Nearly a decade since its debut, the Tesla Model X retains the character that has made it a favorite with families looking to go electric. It's roomy and efficient, with seating for seven and an EPA-estimated range of up to 348 miles. Cargo space is also abundant and the Model X's design is distinctive. Its upward-opening rear falcon-wing doors are also a guaranteed conversation starter, even if that conversation includes grumbling to yourself about low overhead garage clearances. That the Model X can also leave traditional sports cars behind in a cloud of dust, especially in its bananas-fast Plaid trim, just happens to be a happy coincidence. Tesla being Tesla, the Model X features rolling updates throughout a given model year, typically performance- or convenience-related upgrades enabled through over-the-air software updates. For 2024, more physical changes include a glass roof that Tesla says weighs less and allows more light into the cabin yet retains the same level of UV protection. Upgraded brake pads that can handle more heat also promise improved braking performance. There's also a stunning new shade of red paint — Ultra Red — for an extra $3,000, making it the most expensive optional color in the palette. The 2024 Model X will remain a trademark Tesla, with all the pros, cons and quirks that entails. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto will likely remain unavailable, Tesla choosing to go its own way with infotainment features. While obviously not deal-breakers to thousands of current Tesla owners, smartphone integration is a feature available on newer rivals like the BMW iX and Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV. For the off-road-inclined, the new Rivian R1S offers Jeep-like clearance that can push into deeper terrain than the Model X. And in terms of value, the forthcoming three-row Kia EV9 appears to take aim at all the features that make the Model X appealing for almost half the cost. Be sure to read our Expert Rating below for our test team's insight into the Model X's real-world range, utility and more. What's it like to live with? Tesla introduced the Model X in 2016, so we bought one and drove it for nearly 25,000 miles over two years. It was an all-new design and just Tesla's third electric vehicle, so our first-year Model X had more than a few problems. The latest examples of this SUV have a nicer interior, better build quality, and improved driver assist technology, but many of our observations still apply to today's Model X.Read what we experienced in our extensively detailed 2016 Tesla Model X report.

Having lost nearly none of its showstopping appeal since its debut in 2016, the Tesla Model X continues to occupy a tiny niche in the automotive landscape. Sporting an EPA-estimated range of up to 348 miles, quicker acceleration than most people know what to do with, and seating for up to seven people, the Model X would appear to be the answer for families looking to go electric. Dusting off most sports cars in a straight line just happens to be a bonus.Unlike most other automakers, Tesla makes rolling updates to its vehicles rather than waiting for a brand-new model year to come around. Recent updates include pricing reductions and a swivel function for the center touchscreen. For the 2023 Model X, the most notable change so far is the return of a traditional steering wheel, at least as an option. It's a welcome change as we never liked the aircraft-style steering yoke that Tesla added to the car a couple of years ago. The steering yoke is neat in theory but is awkward to use when you're making a lot of steering inputs, like during a U-turn.The 2023 Model X has some advantages and drawbacks when compared to other electric luxury SUVs that include the BMW iX, Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV and Rivian R1S. Check out our Expert Rating below to read our test team's full evaluation of the Model X's real-world range, utility and more.What's it like to live with?When Tesla introduced the Model X in 2016, we bought one and drove it for nearly two years and 25,000 miles. An all-new design and Tesla's third electric vehicle, our first-year Model X had more than a few problems. However, while the latest examples of this SUV have an upgraded interior, new infotainment and driving assistance technology, and better build quality, many of our observations from living with the Model X still apply. See what we experienced in our extensively detailed 2016 Tesla Model X report.

The one with the Falcon doors. It’s still hard to believe they’re not from a concept carBETWEENITEMbut here they areBETWEENITEMable to open in 11 inches of spaceBETWEENITEMwith sensors to prevent knocks against pillars or squeezing childrenBETWEENITEMthe Model X’s signature feature.They’re uniqueBETWEENITEMsomething they have in common with the rest of Tesla’s biggest car. Because it’s not an easy one to pigeon hole. It’s 4WD and seats up to seven peopleBETWEENITEMbut it’s hardly a conventional SUV. Can you imagine one heading off across a muddy field? Exactly. And then there’s the way it looks. It’s more hatchback than conventional family wagon. Hardly a handsome hatch either.Is that a bad thing?Not necessarily. In fact it’s stood Tesla in good steadBETWEENITEMsuiting the firm’s more disruptive nature. And it’s not as if buyers have given it a wide berthBETWEENITEMas it’s firmly established in the upper reaches of the family car price bracket.Underneath it shares a platform and motors with the Model S saloonBETWEENITEMusing either a dual- or tri-motor setup and the same 100kWh battery. This sits low in the centre of the carBETWEENITEMand combined with the compact electric motors ensures not only a flat floor throughout the cabinBETWEENITEMbut also a useful load space under the bonnet as well as a huge boot.What kind of money are we talking?If only we could tell you. Early in 2021 Tesla decided to stop offering both the Model X and the Model S in the UKBETWEENITEMleaving the Model 3 and Model Y as its only representatives in Blighty. Weirdly the online configurator remains active so you can still go through the process of ordering your brand new Model X by placing a deposit of £100. But Tesla can’t tell you when the car will or arrive. Or how much it’ll cost when it does. Funny old companyBETWEENITEMisn’t it?A newerBETWEENITEMupdated version of the X is available in Europe; in Germany it starts from €120BETWEENITEM990BETWEENITEMand when we do finally get a UK price it’ll be interesting to see where it’s pitched against others in the segment such as the Mercedes EQC and Audi e-tron.//The best we can do for now is refer you back to the two previous versions of the Model X: the Long Range (£91k) and the Plaid (£111k). Both are very powerfulBETWEENITEMthe entry-level version developing 553bhpBETWEENITEMand the Plaid producing 1BETWEENITEM006bhp. YesBETWEENITEMthat really does say one thousand and six brake horsepower. That's more than enough for both cars to overcome their 2BETWEENITEM500kgBETWEENITEM the Long Range able to hit 60mph in 3.8 secondsBETWEENITEMwhile the Plaid sees off the benchmark sprint in 2.5s. Two point five! Top speeds of 155 and 163mph apieceBETWEENITEMtoo.How far can it go on a charge?The Long Range manages a claimed 360 miles on a chargeBETWEENITEMcompared to the Plaid's 340. Both give you free access to Tesla’s superb Supercharger network – an offer that lasts as long as you retain the vehicle. Second owners have to pay for the privilege.

Tesla got off to a slow start with the Lotus-based Tesla Roadster, but a decade has now passed since we first drove that car – in fairly shabby two-speed prototype form, straight out of the gates of Potash Lane, Hethel, as it happened.And there has certainly been some water under the bridge since then.The Roadster, now long discontinued, reached fewer than 3000 homes over its four-year life cycle; by way of contrast, Tesla delivered more than 76,000 other new cars last year alone.So while only a brave few were willing to risk their motoring happiness on an electrified sports car at the turn of the current decade, some 50,000 buyers a year are now switching their preference from fossil fuels to battery power and buying a Tesla Model S executive saloon.Growth of that kind doesn’t tend to come easy, and there have, of course, been safety controversies, recalls and a few corporate scandals to keep the gossip mill spinning. But the Model S has emphatically succeeded, and it is now a bigger-selling car than almost any other full-sized limousine in the world.Tesla, being at once a long way from done and ever-keen to talk of its plans, already began talking up the Tesla Model 3 compact saloon before its first seven-seater had rolled out of the factory. That will make Tesla ownership about twice as affordable as it currently is.By 2018, Tesla aimed to be making half a million cars a year. It has been a phenomenal transition: from Morgan-scale car-making to Volvo-scale volume production within just seven years. That’s one vehicle life cycle and a mere heartbeat in industry terms.The new Tesla Model X is the seven-seat SUV reimagined in much the same vein as the luxury saloon was by the Model S.A 2.5-tonne electric vehicle available with as much as 611bhp, the Model X, is a car for which equally remarkable performance claims on acceleration (0-60mph in 3.2sec) and range (in excess of 300 miles) are being made.We’re testing it in middle-rung 90D model trim. So will the luxury SUV ever be the same again?