Rant: Why the Tesla Model X just needs normal doors

Ever since the dawn of the fully-enclosed car interior there has been a requirement for doors so that the human occupants can get in and out without sacrificing usability or structural integrity. For most cars the hinges used have been the same format: hinge at front, rear opens out and the whole thing stays at the same horizontal level from the ground.

Now for sure there have been multiple different designs from the suicide door and swan door(practical) all the way to the gullwing and butterfly doors(not so practical). Most of the time these fancy doors are fitted to what the average buyer would call a second car. Here emotion can take priority as the pure reason of buying is fun.

The issue is what if these gimmicky door designs were to be added to your main car? Chances are that it would be a crossover, have several seats and they would want to be seen as cool. A Tesla Model X fits the bill then. That is at least until you open the doors.

Problem number 1: you can't use a roof rack

I couldn’t take the picture of the Model 3 in time

I couldn’t take the picture of the Model 3 in time

This actually occurred to me as I saw a Model 3 today with a roof box fitted onto it and is what made me realise how impractical the falcon wing doors are. What if you wanted to use a roof rack? You want to take 7 people to a location and normally on a competing car like a BMW X5 you could put a roof box on top and put in it whatever is left. Because of those doors though that won't be able to happen.

Now if you wanted to go camping normally this is the kind of accessory that would be used and on most competitors that is a realistic option. That is a big mark against the doors there.

Problem number 2: they raise the centre of gravity

That battery placement still the big talking point?

That battery placement still the big talking point?

Now I will start by stating that I have no exact knowledge of how much higher the centre of gravity is on a Model X because of the doors or even what it is in the first place but its safe to assume that the doors raise it quite a lot. Lets start with those glass panels in the roof of the door.

Now the Model X is 2271mm wide and around 3/4 of that is taken up by the doors on that row based on the images and seeing them in real life but obviously that isn't exact. Now based on the fact that the wheelbase is 296.5cm long and that the doors take up around 2/5 of that you are looking at a pair of glass panels totalling 1.7x1.186m Which equals 2.01m2. On average glass on a car is 5mm thick and the formula for glass weight is area(m2)x2.5xthickness(mm). So 2.01x2.5x5=25.125kg. Now this can vary; especially for the thickness of the glass which can be up to 10mm thick which would mean that the glass would weigh double that calculated.

Now I accept that cars with normal doors can also have heavy sunroofs but they aren't incorporated into the door which means they're optional compared to the Model X.

The other weight source is the hinges. Here they have heavy-duty hinges with electric motors to pull the door up. That ain't gonna be light. Those motors will also have to be powerful to pull the door up which includes the extra metal and glass in the roof. Tesla go to all this effort of promoting a low centre of gravity then the doors are top-heavy. From a driving perspective these doors don't add up.

Problem number 3: They are ridiculously expensive and stupidly easy to damage

The first issue here is cost. The Tesla Model X starts at $96,190 whereas the Model S is only $86,190. That's $10,000 and for what exactly? The car shape isn't very different as the Model X is basically a Model S MPV with the roof raised but that does not justify $10,000 considering the Model S also seats 7 and is more practical(see problem number 1).

It must be to do with the extra motors and hinges that come with it but from a rational point of view it simply isn't worth it.

The other issue is that they are much easier to damage. If you watch the video above then you will clearly see that all the damage that a normal door would suffer is a dent in the bodywork. Thanks to those hinges though the entire door is ripped off. Genius!

Problem number 4: Try using them in multi-storey car parks

If you watch the video above you will see that the rear doors will not open in a multi-storey car park and these areas are not uncommon. In my Large SUV the tailgate only just fits under the roof of my closest multi-storey car park and that doesn't have a hinge in the middle of it. I wouldn't want to take a Model X inside that.

"Who cares? It looks so co-

Its an MPV! You'll see everyone call this an SUV but in reality its just a Model S with the roof raised and stupid doors attached to it. The people who drive MPVs are always depressed, they have given up on themselves and if its a man behind the wheel chances are that they have erectile dysfunction. The Model X looks seriously uncool and even if the doors did rectify it then it would only look good for 1% of the time. Did you know that in normal operation car doors are designed to be closed?

To sum it up then the Model S has normal doors that make it faster, more practical, cheaper, easier to use and its in the body of a car that doesn't scream I'm depressed.

If you don't find cars easy to get in and out of you know then look no further than this:

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Best part is you don't even have to admit your struggles with these to justify them.