the Model X delay

"well we still cant figure out how to build this doors"

"well we realized that the most customers aren't thrilled by the falcon wings, so now we develop an alternative with traditional doors, so keep waiting more"

Even if you don't take the official statement seriously, you have no proof other than your own feelings that the delay is due to the doors. I don't take it seriously either, but I believe it has more to do with cash flow firstly, and taking more time to get it right secondly.