Connect with us

Tesla Model X

Tesla CEO Stands by the Model X, “the Best Car Ever”

Elon Musk says the Tesla Model X is the “best car ever built.” He adds that, “No one will ever build a car like the Model X again.

Published

on

In a rare moment of humility during the question and answer portion of Tesla’s Q4 earnings call, Elon Musk admitted that there might have been more than a little hubris behind the decision to ladle as many new ideas and innovative features into the development of the Model X as humanly possible.

“Model X is an amazing car. [It] is the best car ever,” said Musk. “I’m not sure anyone’s going to make a car like this ever again. I’m not sure Tesla would make a car like this again.” The Model X engineering complexity combined with early production issues related to its falcon wing doors and second row seating resulted in a slower than expected Q4 production ramp of the vehicle. Musk acknowledges that, in retrospect, Tesla should have rolled out new Model X features over time rather than put everything into it all at once.

“I’m not sure anyone’s going to make a car like this ever again. I’m not sure Tesla would make a car like this again”

Asked whether the Model X will take sales away from the Model S, Musk responded that it will be a matter of taste for individual drivers. He said he personally prefers the lower seating of the Model S, but many people like the high seating the Model X offers. The best feature, says Musk, is its amazing panoramic windshield that sweeps back into the roof over the heads of front seat passengers.

As to how Tesla will balance production between the Model X and Model S, Musk said it would be up to the market to decide once the company begins rolling out the electric crossover SUV to select showrooms this quarter.

Production volume of the Model X is expected to be between 700 to 800 vehicles per week, with that number rising to as much as 1,000 per week towards mid to late Q2. Tesla anticipates a total of 1600-1800 cars will be produced per week, combined.

Advertisement

 

"I write about technology and the coming zero emissions revolution."

Comments

News

Tesla makes a decision on the future of its flagship Model S and Model X

Published

on

Tesla has made a decision regarding the future of its flagship vehicles, the Model S and Model X, which both have been sticking around for “sentimental reasons” and have no true alignment with the company’s future goals of growth.

The Model S and Model X were Tesla’s first two vehicles to be offered to the public.

They were essentially fundraisers for future, mass-market, affordable models, according to Elon Musk’s “Tesla Master Plan,” but their ability to still attract some buyers thanks to the performance of the Model S or the space of the Model X keeps them lingering.

But speculation regarding the vehicles’ true place in the expanding Tesla lineup has been persistent. With the vehicles, which have been grouped in with the Cybertruck in its quarterly delivery releases, only amounting to 23,000 deliveries in Q4, there are questions as to whether it is still worth keeping them around.

Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, Lars Moravy, said on the Ride the Lightning podcast yesterday that there are currently no plans to eliminate the Model S and Model X from the lineup.

Advertisement

When asked about whether there were plans for the Model S and Model X moving forward, Moravy replied:

“Just give it a minute. We’ll get there. The upgrade a couple of years ago was bigger than most people thought in terms of architecture and structure of the car got a lot better, too. But, we’ll give it some love later this year and make sure it gets a little bit…you know, with the stuff we’ve been putting in 3 and Y. Obviously, with 3 and Y, the higher volume stuff, you’ve gotta focus there.”

He confirmed that the two vehicles were not going anywhere “anytime soon.”

Moravy said the Model S and Model X are great consider when you consider autonomy and the robotaxi use: the Model S due to its overall quality and the Model X because of its interior space.

Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:

Please email me with questions and comments at joey@teslarati.com. I’d love to chat! You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

News

Tesla is offering a crazy Supercharging incentive on its two ‘sentimental’ vehicles

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla is offering a crazy Supercharging incentive for those who choose to buy two vehicles that CEO Elon Musk said the company is keeping around for “sentimental reasons” a few years ago.

Tesla Supercharging incentives are pretty hard to come by, and it is hard to tell when the company is going to offer them. Usually, they are used to move vehicles and nudge consumers toward purchasing one model over another.

However, Tesla sometimes offers Supercharging incentives at random times for no real reason other than luck of the draw.

However, Tesla is using the Supercharging incentive to help move two of the cars that are low-volume sellers, but are kept around for what Musk called “sentimental reasons” in 2019.

Tesla is offering free Supercharging for those who choose to purchase or lease a new Model S or Model X.

Advertisement

The offer is good for the life of your ownership or lease. Tesla talks more about the terms on its website:

“Customers who purchase or lease a new Model X (or Model S) are eligible for free Supercharging during your ownership of the vehicle. Offer is tied to your Tesla Account and cannot be transferred to another vehicle, person or order, even in the case of ownership transfer. Used vehicles, business orders and vehicles used for commercial purposes (like taxi, rideshare and delivery services) are excluded from this promotion. You are still responsible for Supercharger fees, like idle and congestion fees, when applicable.”

This is a great promotion to attempt and move some of Tesla’s vehicles, especially two that the company only keeps around because they are two of the company’s foundational, flagship cars.

Musk said in 2019:

“I mean, they’re very expensive, made in low volume. To be totally frank, we’re continuing to make them more for sentimental reasons than anything else. They’re really of minor importance to the future.”

Advertisement

Tesla has not released a major update to the Model S or Model X in a few years. In 2022, it launched the Plaid configuration, but it has not received any true modifications since then, leading some to believe they could be sunsetted in the future.

For now, it seems they will be sticking around, but Tesla is still adjusting the prices and incentives of the two vehicles. Earlier this week, Tesla pushed the Model X’s price in the U.S. up by $5,000.

Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:

Please email me with questions and comments at joey@teslarati.com. I’d love to chat! You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Continue Reading

News

Tesla hikes Model X pricing by $5,000, losing EV tax credit qualification

Published

on

tesla model x
Credit: Tesla

Tesla has increased the price of both of its Model X trims by $5,000. The company made the move late Thursday evening, marking the first time the flagship vehicle has seen a bump in price since the middle of last year.

The increase now puts the trims over the $80,000 limit for the Federal EV Tax Credit of $7,500.

The two trims of the Model X now cost $84,990 and $99,990 for the All-Wheel-Drive and Plaid builds, respectively.

The price increase could be blamed on several things: a short-term squeeze as tariff pressure builds, Tesla’s wish to gain some more margin on the Model X, a low-volume vehicle, and potentially a way to push consumers toward the Cybertruck, a vehicle that has a tremendous future for the company.

In Q4, Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck accounted for 23,640 of the 495,570 deliveries Tesla made. Cybertruck was likely a majority of this figure, but an exact breakdown is not available as Tesla does not break down their deliveries by model.

The Model X is a very low-volume vehicle at this point in time, and people who are buying it are truly fans of the car itself. It is unlikely that this $5,000 bump in price will change their minds about the vehicle, especially at its new starting price of $84,990.

In 2019, CEO Elon Musk referred to the cars as “niche products” and said Tesla was building them for “sentimental reasons more than anything else”:

Advertisement

“I mean, they’re very expensive, made in low volume. To be totally frank, we’re continuing to make them more for sentimental reasons than anything else. They’re really of minor importance to the future.”

This sentiment alone sort of insinuates that Tesla could be trying to push consumers in the direction of vehicles that have more meaning in the future. This would be the Cybertruck, specifically because of the comparable price point.

Perhaps the biggest piece of this story is the fact that the Model X is now out of the qualifying price for the EV tax credit of $7,500. This fact seems to mean that consumers would potentially consider the Cybertruck for their vehicle over the Model X, simply because of relevance and now the tax credit qualification.

The last time Tesla initiated a price change on the Model X was back in July 2024, when it bumped the price up by just $2,000.

Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:

Advertisement

Please email me with questions and comments at joey@teslarati.com. I’d love to chat! You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Continue Reading

Trending