What happens when you loan a journalist a Tesla Model X p90D with Ludicrous mode enabled? You get a gushing, glowing review. It certainly worked for Dan Neil of the Wall Street Journal, who published a review of the Model X last Friday that praises the car to the heavens — and beyond. His assessment?
“It takes a sustainably harvested baseball bat to Panzer wagons like Porsche Cayenne Turbo and Range Rover Sport SVR.”
At first, Neil was conflicted by the idea of a $135,400 car being connected in anyway to saving the planet from the scourge of fossil fuels. But the longer he had the car in his possession, the more he appreciated its ferocious acceleration. “No yellow light ever turns red for the Model X P90D. No hole that opens up in traffic is ever too small or far away,” he says. He was also captivated by the monopost seats, Bioweapons grade climate control system, and the panoramic windshield.
Neil waxes eloquent about the falcon wing doors, primarily because they are so over the top boffo in operation and so totally unnecessary in practical reality. He notes that even Elon Musk admits they might represent a certain degree of engineering overreach fueled by hubris. But they accomplish their goal of making the Model X perhaps the most distinctive vehicle on the planet.
“Practicality for fascination,” Neil says. “This is the card Mr. Musk continues to play to his advantage. This is the part of the Tesla business plan that might as well have been quoted out of the Old Testament. The rich will want the riches.”
Elon Musk tweeted yesterday that the Model X configurator would become available to non-reservation holders on Monday. The tweet was later deleted. But when asked if was still going to happen, Elon tweeted back a simple “yes”.
That means that some entry level, $80,000 Model X 70D’s might roll off the assembly line in Fremont sometime in the foreseeable future. We still expect an announcement soon about new battery options for the X and the S. Perhaps a 100 kWh battery will be revealed along with the impending Model S refresh?