First Look: Model X

First Look: Model X ===================

One vehicle we haven't looked at in a while was the Tesla Model X. We had originally ruled it out because the larger battery models were beyond the $90k price cap we'd set, and the smaller battery models left us with range anxiety.

Since we were starting afresh with the search, it seemed like it was worth re-examining Tesla as an option, even though we hadn't included it in the luxury/functional groups. Ostensibly, it wasn't very good at going off-road, and from cursory reading, it didn't fit the classical model of a luxury vehicle, either. What it did offer was the daily convenience of charging at home (and work) rather than pulling into a filling station every Monday. It was also one of the quickest options available (the not-yet release Alfa Romeo would be quicker to 60 at the same price point; the Lamborghini Urus reportedly quicker but at a large jump in price).

	Volvo XC 90 T8	Audi Q7	Mercedes GLS 450	Model X 75D	Model X 100D
Front Leg Room	40.9"	41.7"	40.3"	41.2"	41.2"
Rear Leg Room	37.0"	38.8"	38.5"	38.4"	38.4"
Cargo Volume (standard)	15.8 ft

³| 14.8 ft³| 16.0 ft³| 19.2 ft³| 19.2 ft³| |#Cargo Volume (max) #| 85.7 ft³| 71.6 ft³| 93.8 ft³| 77.3 ft³| 77.3 ft³| |#Curb weight #| 5059 lbs| 4938 lbs| 5394 lbs| 5185 lbs| 5421 lbs| |#Towing #| 5000 lbs| 7700 lbs| 7500 lbs| 4960 lbs| 4960 lbs| |#Wheelbase #| 117.5"| 117.9"| 121.1"| 116.7"| 116.7"| |#Length #| 194.9"| 199.6"| 201.6"| 198.3"| 198.3"| |#Width #| 79.1"| 77.5"| 84.3"| 81.5"| 81.5"| |#Height #| 69.9"| 68.5"| 72.8"| |#Clearance #| 10.5"| 9.6"| 12.5"| 5.4"| 5.4"| |#Engine #| I4 2.0L twincharger hybrid| V6 3.0L supercharged| V6 3.0L twin turbo| n/a | n/a | |#EPA Fuel Economy (City/Highway) #| 26| 19/25| 17/22| 93| 89| |#Range (highway miles) #| 470| 563| 580| 237| 295| |#Estimated cost for fuel for 19k mi (City) #| $617| $3,170| $3,543| 0| 0| |#Time spent annually refilling for weekly commute #| 5h| 26h| 26h| 0| 0| |#Boston to Orlando (time, with refueling) #| 25h| 25h| 25h| 29h| 26.5h| |#0-60 #| 5.0s| 5.7s| 5.7s| 4.6s| 3.9s| |#1/4 mile #| 13.9@97.1mph| 14.3s@98mph| 14.2s@98mph| 14.1s@100mph| 13s@105mph| |#Price (configured) #| $77,000| $84,000| $94,000| $100,800 ($88,100)| $117,300 ($104,600)| The Urus would be an updated Audi, and the Alfa was only two rows, so they weren't going to enter into the landscape. I'd be insincere if I did not admit that semi-autonomous functionality had been and still was a defining criteria of the finalists, and the Tesla vehicles were the clear leader with Volvo removed. A quick look at Tesla's Web site showed that unlimited Supercharging is available on cars purchased through the end of the month, and a very generious 1% APR is available for financing with deliveries taken through the end of the quarter (and the 100D expects deliveries in March for current orders). At the same time, some hand-wavey examples of how we'd do long trips taken from Tesla's route planner were suprisingly placating of range anxiety. The Model X 100D thus became the front-runner, and we made plans to go to the mall today to take a look at the show room. At the Mall ----------- The thought of going to the mall to buy a car is a little weird; I'm not sure if thinking of it as a giant RC electric car makes it weirder or more natural, either. Nevertheless, we packed-up our toddler and went to the mall to look at the Model X first-hand. Immediately upon entering we were greeted by a swarm of employees, and one with a broad smile asked us if she could help. I explained we were looking at the Model X and asked a coupe of questions. After each question, she'd ask to hold-on, and then run to a back corner before returning. Apparently the majority of the employees, including the full swarm up-front, were there to push their home energy products and did not know anything about the automotive side of the business. On the fourth trip, she brought back one of the gentlemen who had been in the rear corner of the store, and she explained that he was one of the people who handled the cars, and he would be able to answer our questions more efficiently than her acting as an intermediary. The showroom had only one Model S and one Model X to explore, so there was a bit of waiting and camping to see certain elements (like checking ergnomics up front or using the touchscreen). It looked great, a modern minimalistic aethetic. We knew we wanted the standard 100D, and we were told it'd be no problem taking delivery by March in order to take advantage of the promotional finance rate. We were shown the wall of colours and tiles, dating back to when Tesla let owners mix and match all of the colours they offered, and which still had the leather material for the beige and black samples rather than the now standard vinyl material introduced on the bright-white seats. Questions covered towing (yes, the adapter's now included, it just isn't present in the show-room as a safety issue); and the new seats are much easier to clean and more durable, I was assured. Great! Could we bring-in our car seat to just verify it'll fit and we'll be able to fit our soon-to-be three kids? We grabbed the car seat from the back of my wife's car, a Diono Radian RXT which was narrow enough that we could fit three across in the Volvo XC70. It clearly wasn't going to fit rear-facing in the third row, but it did in the middle. Would the infant carrier fit behind it? Maybe. We probably should have tested that.