Pictures & Video from the Model X Unveiling (02/09/2012)

[ElSupreme]

What difference is there from a Gullwing to a hatch door ? Did you ever had problem closing your hatch door ? Problems of infiltration ? When it's raining when you open your hatch does it all come into the trunk ? Why a Gullwing should be any different ?
I could understand your disappointment if you said that it's adding complexity for nothing...

I agree with this. The gullwing/falcon door isn't any harder to seal than a conventional door or lift gate. And it can be easier due to the powered nature, you can specify and maintain proper forces. And complexity wise it really isn't any more complex than a power liftgate. Pinch protect is pretty common on power slide doors, liftgates, and power windows. Considering it is fixed geometry (as far as I can tell) door. If they had these on the Model S, or any shorter car, I would think they could really work.

The only problem I see with these is opening them in garages. My home garage has about 7'2" of clearance to the opener. My old office's parking garage had 7'4" clearance on the 4 main levels. It had like 10' on the bottom level and had an open top.

 

[extesla]

Are cars with gull wings known to have gap/seal issues? I have no idea. Trunks and hoods swing open in a similar manner, so unless the gull/falcon adds another level of difficulty there, I'm not sure why it'd be different.

The main difference is the width of the hinge and the length of the door. It is a very difficult dimensional management problem.

 

[onlinespending]

Funky steering wheel... it flattens out at the bottom and isn't completely circular...

View attachment 4151

Source: Tesla Model X Interior Photo 5

Woah. They need to do a better job integrating that 17" touch screen into the dash a bit better IMHO. Right now it's a big eye-sore, as it looks as if they glued it to the dash. It's not seamlessly integrated in. I think it could benefit from being recessed a bit and adding some trim around the edge to match the dash trim.

 

[dadaleus]

Video of my ride in the X

And a whole slew of pics.

My wife hanging with Chelsea Sexton and Bill Nye the Science Guy

 

[NigelM]

Nice video...ride was short, saw some other headlights, did they just have the one car there?

 

[dadaleus]

Nice video...ride was short, saw some other headlights, did they just have the one car there?

Yep, just one driving. There was another in the party but I'm not sure if it could actually drive or not.

Really it felt just like riding in the S. But the car itself is really cool. I think it's a lot more fun than the S, especially with those falcon doors.

 

[dsm363]

Kind of bummed I didn't get a ride in the X. I thought everyone would get the chance.

 

[AnOutsider]

Kind of bummed I didn't get a ride in the X. I thought everyone would get the chance.

They were giving out tickets in the booth with the touchscreens

 

[nk126]

I'm 5'11" and was able to sit comfortably in the third row so long as I kept my head in the scooped out area above. When closed, the falcon doors form part of the headliner above the third row - and the areas directly above the two (bucket) seats are actually parts of the doors' windows, which create a scooped-out effect affording more headroom than the "normal headliner" area of the roof between the doors. Tesla was very clever in the design here - so long as you stay in your bucket seat and keep your head under the scooped out area, you wind up with sufficient headroom and a glass moonroof (skylight) to boot. If you stray into the middle of the third row, you're sitting on a defacto hump and have no headroom.

I was the only person in the third row during my test ride, and it was an extremely short ride to boot. But I'd say the car is passable for seven passengers, but more likely comfortable for five adults and two kids (one kid in each of the 2nd and 3rd rows) in its current prototype form.

 

[nk126]

Yep, just one driving. There was another in the party but I'm not sure if it could actually drive or not.

Really it felt just like riding in the S. But the car itself is really cool. I think it's a lot more fun than the S, especially with those falcon doors.

The other car at the party was basically an exterior sheetmetal shell with a dummy interior. Doors didn't open, and peering inside you could see that the interior was a steering wheel and a bunch of sculpted foam.

Agree that the car is very cool. I found the ride to be very similar to the S, but with a bit more body roll. Still a very flat ride considering it's a 7-seater crossover, but just a titch more roll during the slalom than the S (I was fortunate enough to get rides in both last night).

 

[nk126]

Here's my quick video/write up on my Model X test ride from last night. Note, I'm a reporter for a commercial tech review site, so if linking to our content is a no-no on this forum, please delete the post and I can just re-post with a video embed. Not trolling for pageviews, just wanting to share:

Video with writeup: Tesla Model X Test Ride (video) | TechnoBuffalo

Post with a photos: Tesla Unveils Model X Electric Crossover SUV? Minivan? | TechnoBuffalo

 

[taigebu]

@nk126 Is there some kind of sound when the "falcon" doors open or close ? I thought I heard something on your video but I'm not sure...

 

[dadaleus]

Foster the People playing Helena Beat at Model X unveil

Here's Foster the People playing Helena Beat at the unveil and me walking around to give a sense of the venue including the model X models on display.

Sorry but I can't seem to get this to embed in line here.

 

[nk126]

Probably the best Model X photo gallery I've seen so far. Shows the interior fairly clearly, including how the falcon windows "wrap up and over" to create scooped-out head room for the third row occupants.

Tesla Model X Rear Three Quarter Doors Open Photo 4

 

[WhiteKnight]

Probably the best Model X photo gallery I've seen so far. Shows the interior fairly clearly, including how the falcon windows "wrap up and over" to create scooped-out head room for the third row occupants.

Tesla Model X Rear Three Quarter Doors Open Photo 4

Did anyone notice in the photo gallery that they are zooming along and the Falcon Doors are not fully closed!?

Definitely a prototype. In fact they probably fixed it by the evening.

 

[Lloyd]

Cool Photo of the ice sculpture on the outside bar!

 

[vfx]

I haven't seen any X ride videos (It felt less than 60 seconds). I just had my still camera.

 

[Mycroft]

Considering the number of people they were trying to accommodate, it's no surprise the rides were short. Notice the camera on the mirror? I wonder if they were hoping to get some good reaction video.

 

[dsm363]

I asked about getting a ride in the X and they didn't seem willing to give those tickets out. Guess I should have pressed more.

 

[vfx]

Probably difficult to tell from any photograph: Is the Carbon Fiber Décor for the S almost completely black, or are the typical patterns visible?

I noticed come CF in the center hub of the wheels.

Kinda see it here: