Thoughts and concerns on our new MX

[Blastphemy]

I think when you get more accustomed to the Tesla way, you won't miss it as much because you can sort of "coast" just by controlling throttle pressure.

I really despise having to keep my foot on the accelerator all the time.

If not for Traffic-Aware Cruise Control, I would be very unhappy driving the Model X for more than short distances. The only way to disable the regen on-the-fly is to shift into Neutral for coasting, but that's dangerous if one forgets you're not in Drive!

 

[Xminus6]

Hmm. I don't have AP on my car but the single-pedal driving style makes stop and go traffic much easier to deal with for me. I actually hate having the hit the brake pedal. Maybe it's just down to personal preference.

 

[AndyW]

No worries. I hope I didn't offend in pointing them out. Just trying to be helpful.

Well, we can't chalk up your high energy usage to the "big wheel" hit. As others pointed out, that should improve as you get used to driving the Tesla way and the tires get broken in.

Thanks again for the report, it was really a pleasure to read.

No problem. Although I do hope the forum has "Edit Post" feature so its not glaring at me every time I open it Ha

 

[AndyW]

Today I also had a close call. I accidentally opened the rear hatch while the car is still in the garage. It was that close that I stopped the hatch before it hit the top of the garage door. I guess there is no sensor at all for the rear hatch? Tesla really should put a big warning sign and maybe even add a mandatory "opening height setup" for the rear hatch upon delivery!

 

[AndyW]

I had the same issue with the Clek seat. Actually, I bought the Clek seat because our original Peg Perrego seat didn't fit correctly because of the armests sitting too far back (and interfering with the side boosters).

However, I figured out the trick to installing it and now it installs easily -- even with a seat protector.

As you're pushing it into the LATCH attachments, you need to press down toward the back of the seat. If you do one LATCH at a time, it's pretty simple and doesn't take too much force.

I even managed to use our seat protector (although I did finally decide to customize it by trimming it down to Model X seat size (and made cut-outs for the seat belts)). Our seat protector is the Summer Infant Duo (available on Amazon).

Seat belt extenders are, unfortunately, a necessity with Tesla. For some reason, they don't know how to measure the distance between LATCH and the seat buckle. Exact same problem on Model S.

They did improve slightly though versus Model S. The 3rd row seats work fine with the Clek and don't require a seatbelt extender.

Thanks for the tip. I will try that.

 

[AndyW]

One more question for everyone. Does the brake light comes on when you feather the accelerator pedal? I cannot tell while I'm driving it. I want to make sure that when Tesla is slowing more than the "normal coasting", the brake light should come on to warn drivers behind me.

 

[Xponential]

One more question for everyone. Does the brake light comes on when you feather the accelerator pedal? I cannot tell while I'm driving it. I want to make sure that when Tesla is slowing more than the "normal coasting", the brake light should come on to warn drivers behind me.

It does... BTW, you can look at the image of your car in the instrument cluster and see the brake lights come on and off depending on the level of deceleration.

 

[AndyW]

Intersting. I never use the regular drive mode in our RAV4 EV. I think I've literally only driven it a few miles in that mode. In fact, I drove it to work today since my wife took the Model S down to the South Bay. Maybe I just got used to the heavier regen mode on the Model S and didn't get in the habit of coasting in the RAV. I try to drive the RAV with one foot like the Model S. Heavy default regen but modulating the throttle to simulate a neutral coasting resistance.

I think when you get more accustomed to the Tesla way, you won't miss it as much because you can sort of "coast" just by controlling throttle pressure.

I have always used the regular drive mode on the RAV4 EV and then use the brake pedal to regulate the amount of regen. Press light to increase regen and press hard to brake. The RAV is designed to simulate more or less regular car driving. But now I'm trying to unlearn that and adapt to the Tesla way. Although I can anticipate that one day my wife has to drive my car and she is not going to like that change. I read somewhere that 85% Tesla owners are male

 

[goneskiian]

Today I also had a close call. I accidentally opened the rear hatch while the car is still in the garage. It was that close that I stopped the hatch before it hit the top of the garage door. I guess there is no sensor at all for the rear hatch? Tesla really should put a big warning sign and maybe even add a mandatory "opening height setup" for the rear hatch upon delivery!

One more question for everyone. Does the brake light comes on when you feather the accelerator pedal? I cannot tell while I'm driving it. I want to make sure that when Tesla is slowing more than the "normal coasting", the brake light should come on to warn drivers behind me.

OK. Now you're going to get the RTFM! admonishment. Both of these questions are answered there.

1) No, there aren't any sensors in the boot lid. You have to set the height manually. Page 12 "Opening Rear Trunk".

2) Yes they do. Page 54 "Regenerative Braking".

 

[Roentgen]

I read an article about the early Toyota Tesla team up, and apparently the regenerative braking was a big schism between the two teams of engineers - Toyota wanted the RAV4 to drive more like a normal car, while Tesla engineers thought they would get more efficiency by aggressive regenerative braking.

 

[EVKevin]

6. Booster seat. We had some trouble installing the booster seats on the 2nd row. We have Clek Olli backless booster and it was very hard to install it. The rounded hugging shape of the MX seat-backs while very comfortable seem to interfere with the armrest of the Clek seat. You have to push the seat really hard against the seat-backs in order for the latch to reach the connector. And it was impossible to fit a seat protector underneath. With the seat protector, it was not able to latch properly. So we had to install without seat protector. Also the seat belt buckle on the 2nd row sits flat with the seat and does not extend up like most other cars. With the booster installed, it was very hard for the kids to buckle in. A seat belt buckle extender would solve this. But we have not needed it with other cars.

I just want to point out that the MX owner's manual says not to use LATCH with booster seats:

"Seating Larger Children

If a child is too large to fit into a child safety seat, but too small to safely fit into the standard seat belts, use a booster seat appropriate for the child's age and size. Carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions to secure the booster seat using the seat belts. Do not use the LATCH system to secure booster seats, even in situations where the booster seat is equipped with the LATCH system."

 

[DuplexDianne]

Today I also had a close call. I accidentally opened the rear hatch while the car is still in the garage. It was that close that I stopped the hatch before it hit the top of the garage door. I guess there is no sensor at all for the rear hatch? Tesla really should put a big warning sign and maybe even add a mandatory "opening height setup" for the rear hatch upon delivery!

You can actually adjust it to open only halfway, so I've been told.

 

[DCWitt]

Here, here! At least the refreshed Model S still has AM radio. Maybe there is hope for the future. Until then, my portable SONY and FM transmitter can help when those roadside signs inform the driver to tune to the low power AM stations for venue or road information.

I am finding that "Tune In" is a crystal clear replacement for the poor AM radio I had in my Model S.

 

[loganintx]

You can actually adjust it to open only halfway, so I've been told.

It's not a halfway setting. It's however much you want it to open. You stop it when opening then push on it till it's at the height you want then press and hold the CLOSE button on the lid until you hear a beep. It remembers that height.

 

[loganintx]

It's also buried all the way down on Page 12 in the manual

 

[Mark Z]

I am finding that "Tune In" is a crystal clear replacement for the poor AM radio I had in my Model S.

I agree, if the AM stations that you want are available on Tunein.

Some iHeart Radio stations are not on Tunein.

Be sure to check HD Radio as they have some AM stations on the digital FM band.
You can change the location and search your area here: Local HD Radio Stations
Click this graphic for a sample list of AM stations on FM HD2 in the LA area:

 

[AndyW]

I am finding that "Tune In" is a crystal clear replacement for the poor AM radio I had in my Model S.

Yes indeed. I found all my favorite stations in Tune in

I'm also happy to report that the power consumption has been much better. The latest reading at 325Wh/mile for the last 30 miles. So I think the EPA stated range should be attainable. Although the weather here in SoCal is very mind the last couple days, not much climate control needed.

 

[X Fan]

Agree re: poor wifi capability.

My Router is situated in room next to garage and after linking at first, now is challenged to connect.

 

[madodel]

Yes indeed. I found all my favorite stations in Tune in

I'm also happy to report that the power consumption has been much better. The latest reading at 325Wh/mile for the last 30 miles. So I think the EPA stated range should be attainable. Although the weather here in SoCal is very mind the last couple days, not much climate control needed.

As you drive the X you will get better at using less energy. The first couple weeks I drove my X I was using 400 to 600+ Wh/Mile. Now it is usually around 330Wh/Mile or less. Best I have done was 198 Wh/Mile, but that was pretty much all downhill. ;-) Things that helped included turning off Creep, enabling Range Mode, using AP a lot. Also using the instant torque a lot less, but that is tough because it is so addictive.

 

[madodel]

Agree re: poor wifi capability.

My Router is situated in room next to garage and after linking at first, now is challenged to connect.

As others have said you can get a WiFi extender. Also if Cellular is poor you can get a cellular booster. I have both but since my cellular booster is located in my garage and my Netgear WiFI extender is in the family room next to the garage, I turned off WiFi and updates download without problems.