Tesla Model X P90D: “Like a rocket in a silent movie”

published 20 May 2016

Would the car have been more sensible and practical without those rear "falcon wing" doors? Perhaps, says Dan Neil in The Wall Street Journal, and yet they are absolutely essential for the car's "emotional engineering". The Tesla represents some of the "shrewdest design money ever spent". At the same time as you splash out £100,000 on a luxury consumer item, you get to flaunt your "green" credentials.

The doors remind car enthusiasts of Mercedes 300SL Gullwings, DeLoreans and Lambos. They've never worked well, but who cares when they look so cool?

If practicality is a concern, the battery is going to be a worry too, says Elliott. A long journey may well take two charges, and the amount of charge you have left can be deceiving if you drive fast or the wind is against you. And not driving fast will be a hard thing to do, says Neil. The "sweet, effortless blurt of this little hot rod will tempt you to do questionable things No hole that opens up in the traffic is ever too small or far away." It's very hard to find fault with a car that is that much fun to drive.