With a Recall Underway, the Model X is Still a Thorn in Tesla's Side

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

Like an actor who just can’t cut it, the third-row seats in Tesla’s Model X could fold under pressure, meaning the automaker now has to recall all of the SUVs it has delivered to date.

About 2,700 Model X vehicles sold in the U.S. will be heading back to Tesla for a fix after internal strength tests revealed that a rear seatback could slip. As a result, the company is cautioning owners not to seat anyone in the third row until repairs have been made.

The tests were being conducted prior to the model going on sale in Europe.

There’s a bright side to this setback for Tesla founder Elon Musk, and it’s not just that there have been no incidents or injuries reported from the defect. Deliveries of the falcon-winged Model X were pushed back due to a now-remedied parts shortage, meaning far fewer vehicles will have to be recalled than if production had gone off without a hitch.

Musk mentioned the “trouble” the parts shortage had given him during the March 31 unveil of the Model 3. Little did he know his parts problems weren’t over.

The rear seats in the Model X were supplied by Futuris SA, which will be shouldering the cost of the recall, according to Tesla. The first two rows of seats were designed and manufactured in-house by the automaker.

Jon McNeil, Tesla’s president of sales and service, said production of the SUV remains on schedule and insisted the recall was taking place “out of an abundance of caution.”

[Image: Tesla Motors] [Source: Bloomberg]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments
Join the conversation
12 of 38 comments
  • The tesla platform is brilliant. You can staple anything atop it and have a vehicle that goes 0-60 in less than 4 seconds and gets 275 miles per charge. The problem is what they are choosing to staple on top isn't very exciting- especially when the costs are ridiculous and supply is scarce.

    • See 7 previous
    • Aycaramba Aycaramba on Apr 12, 2016

      @bigtruckseriesreview @ Youtube Maybe solar panels, if the efficiency could be increased, and you can find a good way to store the energy when the sun isn't shining. I've always thought that a distributed grid using solar and small wind generators on homes and buildings could reasonably supplement existing power plants and could provide additional "free" energy. Cost and efficiency is still a major factor though. Mirror farms don't seem to be ready for prime time yet. Just research Invanpah solar farm in California. A few of its problems: - Still only producing about 68% of potential power by the end of 2015, at a cost of $200 per MW/hr--about 6 times the cost of a natural gas power plant - Blinding glare from both the heliostats and receivers for pilots in the area. DOE paper produced by Sandia Natl. Labs from July 2014 indicates the glare impairs pilots at a distance of up to 6 miles. - Best one: between 1,000 and 28,000 birds (number varies depending on whether you ask power plant officials or environmentalists) are incinerated mid-flight every year as they pass through the area. During one study, "Federal wildlife investigators who visited the BrightSource Energy plant last year and watched as birds burned and fell, reporting an average of one "streamer" every two minutes..." I think it's somewhat amusing that they actually have coined a term for the birds that are set aflame while flying, but I'm sure it's less so for the birds. So yeah, great idea, but I'm not sure all the kinks are worked out yet.

  • Dukeisduke Dukeisduke on Apr 11, 2016

    What do you mean by "...a rear seatback could slip"? The seatback collapses backward, toward the rear window? By the way, these things stir about as much excitement as a washing machine. Zzzzzzzzzz...

  • ToddAtlasF1 ToddAtlasF1 on Apr 11, 2016

    I saw my first Tesla Model X today. Its appearance is not an asset. The new Tesla CUV screams miniature genitalia syndrome meets bully victim like no other before it. If you want to make your Ram truck driving neighbor feel like a real man, this is the car to do it.

  • Baggins Baggins on Apr 11, 2016

    I saw a Model X yesterday. My first instinctual reaction: "kinda funny shaped" My first reaction on seeing a Model S: "Great looking car"

Next