Third row access: Are the Falcon Doors really justified with six seats configuration?

[NeverFollow]

Unless you really want to have seven seats, I think that to have six seats is the optimal and most comfortable configuration.

- For long trips, the central seat of the second row is not really the best place to travel.

- Also, if your two second row seats have baby seats installed, you still have two additional, easy to access, regular seats on the back.
(Otherwise, with seven seats, the only access would be to move forward the the second row seats, and then passing behind the second row seats.)

- The six seats configuration reminds me in particular the Mercedes-Benz R-Class with two captain chairs in the middle row and two additional back seats.


Since the Tesla X second row seats cannot be folded, I assume that the simplest way to access the third row would be:

- instead of moving the second row toward the front seat, and then passing behind the (unfolded) second row seat,

- it would be simpler to enter from the second row and then to reach to the third row using the gap left between the two second row seats?


If you are accessing the third row by passing in front of the second row seats, instead of passing behind them,
I wonder if regular doors with hinges, instead of falcon doors, would have been simpler?

May be, the Tesla 3 "Y" will offer a six seats configuration, with two hinges doors, to save both on weight and cost,
because I think that falcon doors would be really justified?

So what your advise from choosing a six seats versus a seven seats configuration? And how do you recommend accessing the third row seats?

 

[vangogh]

I'm glad I got the 6 seat options for many of the reasons you stated. 1) More leg room for 3rd row passengers, 2) more cargo room and ability to carry long items inside when necessary. 3) Center middle row seat would have very little legroom with the front row console.

You can access the 3rd row either way...Just depends on timing....It takes several seconds to move the 2nd row seat (and automatically concurrently the 1st row seat) to the most forward position...but when you do the access to the third row is fantastic. - I'm hoping this will be automated in the future so you can begin this action with the opening of the FWD if you like - or that they speed up the seat movement mechanism. You can access the 3rd row from between the center seat, but this is best left to kids or small adults....although it can be done it would not be so elegant for a full grown adult.

Hope this helps

 

[aesculus]

I suspect from a practicality standpoint the 6 seat option really negated the FWDs. They are still way cool looking but probably not appropriate and may be the bane of the car over time. Oh well.:scared:

About the only use case I can see for them now is to allow for more room if you need to buckle in child seats in the 3rd row. Not needed by me in my wildest dreams or nightmares but for some perhaps, but I doubt most.

 

[MrBoylan]

May be, the Tesla 3 "Y" will offer a six seats configuration, with two hinges doors, to save both on weight and cost,
because I think that falcon doors would be really justified?

Model 3/Model Y are very unlikely to have a 3rd row seating option. They need to reach a much lower price point and still hit the 200+ mile real-world range number. This means a smaller, lighter car than the S and X. You can't fit 3 rows in a small sedan or Compact SUV without a Tardis function (which Tesla probably won't have until after the Model 3/Y).

So what your advise from choosing a six seats versus a seven seats configuration? And how do you recommend accessing the third row seats?

If you would never need to seat 7 people, then the 6-seater option is very compelling. Owners have said that they don't bother waiting for the motors to move the second row seat forward and they just enter the rear row by walking through the space between the two second row seats. Of course, if you get a center console at some point in the future, then you're back to having to move the second row seats forward in order to enter the third row. But also, several owners have said (and videos support) that it really doesn't take long for the 2nd row seats to move forward enough to get access to the third row. Also, the 6-seat option has better rear view visibility. The middle seat headrest on the 7-seater does block some rear visibility (but the rear-facing video camera alleviates that issue).

For us, we actually do have 7 people in our current car often enough that we went with the full 7-seat option. Frankly, I would have bought a hybrid minivan instead of the Highlander Hybrid we have now if that had been an option at the time.

 

[ankitmishra]

Yes. FWD are justified. And in my opinion they will be one of the strongest reasons for the success of X. Great work Tesla!!

 

[EV222]

The one thing you guys might be forgetting is that when you have two car seats in the second row, going to the third row from between the second row seats might not be possible. You would often have to either squeeze by one of the car seats or move one of the front seats way forward in order to get by. I have had to do this many times in a minivan and it's a pain!
I think that was part of the thinking of being able to automatically move the second seats forward even if car seats are already installed. They showed this very clearly in the model x launch. Access to the third row is easier this way and plus, you don't need to squeeze yourself by the car seats in the second row.
One of my reasons for going with 7 seats is that the middle seat in the second row is known to be one of the safer seats so I know I would put my newborn there as opposed to an outside seat. I did also debate this 6 seat or 7 seat preference and while I know it would be a lot nicer to be able to carry longer items like fishing rods if there was no middle second seat, I could not justify that knowing my little one is safest while sitting in the middle.
One last reason is if I have 5 passengers and a lot of gear, I can put 3 people in the second row seats and leave the third row and cargo area for luggage and any other gear I might have.

 

[FarmerDave]

I suspect from a practicality standpoint the 6 seat option really negated the FWDs. They are still way cool looking but probably not appropriate and may be the bane of the car over time. Oh well.:scared:

About the only use case I can see for them now is to allow for more room if you need to buckle in child seats in the 3rd row. Not needed by me in my wildest dreams or nightmares but for some perhaps, but I doubt most.

FWDs were one of the leading reasons in my Sig X purchase. Standing in the rain, cantilevered over to lift my granddaughter into her car seat and get her buckled up is not my idea of fun. That's what I have to do with my current CUV. Elon mentioned this as one of the reasons for the FWDs.

 

[Mark Z]

Once you figure out how to enter the rear seats gracefully with the 2nd row forward, it really is the best way. The 2nd row headrest and the FWD hinge pipe are great handholds to enable easy entry and full standing up before sitting in the rear seat. When done right, you don't even scuff the wheel well or the X decorative plate. Feet on the carpet can work if that 2nd row headrest is used as the grab point. If feels rock solid too, very nice stability point.

The climb through the 2nd row works, but is difficult with the center roof hinge area being so low. Take the time to move the 2nd seat forward, the luxury is worth the effort, especially if your rear seat passengers stand up fully before standing face forward using the 2nd row headrest as the grab point to gently sit in the rear seats. Nothing else is like it when done correctly. Let the rear seat passenger move the seat back so they feel in control, but remember to listen for the "latch" sound.

Having the 6 seat configuration can give more flexibility with leg room for the rear seat adults and an ease of changing seats during the drive if necessary.

Click the link to view the ease of entry and exit from the rear seats of Model X as demonstrated by Tesla Product Specialists.

https://flic.kr/s/aHskpJ175s

 

[Vizir]

The one thing you guys might be forgetting is that when you have two car seats in the second row, going to the third row from between the second row seats might not be possible. You would often have to either squeeze by one of the car seats or move one of the front seats way forward in order to get by. I have had to do this many times in a minivan and it's a pain!
I think that was part of the thinking of being able to automatically move the second seats forward even if car seats are already installed. They showed this very clearly in the model x launch. Access to the third row is easier this way and plus, you don't need to squeeze yourself by the car seats in the second row.
One of my reasons for going with 7 seats is that the middle seat in the second row is known to be one of the safer seats so I know I would put my newborn there as opposed to an outside seat. I did also debate this 6 seat or 7 seat preference and while I know it would be a lot nicer to be able to carry longer items like fishing rods if there was no middle second seat, I could not justify that knowing my little one is safest while sitting in the middle.
One last reason is if I have 5 passengers and a lot of gear, I can put 3 people in the second row seats and leave the third row and cargo area for luggage and any other gear I might have.

This. Our newborn will be a lot safer in the middle seat than any side seats. All the arguments for having 6 seats is negated in this use case. 7 seats is clearly superior, here.

 

[aesculus]

This. Our newborn will be a lot safer in the middle seat than any side seats. All the arguments for having 6 seats is negated in this use case. 7 seats is clearly superior, here.

I thought the middle seat could not accommodate a child seat, and only the two outboard and rear seats could. I might be wrong on this though.

 

[gmontem]

This. Our newborn will be a lot safer in the middle seat than any side seats. All the arguments for having 6 seats is negated in this use case. 7 seats is clearly superior, here.

Had you ended up with two newborns you would have had to deal with the pressures of having to decide which one among the two was your favorite, leaving the other to sit on the side seats.

 

[ohmman]

Had you ended up with two newborns you would have had to deal with the pressures of having to decide which one among the two was your favorite, leaving the other to sit on the side seats.

On some days it's pretty clear who's going to sit on the side.

 

[Nismode]

This is true, for LATCH seats, the second row outboard seats work best.

 

[Vizir]

On some days it's pretty clear who's going to sit on the side.

Hahaha [emoji23]

Anyways, middle seats don't have latch but the seatbelt should work fine.

 

[smac]

Hahaha [emoji23]

Anyways, middle seats don't have latch but the seatbelt should work fine.

Statistically not true unfortunately (Isofix =LATCH)

Isofix or Seat Belt s Safest? | CarSeat.se

 

[Vizir]

That is very interesting... Hmm I wish middle seats had the latch connector too. This is a conundrum.

 

[smac]

I voted other. Why should we choose?

I have a beater minivan the number of seats I leave in it (oh did I mention I can remove / stow them as needed) makes zero difference to how well the doors function.

This poll is little more than an attempt to retrospectively justify a poor design choice IMHO.

 

[pvogel]

That is very interesting... Hmm I wish middle seats had the latch connector too. This is a conundrum.

The middle seat does have a top tether connector to go along with the seatbelt strap.

 

[Uncle Paul]

One kid on each side...Mommie in the middle : >)

 

[Roamer]

You missed an important consideration. One reason it is easy to enter the third row by entering in front of the second row is because the car has falcon doors. Without the falcon doors crawling past the middle row would be a miserable process. So with the Falcons you can just walk around the middle row or you can move the seat forward and walk into the third row.

The Falcons make either method of accessing the third row easy. My wife likes to walk in front of the second row and I prefer to move the second row forward.