March 01, 2023

Trolling the Tesla trolls [Video]

In a funny send-up of some silly, nit-picky Tesla reviews that point out the tiniest, petty grievances, Doug DeMuru of Autotrader* filmed a video parody rebuttal of sorts — with the Tesla Model X as his subject. Along with the video, DeMuro writes that, "most car enthusiasts I've met have been downright mean about the whole Tesla thing... from everything I'd heard, [I thought] that the Model X would be horrible." But to his surprise, DeMuro kinda loved the Model X after all. He argues, "It's a fun car with exciting technology and impressive performance — and if most car enthusiasts spent some time with one, I think they'd feel the same way."

Above: The Tesla Model X, falcon wings up (Instagram: noortdesign)

A car reviewer himself, DeMuro appears to be poking fun at some of his colleagues in the mediasphere — yeah, he's having some fun trolling the Tesla trolls. Regarding gripes about the falcon wing doors, he notes that they: "open just fine when you're parked inches away from another vehicle. In fact, in that situation, they open even better than standard car doors." Gripes about the touchscreen freezing: "Well, I used it constantly every single minute I spent in the car, and I'm happy to report that not only did it not freeze, but it worked perfectly, responding immediately to each touch every single time I used it. I wish all infotainment screens were this responsive."

Above: The giant, panoramic windshield in the Model X (Instagram: teslamotors)

How about all that belly-aching about range anxiety? "It's been well-documented that despite range anxiety, most people hardly need an electric vehicle that will travel more than 90 miles on a single charge, let alone the 257 miles supposedly traversable by the Model X I drove. So, while range is dependent on your exact circumstances, I think most people could easily make do with a Model X." And those who want more trunk cargo capacity, ummm — they tend to forget: "Since there's no front engine and the batteries are all underneath the car, the [front] hood opens up to reveal even more storage capacity."

Above: The Tesla Model X, facon wings down (Instagram: streetbikekevin2012)

Yes, he admits that Tesla Autopilot isn't perfect just yet, "but it's tremendously impressive. Two tugs of the cruise-control stalk, and you feel like you're driving in the future." Yes, the Model X has some mini-quirks, for example: "there's no wonderful sound when you stomp on the gas pedal. Drawback. But acceleration is brutally massive. Benefit." And, it appears DeMuro fell in love with some unique Model X features too: "I also loved the giant windshield, and I was mesmerized by the center screen, both for how easy it is to use and for how many functions it performs."

So without further ado, check out DeMuro's must-see video review of the "awful" Tesla Model X... or is it? Don't let that video title fool you, he's got plenty of surprises in there...