Sorry for the long post, but here is my thoughts after the first week of owning the car.
Now that I’ve had my MX LR for a full week, I figured I’d give a review. Let me explain what my previous car was to understand my thinking when I think of my new upgrade. I was able to get an early version of the Model 3 back in 2018 (# 8057) which didn’t contain a lot of the upgrades it received shortly after. As a matter of fact, the performance version wasn’t even in production when I received mine. So, knowing that I had an early version of the Model 3, you can easily see how much of an upgrade this 2022 Model X LR is to me. Don’t get me wrong, I dearly loved my Model 3 as it was very agile and fast enough for me. But I’m not a person that drives fast or even on highways much nowadays. My usual day consists of taking the twins to school in the mornings and then spending the rest of the time working at my home office, if not traveling to another state or country to spend the week there. So, my driving is minimal with a few exceptions every now and then where I visit some friends for drinks and such.
Now that you know what I was driving before receiving my new Model X, let me tell you something… the MX is a dream. It feels very powerful and it’s super quick. I can’t imagine how much faster the Plaid must be because that’s just insane. Let me break up my review by section or part to go a little more in-depth.
Front Doors
The front doors feel soooo heavy. I feel like I should only use the buttons to open/close them and not attempt to do it manually. Just feels wrong. But they work flawlessly with one exception: self-presenting mode. Don’t get me wrong, the self-presentation of the driver’s door is amazing. But the issue I have is that my home office is probably 20 feet or so from the wall that’s close to the MX in my garage. So, if I walk ANYWHERE close to that wall and happen to have my key or phone on me, the door will open and not give any notice. I’ve found my car jamming to music on its own in the garage multiple times now due to the door opening itself without letting me know. I really wish Tesla added a setting to exclude your home from self-presenting mode. This would solve the issue for me. But for now, I don’t use the fob anymore and strictly use the phone.
Falcon Wing Doors
These things are epic. They are one of the main reasons I went with this car. During delivery, I noticed that the driver’s side FWD wouldn’t fully open, even after attempting to leave the button pressed. The delivery advisor asked me to put it in my list of issues. However, when I got home and tried it, they both fully opened without any hiccups. Every 5-6 times that I open those doors, it will open halfway vs the passenger side fully opening. Not sure if others are experiencing this or not, but that’s the only issue I’ve found with it so far. No leaks that I’m aware of or grinding when closing. Lighting is pretty terrible in the rear though when the doors open up. But I think that’s a tesla thing in general as lighting was terrible in my M3 as well.
AC/Heater
I know I can’t truly compare my Model 3 vs Model X in terms of the AC/Heating system as they are different. But I never had issues with air blowing my face/chest when placed correctly. With the Model X, it sometimes does it and sometimes not. Like when I say I want the temperature to be 68 and its 61 outside, it starts blowing hot air at me, even though it’s not cold. Not sure if maybe I just don’t know how to properly use it. I have to lower the temperature to 66 for it to blow normal air when the temperature outside is 47.
Front Seats
Super comfortable. Truly superior to my Model 3’s.
Rear Seats
Comfortable as well, although right now only the twins use them with their boosters. I will say that the boosters have issues buckling their seat belts due to the way the seat belts are. The female part of the seat belt is inside the seat somewhat and the way the booster seat kinda blocks them a little. So, I have to move the seats a little before buckling the kids each time. It’s very annoying, but not a deal breaker. Maybe I just need better boosters? I thought I purchased the best available after research, but maybe these aren’t the best FOR a Model X.
Sound
It’s great. Definitely better than the Model 3’s system. I really wish they had Apple Music as an option for music, but I know that’s coming… just not anytime soon.
Screen(s)
It’s taking me a little bit to get used to having a screen in front of my yoke. I’m used to looking at the big screen for speed and such. Version 11 of the software is super nice. There is zero lag and it’s just beautiful to look at. The map fills the whole screen too. My only complaint is that I wish I could control what the kids are watching from the front screen. As a parent, I really need that control, especially with kids being in booster seats still and not allowed to unbuckle.
Suspension
HUGE upgrade compared to the Model 3 as expected. However, when the front goes over a bump or simply a driveway, you hear a creak in the front passenger side. It’s odd that it’s always there. I will have the SC take a look at it. Also, if I raise the suspension to go up or down, it’s very noisy. Should it be?
Autopilot
I know some may disagree here, but after having been using FSD features for far too long now, Autopilot feels inferior. Like I’m sure it’s great if you’ve never been exposed to FSD, but I’m just used to the simple things. I know… you want to know which features. Let me list each one. A) Green Lights: with Autopilot, you have to press the accelerator every time a light come up if you want the car to continue without stopping. With FSD, it just does it. B) Speed Limits: FSD recognizes the signs and adjusts properly. With Autopilot it’s a hit or miss. I have to continually scroll my wheel to bring the speed up. Down will work properly. C) I miss auto-lane change in city streets. It worked just as good as highways for me and it made my commute to the kids school super easy. Autopilot does not have this. D) FSD had a LOT less phantom braking. Not sure what is up with my MX, but it has far too many phantom braking incidents that it’s making me think I may have a faulty camera.
Range
I fill up to 80% (252 miles at 80% and 314 miles at 100%). The average temperature here for the past week has been in the high 40s when I’m driving. My car is stored in a garage. For a 11-mile commute to the school it sucks up 12. So, it’s not bad. Last night I went out to meet friends for dinner and it was about a 52-mile drive. It consumed 54. Vast majority of that 52-mile drive was on Navigate on Autopilot, if that tells you anything.
