As a gentleman, I have enough resistance to resist this kind of female creature like Aunt Zhang, who is middle-aged, no longer youthful, and mediocre in appearance.
However, when I received a call from the pervert Aunt Zhang (http://Smzdm.com), and heard that “the female protagonist is a Tesla Model X,” I immediately took out the courage to sacrifice for the sake of noble art: “Director, if you must be completely naked, can you not expose the third point?”
The 2016 Car Icon – Model X
If a car grows a pair of eagle wings and attaches the Tesla logo, you will become famous no matter what.
However, when the price of Model X was announced earlier this year (starting at $81,200 in the US), many people realized that Tesla was doing something extraordinary. This price is only about 14% more expensive than Model S ($71,200), and it has changed from a sedan to an SUV, from standard 5 seats to standard 7 seats, and there are some other important differences.
It is not difficult for various car companies to create an extraordinary car, but creating an excellent industrial commodity is difficult, which means that you have to dance gracefully on a large square of copper coins and contemplate life on thin steel wire ropes.
Further, it can be an excellent product, an eye-catching design, a persistent craftsmanship, and a self-indulgent black technology.
But further is also the cost increase that the Chief Financial Officer dislikes, the technological show-off that is self-righteous, and the excess quality that consumers find difficult to pay for.
On paper, Tesla has achieved both: stunning products and reasonable premium.
It’s really not easy.
Unfortunately, this car has never had any test drive resources in China.
Thanks to Aunt Zhang’s invitation and Joe Sun, the car designer (Joe evaluated the Cadillac CT6’s aesthetic design), I had the opportunity to personally experience this Model X.
I heard that the schedule of this test drive car was arranged very tightly, and the time left for me and Joe Sun was only one day.
Regarding the design of this car, I obviously cannot show off in front of Joe. I will mainly talk about this car from the perspective of product, consumer experience, and product line strategy with everyone.
Product Perspective on Model X
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Similarities with Model S
As an industrial product, the most foolish thing from a reasonable cost control perspective is to design every new car as if it were brand new.This Model X inherits many glorious traditions from Model S: -
Power: the motor, battery, and control system are the same. However, due to the larger and heavier vehicle, the same power version has a decreased range and acceleration.
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Driving: the chassis feels very similar in experience, but the difference is that the wheel size of this Model X is up to 22 inches, which is very domineering, but such large wheels make the riding experience less gentle – really hard!
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Center screen, instrument, and operating system: all the same.
△ Autopilot system identical to Model S
- Interior material: overall similar. It is worthy of opening a bottle of Maotai to celebrate that Tesla engineers have actually considered that human beings on Earth really need to drink water. Therefore, a storage space for bottled water has finally been arranged under the side door trim of the front row.
- Front trunk: after opening it, there is still no engine to be seen, but a storage space – this space I call “the space is large enough to hold all your style.” It is recommended to use it first when there are many pedestrians.
II. How does Model X differentiate from Model S?
- Falcon wing doors
Just like Liuyan’s chest, Julie’s lips, and the buttocks of the unnamed girl in last night’s dream, the falcon-wing doors of Model X are its most attractive and sexy part.
Once opened in a crowd, it can spark a crowd gathering effect no less than “Chinese aunt square dance”.
Besides being sexy, these wings also have strong practicality.
Once opened, entering and exiting the second and third row seats all feel especially elegant and calm.
I once discussed with a group of car enthusiasts about why Model X uses these Falcon doors?
For practicality? Obviously not. I personally think that the purpose is to establish the uniqueness of the product and greatly enhance the premium of the product. I believe that potential customers at this price range are willing to spend 100,000 yuan just for this door.
△ Luxury cars spare no effort in enhancing their premium status. They even add diamond-studded headlights and 24K gold dust to their car paint.
Compared with BBA at the same price, Model X’s configuration is obviously not high. After all, it does not have a string of high-tech configurations like “night vision system + advanced audio system with dozens of speakers + matrix LED headlights + electrically adjustable seats in more than 20 directions”. However, Model X has Falcon doors.
Sometimes, it’s better to play a trump card than to play a bunch of good cards.
2 SUV
At least, Model X looks like an SUV.
That’s enough.
It never thought about competing with Land Rover Range Rover for off-road ability, and even can’t match the interests of Audi Q7 and BMW X5. Because it never thought about it – what’s the point of comparing the English level between Wong Fei-hung and Thirteen Auntie?
Basically, this is a Model S with a raised chassis. Wherever Model S can go, this car can go.
Basically, this is also the real demand of most urban SUV consumers-they never want to go to the mud wearing leather shoes, and they never want to go anywhere other than the highway in an SUV.
If they insist on buying an SUV, it is just a fantasy that they will loosen their tie, untie their belt, and light a cigarette, and live like a wild animal. In fact, the only thing they have in common with Western cowboys is that they wear a pair of jeans.
3 Three-row seven-seat
The layout of the seats is one of Tesla’s highlights.
There is an electric rail under the second row of seats, and the front and rear sliding of the left and right seats of the second row can be easily controlled through the button on the side of the seat or the central control screen, making it easy for passengers in the third row to get on and off.
## Unprecedented Front View
The front windshield of the Tesla Model X is so large that it’s not particularly noticeable, but once you see it, it’s hard not to open your mouth in shock.
Oh My God! This is unbelievable! How can there be such a large front windshield!
This design makes all panoramic roofs of other car models pale in comparison, combining the panoramic view of a convertible with the quiet and comfortable ride of a non-convertible.
At 6:30 in the morning, driving this car on the Shanghai elevated highway, facing the sun and heading east, my mood was great!
As for the practicality of the third-row seats: they can meet the needs of short-distance travel for children or small adults, and the ride experience is relatively good. However, the horizontal width is insufficient, and it’s difficult to find a comfortable position for the shoulder and arm on the side near the car door. The headspace is also not very friendly for tall students. (It’s fine for me, thank you!)
In addition, the steel electric guide rails under the second row of seats look very refined and sturdy, and occupy relatively compact space. This way, the third-row passengers can comfortably place their feet under the second-row seats and find a resting place for their feet.
The back of the first and second-row seats of the Tesla Model X is made of a hard plastic panel similar to piano lacquer finish. It looks similar to a light fashion brand like Zara, with great design but suboptimal material choice. I think both the second and third-row passengers need to fasten their seat belts, otherwise hitting the hard back of these seats during sudden braking would be unpleasant.
The Most Powerful Car Configuration in the Universe
At this point, you may think I’m just a Tesla fan and a Model X fanatic, praising this car to the extreme.
A hundred kilometers per hour acceleration in 4.4 seconds? Falcon Wing doors that can fly? A three-row seat layout that can fit a whole family? A super-sized front windshield that lets you see the sky?
In fact, I’m very rational. I don’t think these configurations of the Model X are particularly amazing.
Do you know why I was driving on the Shanghai Central Ring Elevated Highway at 6:30 in the morning?
Because this car only has a temporary license plate and is not allowed on the downtown elevated highway from 7:00 am to 10:00 am on weekdays.
Now you know, what is the most amazing (harmonious) configuration for a car, right?
Even if all the engineers from Ferrari, Tesla, BMW, and Toyota worked together, they wouldn’t be able to develop it. It’s made of a special lightweight metal, with a light blue premium paint finish and silver-white lettering, and has a precise and meticulous installation process. Once installed on the car, it won’t come off for ten years.
The number of people queuing up every month for it is astonishing.
It is the license plate for cars in Shanghai! The nominal price is only 80,000 RMB+, but in August, 250,000 people competed for only 10,000 license plates. Even if you want to spend money, you may not be able to get one!
Take a Look at Model X to Understand Tesla’s Product Lineup
From the perspective of Tesla’s product lineup, it is logical and reasonable for Model X to make its debut after the company’s first, very niche, and expensive electric sports car — Roadster, and the successful release of its high-end sedan, Model S, which has made a decent number of sales and brought in substantial revenue from the high-end car market.
△ Tesla’s first car model, Roadster, debuted in 2006
To consolidate its status as a leader in the electric vehicle market, Model X was launched at just the right time – the price increase compared to Model S is reasonable, and it is aimed at a hot market for seven-seat SUVs. With striking falcon-wing doors and an extra-large front windshield, Model X has great potential to become the darling of the market.
Although there is a large overlap in price with Model S, the striking differences in “SUV style,” “7 seats,” “falcon-wing doors,” and other differentiators can minimize the internal competition effect and encourage fans who already own a Tesla sedan to consider purchasing an additional Tesla SUV. Moreover, potential luxury SUV customers may seriously consider buying their first Tesla.
One potential concern is the falcon-wing doors: they are overly ambitious and technologically challenging, and were only found on some flashy and cool sports cars in the past. After all, these sports cars are not used as daily commuter vehicles, and their owners are not too concerned about their reliability.
However, this time Tesla ignored Zhang Weiping’s guidance to “play basketball reasonably” and took a three-pointer just after halftime with a really cool posture. But its shooting percentage is not comparable to Sakuragi Hanamichi’s layup.
This door was once one of the reasons for the delayed production date of Model X by two years, which also caused a long period of insufficient production capacity for Model X after its launch (at that time, it was rumored that the German supplier of this door had some problems, and later Tesla had to intervene directly). Many users also complained about the poor reliability of these doors.
Currently, it is said that the manufacturing problem with this door has been resolved and Model X’s production capacity has greatly increased, unlike before when it was difficult to get a car. Tens of thousands of Model X orders that were backlogged globally have begun to be delivered quickly, and the tens of thousands of test drive appointment requests accumulated in China have finally begun to be processed.
Recently, the sales speed of this car in China has significantly increased, reportedly matching the speed of Model S orders production. Considering the Chinese people’s preference for SUVs and the fact that Model X is only slightly more expensive than a Toyota Corolla compared to Model S, I believe it’s only a matter of time before the sales of Model X surpass those of Model S.
Paving the way for the automotive industry on this planet ahead
Model X is a very exciting car.
It shares the same powertrain and IT system as Model S, but in terms of hardware that’s actually difficult, such as the falcon-wing doors, windshield, and seat design, Tesla has shown great courage and made huge breakthroughs.
Speaking of which, I really admire Tesla, a company that’s like an adventurer, always challenging difficult things that others haven’t done, naturally getting praised and criticized.
The company has never made a profit (always losing money), but to some extent, they have single-handedly changed the world’s attitude toward electric vehicles and autonomous driving, just like Allen Iverson, a Philadelphia native recently inducted into the Hall of Fame, who almost single-handedly carried his team and spread the hip-hop culture throughout the global basketball world.
But this world is cruel. Once there’s any movement, pioneers will face the judgment of public opinion (answer unprofessional, you need training; answer disobedient, you need to respect the coach; answer not passing the ball, don’t be a ball hog; answer teaching bad behavior, don’t wear those hip-hop clothes all day long).## Consumer Suggestions: Thumbs Up and Criticism
Model X is great, with most of the advantages of Model S, which I won’t go into here. You can read my previous review article for more information:
At the same time, Model X has its own unique features: Falcon Wing Doors; SUV; 7 seats; large front windshield.
If you have a budget that could buy a Porsche Cayenne, I highly recommend considering this car. After all, at the same price point, Model X clearly outshines its competitors- especially when you live in a small city, this car is like an alien visitor. For wealthy users, independent parking spaces and charging piles are clearly not a problem, and this car cannot be the only vehicle owned.
With a length of over 5 meters and a width of over 2.27 meters (with rearview mirrors unfolded), this car becomes quite inconvenient to navigate on the streets of Shanghai.
Although it is a 7-seater car, it is still not very user-friendly for family users: first of all, operating the Falcon Wing Doors is a bit difficult and risky for children, and the comfort of the third row of seats is generally worse compared to traditional medium and large SUVs like XC90, Q7, etc. (legroom is not sufficient, and the second row is cramped. But headroom is okay). The interior of the car has a very high degree of luxury, but its convenience factor is just average.
The back of the seats is very hard, which is a hit or miss. If I were sitting in the back, I’d probably automatically put on my seatbelt out of necessity.
The chassis is the same as Model S, and the car I have comes with R22 oversized rims, which looks quite cool, but also creates a psychological pressure of “don’t drive on bad roads, what if a tire blows out?”
The Falcon Wing Doors look really stylish! But what if they break down? It would be difficult to repair them, right? This is the downside of uniqueness, just like having a girlfriend who is very beautiful and sexy, you always feel a bit insecure about making her your wife.
△ Someone else’s girlfriend, image source: internet
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.