Tesla's 'Model X' Fails to Impress the Critics

author: Anthony   

Elon Musk, the South African visionary and business tycoon, has reached unparalleled success. He is also known for some uniquely controversial beliefs. For example, he's boldly stated that humanity is probably living in a computer simulation. As reported in the UK Independent, Musk said that the chance we're not living in a computer simulation is "one in billions." That article can be deconstructed here.

He's also claimed that journalists are "killing people" by accurately reporting on the failures of his self-driving vehicles. Drivers less likely to try out his products in the future because of the reports published by the aforementioned journalists – at least according to Tesla's logic. CNBC gives the details on the latter here.

Others note that freedom of the press and the right to speak, think and write freely and honestly are the bedrock of the American Bill of Rights. Consumer watchdogs like Ralph Nader have risen to an almost god-like prominence in U.S. culture. Some say Nader's consumer advocacy changed America forever. Nader was even able to mount a run for the American Presidency.

Now Musk will have to contend with the latest round of bad news. Consumer Reports is less than thrilled with Tesla's ‘Model X,' and has offered a flurry of criticism that won't be well-reviewed at Telsa's Silicon Valley headquarters.

According to the New York Post:

"Looks like Tesla's love affair with Consumer Reports is history. The magazine's review this week of Tesla's Model X panned the all-electric SUV as a ‘flawed' vehicle, blasting its ‘complexity, compromised functionality and dismal first-year reliability.' The publication seemed just barely impressed by Model X's famous ‘falcon-wing' doors, or by its ‘jet-fighter-like canopy windshield' or by the fact that the car can park itself.

"'But beyond the brag-worthy magic, the all-wheel-drive Model X 90D largely disappoints,' the magazine said. ‘The rear doors are prone to pausing and stopping. The second-row seats can't be folded, limiting cargo-carrying ability. The big windshield is neat but not tinted enough to offset the brightness of a sunny day, and wind noise is excessive.'"

Not all of the news is bad. Musk is not one to settle for inferior products, and as such the car possesses some excellent features. For example, the ‘Model X' weighs 5.400 pounds, yet we're told it possesses "warp speed thrust." He can go from 0 to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds. The battery, which is 90-kWh, can go 230 miles between charges.

The New York Post continued:

"'The agile Tesla corners more like a sports sedan than an SUV,' [Consumer Reports] noted. ‘But its ride is too firm and choppy for a $110,000 car.'"

"In August 2015, Consumer Reports famously gave the Tesla Model S an off-the-charts rating of 103 points out of 100, saying it had to rejigger its methodology to account for the sedan's outstanding performance. Two months later, however, it withdrew the Model S recommendation, citing reliability concerns. Tesla shares on Friday shrugged off the report, rising 1.8 percent, to $196.65."

Anthony

Anthony C. LoBaido is a journalist, ghostwriter and photographer. He has worked in 53 nations around the world – from Laos to Lebanon, from Belize to Botswana and from Nepal to Namibia. He also published a book on the Kurds. Some of LoBaido’s favorite stories include attending the British Army’s jungle warfare training in Central America, retracing Lawrence of Arabia’s World War I trek through Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, investigating the blood diamonds of Sierra Leone as popularized in the Leonardo DiCaprio film by the same name, meeting “CNN hero” Aki Ra at one of his landmine digs in northern Cambodia, working with Time Magazine’s “Hero of Asia” Lek Chailert on her crusade to assist injured and abused elephants in Southeast Asia, rescuing HIV/Aids throw-away babies in the garbage dumps of Cape Town, South Africa, as well as visiting a leper colony in Myanmar. LoBaido’s articles have been cited by Ivy League universities such as Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania. As a photographer, LoBaido made National Geographic in 2014.