As a Tesla Model X fan (yes, I only care about X, not others), as a proud owner of two Model X cars, I had the opportunity to experience the 2022 Tesla Model X Plaid at Shenzhen Futian Joy Center with excitement. Without further ado, here are my thoughts:
1. Exterior: Almost no changes, except for two minor updates.
The first is the fog light turn signal change to the 3/Y blade style.
The second is the replacement of the fully exposed chrome decoration strip with the 3/Y unified glossy black. As a modified model that has been on the market since 2016, this exterior is somewhat disappointing in terms of changes.
2. Interior: There are significant changes, and two modifications that can impress people.
The first is the Yoke steering wheel. This time, Tesla not only changed the round steering wheel to a trapezoidal one, but also removed all gear levers. All features (such as steering, horn, autopilot, etc.) are centralized to the steering wheel’s key area. Whether it’s convenient or not is up to personal preferences. However, I think the previous generation of Tesla has almost eliminated the brakes with single-pedals, and this generation has eliminated various gear levers with a Yoke steering wheel, which is in line with Tesla’s constant pursuit. As the saying goes, if you accept it, you buy it; if you don’t accept it, you can buy another car. I actually enjoy this kind of high-tech feeling, and I also agree that there will be only seats without (or under normal circumstances, no) steering wheels, throttles, brakes, and gear levers in the future of cars. In addition, the Yoke steering wheel unexpectedly feels great. Those third-party fake Yoke steering wheels on the market (I also installed one myself) only copied the original Yoke’s appearance and missed some of the essence of the original design, such as the ergonomic curve and the just-right grip width, and so on.
The second is the screen. The vertical screen has been changed to a horizontal screen, which is further unified with the style of 3/Y series. Since I have been used to vertical screens and primarily used cars with vertical screens (Model X, ES6, ERX5, etc.) since I started using electric cars in 2018, I find it challenging to adapt to a horizontal screen. The main reason is that without turning your head, the area visible to you can’t cover the right half of the horizontal screen’s content. Therefore, when you need to use the functionality on the right side of the screen, you have to turn your head or even turn your body in order to do so. Perhaps Tesla also considered the habit of old XS car owners, so they provided screen rotation functionality. After the screen is turned towards the master driver’s direction, it can slightly alleviate the discomfort of driving and looking at the screen.3. Others: It’s worth mentioning two points about the “old wine in a new bottle”.
First, the seats. The seats haven’t been changed, so those who suffer from lower back pain will probably still experience it. However, this time I want to focus on the ventilated seats. Tesla calls it “air conditioning” and claims to be applying for a patent. After experiencing it, I found it no different from ordinary ventilated seats, just with slightly lower noise (or perhaps that’s just my perception). But it’s rare to see all six seats in the Model X with ventilation. If I were to give an opinion, I’d rather have the ventilation removed from the two seats in the third row, and the cost added to make the second row seats more comfortable. Although the Model X is classified as an SUV, we have always used it as an MPV at home, with one six-seater and one seven-seater car. It’s usually enough for daily use, so it’s hard to utilize the third row, but there’s not even an armrest for the second row seats, which is a little uncomfortable.
Second is the power. I don’t really need to elaborate on this; it’s well-known that the Model X has the lowest air resistance and the most powerful motor in the world. But I don’t care about that. I usually drive in comfort mode and can only barely get ahead of the slowest drivers at intersections. Power is the least of my concerns. However, since we’ve mentioned power, let’s talk about range. Tesla staff indicated that the new Model X’s range is about the same as the old one. The long-range version of my old Model X was labeled 575km, but only reached up to 500km when fully charged, and realistically it was only about 400km. The upgraded long-range version on the new Model X is labeled 605km, but only reaches around 550km when fully charged, and realistically it’s only about 450km. Since Tesla mentioned that the battery hasn’t made significant advancements, I estimate that the range of the new Model X will be around 700km, but realistically it will be capped at about 500km.
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.