Opinions on 6-seat + 2nd row console config?

[drewg123]

We drove a 6-seat model X on Friday and loved it. The big problem now is that my wife and I are going back and forth on what seating config to get. I'm leaning towards 6-seat plus console, but that's the only one we have not seen in person!

We have a fairly small family, just one middle-school aged kid, so we don't need a huge amount of space every day, and really want him to be comfortable most of the time on road trips. We feel like we'd love to have a lot of seating capacity for the occasional jaunt with friends or family, and we like the open, airy feel of the X, which is why we're thinking X rather than S.

Our local showroom just opened last week, and has very little inventory, so we drove up to the neighboring metro area to see the 5 and 7 seat configs today. We didn't see a 6 seat + console. I forgot it existed and the person helping me didn't mention it, and it is pretty uncommon, so I'm not sure they had one..

Our feelings about the configs:

7 seat: A bench seat may provide a wider seat for a plus sized passenger. I liked the recline in the 2nd row. I was disappointed in the clunky mechanical design, and disappointed in how little leg room there was in the 3rd row. The 3rd row also felt very claustrophobic. I would never, ever want to sit there (and due to the aforementioned plus-sized passenger, I might end up there at some point).

5 seat: Again, a bench seat may provide a more comfortable seat for a plus-size passenger and the recline was nice. However, I don't see any advantage over the 7 seat, aside from cost. The loss of the 3rd row caused us to rule this out.

6 seat: My wife has concern over "wasted space" between the seats. We have a general concern that my kid won't have anyplace to put books, etc, due to no seat immediately adjacent, and no seatback pockets or other storage. The rear legroom was fantastic, and I felt like i could ride in the back, even on a road-trip.

I think that the 6-seat + 2nd row console could solve the problem, by giving my kid a place to stash his stuff, and an armrest and closer cupholder. The drawback is loss of easy access to the 3rd row, and a potential loss of legroom for the 3rd row passengers. Can anybody with this config chime in with their opinions? Is the 2nd row console a good idea? Does it hurt 3rd row legroom?

 

[dragonxt]

We drove a 6-seat model X on Friday and loved it. The big problem now is that my wife and I are going back and forth on what seating config to get. I'm leaning towards 6-seat plus console, but that's the only one we have not seen in person!

We have a fairly small family, just one middle-school aged kid, so we don't need a huge amount of space every day, and really want him to be comfortable most of the time on road trips. We feel like we'd love to have a lot of seating capacity for the occasional jaunt with friends or family, and we like the open, airy feel of the X, which is why we're thinking X rather than S.

Our local showroom just opened last week, and has very little inventory, so we drove up to the neighboring metro area to see the 5 and 7 seat configs today. We didn't see a 6 seat + console. I forgot it existed and the person helping me didn't mention it, and it is pretty uncommon, so I'm not sure they had one..

Our feelings about the configs:

7 seat: A bench seat may provide a wider seat for a plus sized passenger. I liked the recline in the 2nd row. I was disappointed in the clunky mechanical design, and disappointed in how little leg room there was in the 3rd row. The 3rd row also felt very claustrophobic. I would never, ever want to sit there (and due to the aforementioned plus-sized passenger, I might end up there at some point).

5 seat: Again, a bench seat may provide a more comfortable seat for a plus-size passenger and the recline was nice. However, I don't see any advantage over the 7 seat, aside from cost. The loss of the 3rd row caused us to rule this out.

6 seat: My wife has concern over "wasted space" between the seats. We have a general concern that my kid won't have anyplace to put books, etc, due to no seat immediately adjacent, and no seatback pockets or other storage. The rear legroom was fantastic, and I felt like i could ride in the back, even on a road-trip.

I think that the 6-seat + 2nd row console could solve the problem, by giving my kid a place to stash his stuff, and an armrest and closer cupholder. The drawback is loss of easy access to the 3rd row, and a potential loss of legroom for the 3rd row passengers. Can anybody with this config chime in with their opinions? Is the 2nd row console a good idea? Does it hurt 3rd row legroom?

I don't have one but I've seen them.

Unless switching seats while driving is a priority for you, I really wouldn't worry about loss of easy access to the rear.

Thanks to the falcon wing doors, it is FAR more comfortable to enter the rear by moving the seats forward than going through the middle. Only issue I can think of is waiting for the seat to slide back.

It does hurt third row legroom, but not as much as the 7 seater. There is a small recess at the bottom part that gives your feet an extra few inches.

With a six seater you can almost lay flat when in the 3rd row, which is amazing on road trips. Also, if an armrest or storage is needed, you can place a cooler or something in the center gap. Works just as well, but not as good looking.

 

[Sandiegodoug]

We have the 6 seater with center console.
Really like it. Passengers really like it.
I don't think it affects rear leg room too much, but rarely use 2 back seats. Really disliked 7 seater as center headrests block rear vision. But when we bought center seat didn't fold flat.

 

[Sandiegodoug]

Small amount of storage

 

[Birdman325]

Don't own, but I have test driven a 6 seater with console and without console. Based on my 11 year old and 14 year old sitting in the middle row, assuming you are getting a 6 seater (meaning not a bench in the middle) they are both firmly of the view to "get the console". Armrest, some storage and easy access cup holders. Plus as others have noted, there is a "cut out" on the bottom so it doesn't seem to hamper 3rd row leg room very much

 

[Sandiegodoug]

Looks really sweet too

 

[Lbkmxp100d]

My wife and I were in your shoes not long ago and we decided to go w 6 seat config w/o console. We are a family of 4 and decided the ease of access to third row was something we didn't want to give up and are little guys can also make a bed where the console would be so they can nap during supercharging if they want.

 

[ninefiveone]

We have a 6 seater w/o console.

We use the space between the second row seats a lot:
- huge access to third row for kids and smaller adults.
- we use it as storage space a lot. Kids backpacks, shoppjng, cooler, etc.
- third row legroom is huge without it
- dog loves to hang out there

I like the flexibility of having the open space and doing whatever we want with it, and when it's not being used the cabin feels that much more open.

Given that the console itself provides very little storage space, we didn't see any value in it for us.

 

[Freedom101]

I've got the 6 seater without console. I've seen the console in person and as stated it doesn't have a ton of storage as is. We are a family of four and I feel like there is more room for the kids without the console plus the ease of accessing the 3rd row when it's needed is nice.

Backpacks, purses, books, iPads, jackets coolers, etc. all fit really nicely in between the seats. I'd argue you have more storage without the console personally.

The couple things I'll give the console is aesthetics, it looks great. And better cup holders. I wouldn't worry about storage though as there is alot of room in that middle row with only two seats. Lots of options to put some items under the seat (like an airplane), beside the seat, on the adjacent middle row seat (that doesn't sound like it will be used a ton), or to use a cooler or small storage organizer that you could purchase after the fact.

 

[GoTslaGo]

6 seat without console. 2 adults, 2 kids (elem school). One kid sits in the middle row, one sits in the back (or more accurately, lounges in the back). We use the second middle seat for their stuff on road trips. Snacks, books, IPads, etc...

We've also found the space in front of the second row seat is good for a decent size cooler or a pack of bottled water (from Costco) for road trips--have to push it back though. They haven't had any problems with places to stash stuff. Overall, we love the 6 seat without console configuration. Just our perspective. And yes it's a mess on road-trips, but we've finally got them trained to help clean up afterwards.

Obviously you only have one kid, who's older, so your needs and wants will be different. But we like the space and freedom of movement in the back.

 

[boaterva]

If you want a car to carry 'stuff' you want the 7 seater so you can fold both rows down (that's what we're getting, since we don't have the people issue). If you want to carry varying people loads, the six is the best, I believe, as has been stated. I don't think the console is much use, since it fills in the 'corridor', you can't access the back row, and can't even easily be removed. There was a thread about removing it after-sale, but I didn't see what was left after you did so.

 

[andrewket]

We had a 6-seater w/o console, and now own a 6-seater with one. Both are good choices, and there are pros and cons to each. I won't go into detail because the other peope who replied covered it well.

If I had to choose again, I'd get the console. We take several road trips per year (have a Tesla, will travel!) and the console makes it much more comfortable for the 2nd row passengers. Getting in/out of the 3rd row takes slightly more time, but we don't use them frequently (usually friends of my kids); maybe once per week.

If you don't plan to use the third row frequently, my recommendation is to get the console. If you're going to use it every day, especially in a carpool pick up line where time is the priority, get it without.

I hope this helps.

A

 

[MGMDaware]

We have a 6 seater w/o console.

We use the space between the second row seats a lot:
- huge access to third row for kids and smaller adults.
- we use it as storage space a lot. Kids backpacks, shoppjng, cooler, etc.
- third row legroom is huge without it
- dog loves to hang out there

I like the flexibility of having the open space and doing whatever we want with it, and when it's not being used the cabin feels that much more open.

Given that the console itself provides very little storage space, we didn't see any value in it for us.

how big is your dog? Can I see a pic of your dog in the space bw the 2nd row seats? Planning on getting a model X soon and I'm having a hard time visualizing how/if my dog will fit comfortably in that space. Thanks!

 

[eternal]

anyone with small children who can tell me how well the 6 seater is with a car seat in the back? i'm having a hard time dedicing between the 6 seater and the 7 seater.

I test drove a 6 seater with the console and the console made it very hard to get in and out of the 3rd row. Haven't seen how easy the 6 seater without the console would be but I want to be able to get kids in and our easily and to be honest, the 2nd row makes it harder to get into the 3rd row and seems definitely more cramped. I'm more interested in seeing how car seats fit there.

 

[GoTslaGo]

anyone with small children who can tell me how well the 6 seater is with a car seat in the back? i'm having a hard time dedicing between the 6 seater and the 7 seater.

I test drove a 6 seater with the console and the console made it very hard to get in and out of the 3rd row. Haven't seen how easy the 6 seater without the console would be but I want to be able to get kids in and our easily and to be honest, the 2nd row makes it harder to get into the 3rd row and seems definitely more cramped. I'm more interested in seeing how car seats fit there.

Check out "LikeTesla" on YouTube. They have a 6 seater without console, with two kids who are both in car seats. IIRC, the put them both in the middle seats, not in the back though. But they have a lot of useful videos about the Model X.

 

[eternal]

Yeah I have checked out their videos and most people on youtube. Unfortunately very few video reviews on having the car seats in the 3rd row (including like tesla). The nerdy engineer has one also but it seems most people have 2 kids so for them its not an issue. Bjorn had a review with large size adults but normal sized adults shouldn't be sitting as awkward as the guys in that video. During my test drive (with console), we had a car seat in the 3rd row but the 2nd row in front of that seat kept alarming (I suppose the 2nd row seat wasn't moved back enough but it was pushing up on my childs feet if I moved the seat further back - it looked like I had a good balance of space for both but the car didn't think so) I just want to know how it would work with 3 car seats (not having lower latch anchors in the 2nd row middle seat is a tad disappointing)

 

[GoTslaGo]

Yeah I have checked out their videos and most people on youtube. Unfortunately very few video reviews on having the car seats in the 3rd row (including like tesla). The nerdy engineer has one also but it seems most people have 2 kids so for them its not an issue. Bjorn had a review with large size adults but normal sized adults shouldn't be sitting as awkward as the guys in that video. During my test drive (with console), we had a car seat in the 3rd row but the 2nd row in front of that seat kept alarming (I suppose the 2nd row seat wasn't moved back enough but it was pushing up on my childs feet if I moved the seat further back - it looked like I had a good balance of space for both but the car didn't think so) I just want to know how it would work with 3 car seats (not having lower latch anchors in the 2nd row middle seat is a tad disappointing)

Try this thread:

Model X: Third Row Rear-Facing Car Seats

Seems the OP may have found an answer. Hope it helps.

 

[Seattle Tom]

Agree with the posts above on pros and cons. I have the 6 seater with console and if you don’t plan to use the third row regularly, it’s the way to go.

- The armrests from the center console are one of those unexpected necessities for road trips if you are in the second row. I had a six seater without the center console for an overnight test drive and even on short trips that empty gap was annoying. Your arm naturally wants a place to rest in that space.

- The rear is still usable for short trips with plenty of space for kids and small adults (sub 5’7” I’d say).

- IMHO, the 6 seater is now the premium Tesla X. The 5 and 7 person bench seats with manual slide and fold mechanism just isn’t acceptable at this price point (I know others disagree - just my opinion). But those gorgeous monopost seats sliding forward and back...well, it’s something that makes the car feel worth the price tag. And the center console just furthers that narrative with two rows of captains chairs.

To your original question about the legroom, yes it’s more limited than the “open” 6 seater for the two rear passengers. But anyone taller than 5’8” isn’t going to want to sit there for more than a short trip with either option. It’s cramped except for kids, and if you are putting kids there the legroom issue goes away with the “cutout” space for their feet.

It’s plenty easy to access the third row with the Easy Access feature on the monopost seats and the FWDs open. You can’t access them easily with the car in motion, but that’s a limited use case I’d guess.

I say 6 seater center console is the way to go, drewg123. You’ll love the X either way of course. Good luck!

 

[MX458Dave]

I have a six without. My favorite thing about it is the space in the middle. Suitcases and bags on trips. Bikes can roll right into the spot with wheels on. Lack of armrest hasn't been a huge issue.

 

[drewg123]

Thanks everybody, you've been incredibly helpful. My wife and I are still considering the important question of "cargo vs people".

I think I'm reaching the conclusion that I wish the console was removable