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5 years Tesla Model X: Creating the way for an even bigger hype

5 years Tesla Model X: Creating the way for an even bigger hype

It has already been 5 years since the first Tesla Model X was introduced. In 2015 the Model X was probably the most remarkable car of the year, though you could say so of every Tesla model that has been introduced. We thought it would be a good moment to reflect.

Hypes

If you look at the young history of Tesla, one thing stands out: they are really good in creating a hype. Not that that is a negative, on the contrary! Besides the tweets of the owner Elon Musk that create a constant stream of amazing news, Tesla knows exactly how to inform the market. At certain times you won’t hear anything about their car, only to hear numerous facts in quick succession so they will stay the talk of the day. Take for example autumn 2019. Tesla introduced their weirdest model since, er, well, maybe ever: the Cybertruck. Only a couple of weeks later they were all over the newspapers by introducing the production of the model Y.

Tesla Cybertruck

Tesla did the same in 2012. That is how far we have to go back for the start of the model X. That spring Tesla presented the first prototype of the Model X in their design studio in Hawthorne, California. Not long after the long-awaited production of the Model S started. Seven years later history was repeated.

Design

Just like every other model of Tesla, the design was done by Franz von Holzhausen. Even though the Model S designed by him is filled to the brim with technical gadgets, the exterior of the car is not too extravagant. The same can be said of the Model X, though this changes when the doors are opened. Like the world famous and loved Mercedes 300SL and the Delorean DMC-12 the model X has Gull-wing doors or, as Tesla calls them: Falcon Doors (Hype, remember). Besides the doors the enormous 17-inch central touch screen is very noticeable. By now it is one of the main thoughts of a Tesla, but in 2012 this was new and not found in (almost) any other car. Oh, we would almost forget, but the idea of a full electric vehicle with an acceptable range was, in 2012, pretty much unheard of.

Pre orders of the Model X

It took a while before the first production model appeared. As said, this took until 2015. But does this mean that Tesla has been idle and just changed the prototype? Of course, with the hypes that cover the company owned by Elon Musk, it was possible to pre-order the car by a down payment. Depending on the model, this was $5.000 for the standard version or $40.000 for the limited ‘Signature-model’. In the 3 and half years it took for the car to go into production about 30.000 people paid the down-payment. In comparison, that is about 3 and a half times as many as the model S.

Before leaving this article to find how many people pre-ordered the Cybertruck, we have done this for you. In July 2020 this were 650.000 cars! No, this is not mis-typed, this number is higher than the number of cars that Tesla has produced in 2018 and 2019 together!

Productie problemen

Is it all cookies and cream? Did the introduction not cause any problems at all? Certainly not. The introduction of the Model X was delayed by about one and half year. Partly because of the success of the Model S, that created the need of more employees on the line to reach the required production numbers and partly because of a different reason. Tesla found they had some problems with one of the significant design features: the falcon doors. Besides it had a cooling problem of the electromotors when stressed by pulling a trailer.

Production version of the Tesla Model X

The ironic thing about the model is that the characteristic doors still cause problems even after the introduction. Tesla’s critical customers, that had just become the owner of a model X, had many complaints about the doors. In some cases, the doors did not close or they would not lock properly. In June 2016 Tesla had to face a judge to answer for this problem. The solution? Tesla accepted that the model X went to production before it was completely finished but the problem was solved by a new firmware not long after. For every other car manufacturer this would create a big problem, but somehow Tesla always seems to get away with these issues. Maybe because the Model X kept winning award after award, amongst which Best Vehicle of the Year. A name that was awarded by the American Magazine Forbes. The range, speed and definitely comfort have added to this award.

Tesla Model X Interior

Speed

Since the little bit messy introduction of the Model X, it looks like the following years did not cause too many problems. Noticeable: where the car first looked like the funkier SUV variant of the gadget filled Model S, that image has changed a bit in the 5 years after the introduction. And that is all because off the 100kWh strong Tesla Model X P100D, that was introduced in 2016. Thanks to the ‘Ludicrous Mode’ that accelerates the car from 0 to 60 mph in around 3 seconds, it will leave many supercars behind. Not weird then that a search of the Tesla Model X on YouTube will list a lot of drag races. We feel for the lease companies…

Electronics

What about the rest of the electronics? We can be very brief about this, because there have not been many issues. Though we do have to say that the Model X did make the news withs some minor electrical problems. In February 15.000 cars have been recalled because of problem with the power steering. In September Elon Musk reported that problems have appeared in the 12V battery, that have to be solved by an update. In our remanufacture department we have seen a couple Tesla Model X ABS-units. The Tesla Model X has been equipped with the Bosch 9.0 ESP, that has (weirdly enough) been fitted in the Dacia Duster and the Citroën C1. The Model X is still a car, right?