Starting at the top end of the market and providing limited options is the Apple approach, likely to lead to profit but not necessarily market share.
What's a let-down about it? Legitimately curious.
The problem that needs a legitimate solution is that of the 8 to 12 mile per gallon SUV. What is needed is an electric Suburban. What isn't needed is another $100K class non-S, non-U vehicle.
Try to throw a couple of kayaks, bikes, rowing shells, some lumber or camping equipment on this sorry-ass Tesla design.
All you are getting is more comfortable entry and exit if you use it exactly as you might a car.
If you put anything on the roof the rear passengers are trapped.
I've owned a range of SUV's and minivans over the years. I couldn't even begin to imagine having a real family life with kids with the Tesla offering.
I mean, tomorrow I am going to Home Depot to buy five sheets of plywood for a project. They are getting strapped to yhe roof rack. No problem.
> or even worse, they get replaced with standard doors
But we're talking about the X here, which doesn't.
The doors seem silly. I drive an Odyssey and love sliding doors for the kids or the dog or when I have an armload of groceries. I've seen the sliding doors back up when they bump into something. I know they work. And they're reasonably fast, which is important when you live in Oregon with the rain.
I currently drive a Subaru Outback and would be replacing it with a Model X so I could cart myself and some friends for weekend skiing or surfing trips.
Unless I'm missing something, the gullwing doors preclude a roof rack, which is a deal breaker for me.
I know it is a good company. I was waiting for them to revolutionize the SUV market with a true sports-utility electric vehicle. I would have been in line to buy one. Instead they are putting out a bullshit Gucci gull-wing contraption that is a total let-down. That's when I ceased to be interested in Tesla.
For a number of reasons we recently purchased a used two-year-old low-mileage BMW. For a little more money we got extended coverage that takes care of everything for seven years. We even covered the (expensive) tires.
We could have bought more than one fully-covered low-mileage certified-pre-owned BMW for the cost of a single Tesla.
My wife ran over something and punctured a tire a couple of months ago. Being a "run flat" tire, she drove to the nearest BMW dealer. They gave her a loaner car for the day and, for a $50 deductible, replaced the $500 tire and cleaned and washed her car.
So I read an article like this and my first reaction is: Who are they trying to fool?