Safety Deal Breaker after Model X Test Drive

[Mark Z]

Model X is like a theme park ride vehicle.

Drivers, parents, siblings and guardians must take the roll of the theme park ride operator. Repeat after me:

"Remain seated and keep your head, hands, arms, legs and feet inside the car at all times."

 

[Nototrader]

I don't understand why everyone gets so excited and offended every time somebody doesn't like something on the model X. So, this guy doesn't like the car. Or he thinks the doors are not safe enough for his kids. Wonderful. Everyone is entitled to an opinion. His negative opinion doesn't take away from your positive opinion. His decision not to buy the car doesn't make your decision to buy the car any better or worse. People need to chill a little and respect others' opinions, as silly as they may be.

 

[bonnie]

I don't understand why everyone gets so excited and offended every time somebody doesn't like something on the model X. So, this guy doesn't like the car. Or he thinks the doors are not safe enough for his kids. Wonderful. Everyone is entitled to an opinion. His negative opinion doesn't take away from your positive opinion. His decision not to buy the car doesn't make your decision to buy the car any better or worse. People need to chill a little and respect others' opinions, as silly as they may be.

I think people are reacting more to the misplaced heightened sense of risk. I'm fine if he (or anyone else) doesn't buy an X. But If there hadn't been a multitude of posts about it, sure, I would have probably pointed out that kids get fingers slammed in car doors all the time. As to the response that traditional car doors can reverse direction, speaking from personal experience as a one-time 5 year old, the door accidents are usually when someone slams it shut. No reversal there. (Your hand is caught and the pain is severe. Can't even say why you're screaming until someone notices that 'OMG her hand is caught in the door!')

I reacted the same way to people flipping out over the imagined safety issue of being in the backseat and not knowing how to manually release the fwd ... yet they had the child safety locks set to ON in their current vehicle, so no one could safely exit the second row in case of an accident in their current car. So clearly they weren't concerned about the very real situation they had created, but had a hard time grokking a different form of it (that is actually better because 2nd row occupants have the option of a manual release).

Sometimes our brains have a hard time getting risk in context when it's a new product, new design. Normal. And it's okay for people to point out that the risk correlates quite nicely to what we already deal with every day.

 

[electricity]

When someones first post is a negative comment on a non-issue of a controvertial thing (falcon wings) something in me says he has different intentions, even if his "concern" is valid.

 

[GreenT]

Let's see. 5 letters. T. then ... ?

 

[Nikxice]

Sometimes our brains have a hard time getting risk in context when it's a new product, new design. Normal. And it's okay for people to point out that the risk correlates quite nicely to what we already deal with every day.

Recently gave an old friend a ride in our Model S. Afterwards we did a walk around and I opened the frunk. Their first comment wasn't about the extra space, but one of great concern. The car was obviously not very safe. There was no engine block to protect the occupants in a front end collision. Until folks are educated about such misconceptions, perception is the reality.

 

[Roamer]

I do miss the falcon closing beep. Not sure why they did not include it in the latest update. My grandson and even my little dog had been programmed to stay clear of everything when they heard the beep. Now I have to shout, watch out the door is going to close.

Give me the beep back. I liked the beep. My grandson liked the beep. My little dog licked the beep. The beep is your friend.

At least with the beep I knew the door was coming down on my back when my grandson pushed the close button with his toe while I was busy cinching up the straight jacket and seat restraints. I am sure he will find it even funnier now that I get no warning.

Like I said before I don't know who the kid inherited these ideas from......

As far as the original post. I think learning to avoiding all the pinch zones we encounter in life is just part or life. Most people only need one pinch to learn to avoid things like this. Some need two.

 

[AudubonB]

I empathize with the OP, but I do not sympathize. This thread is Exhibit #1, front and center, of what has occurred in our society within my lifetime in some absolutely unachievable, as well as undesirable, trend toward achieving absolute safety.

As far as the specific example of the doors, they epitomize What Is New. Danger? Consider objectively other items, situations and facets of our lives that are inherently far more dangerous: a second or third floor window. A hot iron...cook range...bathtub. The tires of any vehicle. Its tailpipe. The road over there. And the list is endless.

The difference, of course, is that the doors and their hinge-interstices, are new. That is all. And to bring in one of my favorite observers and interpreters of the human condition, the late, great Terry Pratchett, here he is discussing a terrible new invention - the steam engine locomotive - in his fictitious Raising Steam.

(Lipwig): "They seem to be irresistibly drawn by the novelty of live steam and speed."
(Reporter): "And a very dangerous novelty, would you not say, Mister Lipwig?"
(L): "Well now, everything old was once new and until explored was unfamiliar and dangerous and then, as sure as night follows day they become just part of the scenery. Believe me, sir, that'll happen here with the railway, too...and as far as scaring the elderly, well, one old lady recently told me that we should have waited until all the old people were dead before starting up with the railway, and I think you'd agree that might be a very long time."

 

[Vitold]

I empathize with the OP, but I do not sympathize. This thread is Exhibit #1, front and center, of what has occurred in our society within my lifetime in some absolutely unachievable, as well as undesirable, trend toward achieving absolute safety.

As far as the specific example of the doors, they epitomize What Is New. Danger? Consider objectively other items, situations and facets of our lives that are inherently far more dangerous: a second or third floor window. A hot iron...cook range...bathtub. The tires of any vehicle. Its tailpipe. The road over there. And the list is endless.

The difference, of course, is that the doors and their hinge-interstices, are new. That is all. And to bring in one of my favorite observers and interpreters of the human condition, the late, great Terry Pratchett, here he is discussing a terrible new invention - the steam engine locomotive - in his fictitious Raising Steam.

(Lipwig): "They seem to be irresistibly drawn by the novelty of live steam and speed."
(Reporter): "And a very dangerous novelty, would you not say, Mister Lipwig?"
(L): "Well now, everything old was once new and until explored was unfamiliar and dangerous and then, as sure as night follows day they become just part of the scenery. Believe me, sir, that'll happen here with the railway, too..."

and, to continue with your thought rail become safer over time. It is a pitty that one has to wait for Tesla XXX if they don't want their finger(s) crushed, if that's indeed the case.

edit: if a person opens or closes the door for me I expect him to do so safely. I think it's only natural to expect the same from automated doors especially since tech is readily available.

 

[CarlK]

I don't understand why everyone gets so excited and offended every time somebody doesn't like something on the model X. So, this guy doesn't like the car. Or he thinks the doors are not safe enough for his kids. Wonderful. Everyone is entitled to an opinion. His negative opinion doesn't take away from your positive opinion. His decision not to buy the car doesn't make your decision to buy the car any better or worse. People need to chill a little and respect others' opinions, as silly as they may be.

Not sure where's that coming from. Isn't op the one who started this thread with an opinion that many do not agree with? No one can respond unless he/she agrees?

When someones first post is a negative comment on a non-issue of a controvertial thing (falcon wings) something in me says he has different intentions, even if his "concern" is valid.

This has happened many times before. "Safety" issues like this one which are common to all cars and in everyday life, like in this case teach/watch your children don't do things that can be dangerous. For example headrests too low AND headrests too high at different times. They tend to pop up whenever company had good news or stock had an upward movement, purely by coincidence of course.

 

[McRat]

Free advice, worth every penny of it's price:

If you are raising kids for decades, understand that children are sometimes dumber than adults. Not always, but sometimes.

They puke, poop, pee, drip, drop, spill far more than most adults. Their little fingers get pinched in things as common as seat belt latches.

Unless fashion trumps function, the best rugrat haulers are the vans. The station wagons (err, sorry, CUV/SUVs are the correct nouns for them today) are good, but still not as good.

If you are going to haul small kids in a luxury car that can't be hosed out, you need to realize you are making a compromise in the process.

If the compromises are acceptable, then do it. But if you think they are primarily engineered to carry little monsters, you are wrong. Hence why there are mini and real vans still on the market.

As they get older, can you take 2 adults, 8 kids, and sports equipment to a game? Bring home furniture (kids outgrow their furniture)?

My last brood is in the final stages. Last one gets their license this month. But those years of hauling kids were much easier in the vans than our other choices over the years.

 

[ArcticSun]

Yes, there is an inductive sensor on that interior trim piece. If you put your hand near there it stops. Done, buy MX, close thread.

 

[CarlK]

Yes, there is an inductive sensor on that interior trim piece. If you put your hand near there it stops. Done, buy MX, close thread.

That makes sense. We should have thought Tesla would over-design sensors for FWD safety beyond even trolls could make up stories for.

 

[ratsbew]

This is a non-issue. EVERY car and especially van with automatic doors has this potential. Getting your hand/finger smashed in a door is nothing new and the X is no different than any other car.

 

[CTemp222]

Yes, there is an inductive sensor on that interior trim piece. If you put your hand near there it stops. Done, buy MX, close thread.

Thanks for clearing it up.

 

[Merrill]

When I was around 8 years old my parents had a 1948 Cadallic Fleetwood with 4 doors that were very large and weighed a ton, one day we were getting out and I was in the back. As I got out I put my hand on the b pillar between the front and back doors and my mom came out of the front and closed the door. Needless to say it hurt, no broken fingers but I never did that again.

 

[ohmman]

My kids have had their fingers pinched in the hinge side of the doors in our house a few times. One of them got their fingers pinched in the refrigerator door hinge as well - that was a bad one. One of them was racing around the kitchen and slammed shins first into the open dishwasher door (ouch, btw). We've had a broken arm from a bounce house party. A ruptured appendix emergency. They climb trees all the time on our property, and ride bikes. We've had a couple of bike falls, that's for sure.

Falcon doors have plenty of personal drawbacks for me. But as far as ranking this hinge finger pinching risk? It's lost way, way down in the noise.

 

[eyespii]

I think you're getting a bit hosed OP because your ominous thread title does not match with what people would normally consider a "safety deal breaker".

Having never sat in a MX, I appreciate the warning, but a simple "I'm closing the doors kids watch your fingers" would probably be enough to prevent injury. After the first few times, I'm sure whoever is back there will learn.

 

[1208]

The reason no one has posted about losing fingers is because they physically can't, so we will never know who has lost them.

 

[goneskiian]

The reason no one has posted about losing fingers is because they physically can't, so we will never know who has lost them.

How do know I'm not typing with my toes? ;-)