Tesla's Model X is like no other luxury crossover SUV - here's why
So what's the verdict?
What about Autopilot?
Autopilot operation is by now pretty well understood. I think it's the best adaptive cruise control system on the market, although it's not quite as good on very well-defined highways as Cadillac's Super Cruise, which I also recently sampled.
You engage Autopilot when it makes itself available, and then it can maintain speed, brake, accelerate, change lanes, and auto-steer the vehicle. Taking your hands off the wheel for more than a few moments isn't something I recommend. And in any case, Autopilot will prompt the driver to get his or her hand back on the wheel if hands-free driving is attempted.
Ignore the prompts and Autopilot will shut itself down until the next charge cycle.
If that's not enough tech for you, Tesla also has a smartphone app to manage some basic features and monitor battery life and charging. Yes, our test car was named "Lil' Scrappy." Yes, you can name your Tesla.
It changes color at night!
Navigation, charging and battery performance, climate control, drive modes, audio, Bluetooth pairing and smartphone management, customization, even opening and closing doors — all handled from this nerve center.
The real action is with the massive central touchscreen, which controls almost all vehicle functions.
The instrument cluster to the driver looks like something you'd find on a spaceship. The information display is clean and simple.
And the third row, with room for two more. Overall, the seats were quite comfortable — they felt as if they were made of memory foam. And they held up to three kids, two adults, and a dog on a weekend road trip.
The second row. Seating for three, but more comfortable if it's only two.
The interior, all white leather, contrasted vividly with the black exterior. The Model X's cabin is a study in automotive minimalism. The vibe is premium, not overly luxurious or blingy. Silicon Valley chic.
So is the rear cargo area. The third-row of seats can also be folded down.
Cargo space for the Model X is considerable. Because there's no traditional engine, the "frunk" is there to swallow up gear.
The Model X can access Tesla's nationwide Supercharger network. The charge port is concealed behind the left rear tail light. The hatch opens when you're ready to plug in.
The P100D has two motors — hence the "D" for "dual motor" — giving it all-wheel-drive. The "P" stands for "performance," and the "100" refers to the battery pack, a 100 kilowatt-hour unit.
With "Ludicrous Mode" engaged, this all produces a 0-60 mph time of about 3 seconds, which is bonkers for an SUV that can seat seven passengers.
That 100 kWh pack provides about 240 miles of range on a single charge, and the Model X's onboard computers can figure out how much charging you need to do between stops on a long drive. It isn't necessary to fully recharge every time you plug into a Supercharger.
But if you do, a completely depleted battery can be back to 100% in about two hours.
Level 2 charging, the next step down in speed, is available at numerous "Destination Chargers," as Tesla calls them. These are located at hotels and restaurants, for example, so you can plug in overnight, or just for longer periods than at a Supercharger.
There's also regular wall-socket recharging — Tesla's come with a charging cable — but it's incredibly slow, only about a mile of range per hour of charge. For emergency use only.
Another signature feature: a spectacular windshield that sweeps up to the roofline, providing an incredible view.
Those spectacular "falcon wing" doors were in the house.
This feature is a signature of the Model X, but it wasn't easy to pull off. Gull-wing-type doors are always tricky, and that's why they're rarely seen. The doors on the Model X are motorized and have special sensors so that they can vary the way they articulate, depending on whether the car is in a parking lot surrounded by other cars or in an owner's garage.
The doors almost delayed the Model X launch back in 2015. Tesla has to redesign them at the last minute.
Our Model X's doors performed flawlessly and garnered a lot of "oohs" and "aahs" when I did things like pull up to the dropoff line at my second-grader's elementary school.
It was the top-of-the-line P100D, with a sticker price somewhere in the neighborhood of $150,000.
The cheapest Model X is the 75D, which goes for $85,500.
We didn't get a proper Model X test car until this year, however.
A bit later, Tesla brought a Model X to rainy Manhattan, and my colleague Ben Zhang and I spent some time driving around.
Then in late 2015, Tesla threw a massive party to officially launch the Model X. CEO Elon Musk was the master of ceremonies.
And on actual roads!
A few years later, after numerous delays, the vehicle was spotted testing in closed-off locations.
We got our first look at the Model X when it was revealed in Los Angeles in 2012.
Popular Right Now
Advertisement