It’s been a long time waiting, and a long post to finally gather every possible thing we love about our new car. But the time is finally here and Brandon and I are sharing our thoughts and review on the Tesla Model X.
I didn’t want to jump in too soon and share this post with out fully getting comfortable with our Tesla. It isn’t like any other car I have ever driven or owned, and I wanted to be sure to learn all of the cars features before sharing them with you.
For starters, we picked up our Tesla Model X back in May. Prior to that we were on a waiting list for about 4 months before receiving information that our car was finally available to pick up. The reason for this is because these cars are in such a high demand. They are making them and sending them straight from the factory. Our friends however recently ordered the same car and they only had to wait 2 weeks. So luckily the wait time is reducing.
I wanted to share why we decided to start looking into getting a Tesla.
My husband, being a car guy knew it would be a car we would definitely consider. But we also did our homework and did our shopping. My husband, for fun, loves to go and test drive new cars. It is something I highly consider when doing car shopping. Test out your dream car, see if you actually like it. Because I will tell you I had always thought I wanted a G-Wagon, that was until I actually drove one! Surprised are you? It honestly came down to such small little features that made me never want the car. Of course if someone were to hand it over to me, I would take it. But I would never spend my own money on one. It was too loud, drove rough and the biggest downside, it only had one cupholder in the entire car. ONE CUP HOLDER!!! That just doesn’t work for me.
Prior to owning our Tesla, we had rented two Tesla’s for over 24 hours so we could fully get an idea of what to expect with the car. We use Turo to rent ours.
While car shopping we had also test drove the Jaguar F Pace, Honda Pilot, and many more just to give you an example that we really drove cars until we found one we loved.
We knew we needed a car that would grow with our family.
The Tesla Model X can fit 7 people. Plenty enough room to fit a growing family. But another huge factor to consider is more kids means more baggage. So having enough trunk space is also another HUGE think to consider. I am so impressed with the Model X’s storage. It has a really decent trunk as well as a front trunk, since there is no engine! I use that front trunk space for things I don’t need to get into often. Beach towels, Gathre Mat, sunscreen, baby powder, beach thing etc.
Another reason a Tesla made sense to us is because of where we live. In San Diego, or California in general it is very common to drive 30+ minutes to get anywhere. Being on the road means more money spent in gas. Being able to save money each year by using power is a huge benefit as well.
My husband owns a Solar business, called Sun Vantage for those of you who may not know, It would be silly for us to not get a energy efficient car. One downside to the Tesla is the expense and high power bill you will receive if you do not have solar at your home. Luckily for us, now that we own our home, my husbands business installed solar panels which makes have a Tesla practically free!
Here are some of Brandon and I’s Favorite and Dislikes about our Tesla Model x. And for the first time every, Brandon has made an appearance on Navy Grace. He wrote out his own favorite features as well as dislikes, so be sure to read his too!
CAMILLA’S FAVORITE FEATURES
Easy to Use Navigation – This is hands down my favorite thing about the car. For starters the large 17 inch screen. But how easy it is to use. It’s all by voice command, a one touch button and voice saying “navigate to…” I am always impressed at how clearly it understands my voice and almost 9 out of 10 times the address is correct. My other favorite thing after giving your address, the navigation starts immediately. No need to push another 1 or 3 buttons for the navigation to begin.
Can Open All Doors on Main Screen Panel – Basically a mini van, but prettier!! You can even open the passenger and driver door.
Driver Door Closes When Pushing on Brake – It’s something so simple, but also so convenient when your hands are full.
Good Trunk Space – Including front trunk space – As I mentioned above the space in the truck is so great for a family!
Love charging at home – Luckily we have solar on our home and are able to charge every time at home. If you don’t have solar, you will most likely need to go charge at a Tesla Super Charger, or any other charge point for a small fee.
Easy to load and unload children – The Falcon Doors are so genius! It really does make getting in and out so convenient. Especially children. It does take a moment to get use to however, and the key is a bit sensitive if you put it in your pocket. Let’s just say I have started to close the door while standing under it. But, overall I love these doors and they are an absolute show stopper. Everyone will stop you and talk about your car!
Auto Pilot Cruise Control – This is one feature that took me a long time to use. I was to scared, honestly. Brandon however used it from day one. Now that I am more comfortable with the car I use it daily. It has two options. Auto Cruise control which takes over the speed and you still control the wheel. It will speed up and slow down and basically match the car in front of you. The full Auto Pilot takes control of the speed and the steering wheel. The car is driving by itself. Will change lanes when you put your blinker on and takes full control. The screen will motion to you when you need to alert the car you are still paying attention and not dozing off.
Control Car by App on Phone – This has been a HUGE blessing! A quick story. As I was still learning the car and the display screen I accidentally locked the car while at a car wash. I got out of the car to dry it. Leaving Edison inside, sleeping, and before I cleaned the screen I pushed the little lock symbol, thinking it was locking the screen. NOPE. It locked the car. But I still didn’t realize it did that until I stepped out of the car, leaving my phone inside, and shut all doors. After panicking for 1 minute, I walked over to the man next to me drying his car and asked if I could use his phone. Thinking Brandon was going to have to drive over to bring an extra key to unlock it. Luckily Brandon knew the car way more than me and was able to unlock the car from his phone!! Yes, you read that right. The Tesla App has ability to lock and unlock the car. I was able to get back into my car within 3 minutes from when I locked it. This feature alone is one thing I will always be grateful for.
Can Keep Air Control on Even After Walking away from locked Car – As mentioned above, there is a Tesla app. You can also control the air. For example, Edison is buckled in the car, and I need to run in quickly to grab something in the house on a warm summer day. Unlike a normal gas car that you turn off or on, when you open and close the driver door, the car turns off. So you can’t keep the air control on without the app.
White Interior – Even though it is white, we still decided on it because it is still great quality material and easy to clean. What sold us was the guy at the Tesla Store, we shared our concerns about having an all white interior and he walked us over to their model car in the showroom. He mentioned that hundreds of people sit in these cars on the daily. There was little to no wear and discoloration on them. The only thing he expressed was that to be cautious when wearing a brand new pair of dark denim jeans.
Never Need to Find Your Keys – This car is so brilliant and starts up the minute you come close to the car with the keys in your hand. I love that I can keep the key in my bag and never need to take them out. The doors all unlock too, which is something everyone can benefit from when your hands and arms are full.
Car Locks When You Walk Away With Keys – I keep saying this, but another favorite thing of mine. It takes a minute to get use to. And also a bag habit to break if you go back to a regular car after driving a Tesla for a few months. The car locks itself up the minute you walk away with the keys. You can tell if the car is locked when the mirrors are folded in. Same as when you walk up to the car like I mentioned above.
Adjustable Cup Holders – For those of you who have a Hydro Flask with you at all times, or any other large fountain drink, I love the cup holders are adjustable. In my previous car, I had to purchase an insert to hold my water bottle. Something so small, but so meaningful.
CAMILLA’S DISLIKES
No hooks or grab handles in rear seats – Doesn’t seem like a big deal until you no longer don’t have them. I use these weekly on photoshoots to hang my clothing up to prevent wrinkles. Still looking for a solution I can use.
Not ideal for long road trips – Although we did just take the Tesla on our road trip to San Francisco, we were able to drive the entire way and not stress about running out of battery. Luckily California has several Tesla Superchargers along the way. I think a trip back home to Idaho would be a bit more stressful since they are a little more sporadic. With that being said, Tesla Superchargers are being built all around the United States making it easier to travel.
Not ideal for hurrying to LA and Back – It’s great for commuting to LA and back, but if you were in a hurry or running late, you will want to rethink the trip with a Telsa. It takes about an hour at a Telsa Supercharger to fully charge on empty. You have to really plan ahead with this car.
Could Use More Storage Space and Utilize Middle Console and Compartments – Actually the car has a lot of storage space in the middle console area, but there are a few things that I feel could have been a bit tweaked to make them more user friendly, and more accommodating. For example. There are 4 cup holders which is great. But under the cup holder there is a lot of wasted space that I feel like could be a separate compartment for more storage. The second thing that bothers me is when you have 2 large soda cups, or a medium size and my 32 oz Hydro Flask it is a tight squeeze. It looks like there is room for the lid to be pushed back an extra inch or two, but it stops, making a tight squeeze for two large cups.
BRANDON’S FAVORITE FEATURES
Charge off our home solar, making it cost free – We won’t ever have to pay for gas again. It’s free to charge off our big solar system that was installed by my company Sun Vantage.
Road Trips are sensually Free – The Tesla Superchargers are free of charge and are really fast. You are typically only stoping for 20-30 minutes. Then on longer trips, we have to stop for Edison to run around anyways, so stoping to charge for a total of 40-50 minutes isn’t a big deal to us.
Auto Pilot – Favorite feature on the car. It makes driving in traffic stress free
Falcon Doors – Every time we open the Falcon Wing Doors, someone always stops to ask about the car. Everyone is always interested about the car and ask questions about it. It’s funny how many people tell me they want to buy one, but haven’t yet.
Car Updates – The worst thing about buying a new car, is that the next year and model is always a better version. With the Tesla they update the features and software on a regular basis. So having a two year old Telsa compared to a new one is not much different. So I love the fact that with owning the Tesla longterm. A brand new one, won’t be much different than ours after it is a few years old.
American Made – After reading Elon Musk biography its awesome to see and support a company that is 100% made and run in the United States. It’s rare to find any car not made in China.
White Interior – I am impressed with how much cooler it is in the sun compared to black leather.
17″ Touch Screen Panel – The infotainment is better than any car I have ever been in. Nothing else has even come close to Teslas touch screen and controls. It’s very user friendly and always being updated with new features.
It’s the future – Even though it isn’t the main reason we got the car having a zero emission vehicle, it is really nice because I do believe climate change is a problem so I believe we will see more and more electric cars every year
Captain Seats – We go the caption seats on the second row so kids will be able to get in and out much easier.
Smart Key Closes All Doors at Once – It’s nice to open the doors and get everything you need out. Walk away, tap the top of the key once, and all the doors close and lock.
Having an Electric Car – As gas prices go up or down, we aren’t really effected by it. Also there really is no maintenance on the car with the power train to last a million miles. The power and acceleration in instant and really nice when you need to accelerate quickly. We frequently have to do so onto our main road by our house, due to a blind corner.
It’s a fancy car but not too flashy – With my Lamborghini I could tell it would almost annoy people and put off the impression that I was flaunting the car. But with the Tesla most people are happy to see you driving an energy efficient car and excited to talk to you about it. Mainly because it’s made in California or it’s a green car, or it’s just so different than any other car out there.
Autonomous Driving – I am super excited that next year I will be able to turn on the auto pilot and the car will drive from driveway to driveway. Navigating stop signs, stop lights, and interchanges. Where right now it only does auto pilot on the freeway.
Re-sale Value – It’s awesome that Tesla has one of the highest resale values. Not that we are planning on selling ours any time soon. But if we did, we wouldn’t loose out on a lot of money.
BRANDON’S DISLIKES
Wishes it had Air Conditioned Seats – I am mad that some of the new models have air conditioned seats and ours doesn’t.
Wishes it had the upgraded stereo system – When we ordered our Tesla you had to pay for all the premium features in order to get the upgraded stereo. But now it’s just included on every Model X.
Screen Glitches – With the car being so software intensive, it does glitch or freeze every once in awhile. But, it is something you can easily do to reset your self.
Nagging on the Auto Pilot – Because of some idiot drivers doing dumb things while the car is on auto pilot. For example: One person would climb int0 the passenger seat to take a nap while the car drives itself. Because of this Tesla now makes you grab the steering wheel every minute or so when it’s on auto pilot to alert the car that you are still present and paying attention.
Wishes for 22″ Wheels in Black – I do not like the wheels that come on the Tesla from the factory.
Sensitive Key – If it is in your pocket and you are loading or unloading and accidentally press the button it will start to close all the doors on you. One of my favorite memories when we first got our car was when I went to the airport to pick Camilla up, I was loading her luggage into the trunk and she was saying hello Edison. The key got bumped in my pocket which resulted in the falcon door to start to close. The door bumped Camilla’s shoulder and her response is forever priceless. She yelled “You made me look like an idiot!” I never let her forget it by quoting it often.
If you are interested in ordering any model of Tesla. We would love if you used our referral code to receive 6 months of free Supercharging at the Tesla Supercharger.
One last thing! If you remember from awhile ago on my Instagram I had asked you guys over on my Instagram a good license plate name we should do for our car. People with electric cars are pretty clever with their custom plates and we knew we wanted to do the same. You all came up with so many great options. So many I loved, but unfortunately were not available in California or already taken. But the only one out of about 25 that wasn’t used we took it. So we have to thank Mitra of @mitrarogers for coming up with our custom plate… drum roll please… FOMOGAS. Yep. We did it. We are dying because one it’s so silly, and two only the younger crowd will understand! So, Mitra I will be sending you a package in the mail, as promised for picking our plate name!
xo, Camilla
