• by Thom Forbes , October 1, 2015

The long-awaited Tesla Model X crossover SUV that goes to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds seems to be “awesome” inspiring. The word appears in headlines in both USA Today and Wired. Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk put aside one of the six existing vehicles for himself and, when all is said and done, who wouldn’t want a car that comes not only with “falcon wing” doors but also with its own “bioweapon defense mode”?

If money is no object.

“So far, Tesla has only released pricing for the Model X Signature, the series' specially badged, fully loaded cars. They start at $132,000,” write Charles Fleming and Jerry Hirsch for the Los Angeles Times after revealing that Musk has reserved No. 1 of the “futuristic, falcon-winged” crossover for his personal use.

They also talk to Santa Monica resident Howard Ganz, who put down a $5,000 deposit on the vehicle in December 2012 and is Customer No. 2084. Watching the live-streaming of the unveiling on Tuesday night, he chose the word “amazing” despite having no idea what the “regular priced” Model X will cost him or when it will be available.

That’s a persistent issue. 

“Reaching this point has been a longer journey than Elon Musk hoped,” writeWired’s Chuck Squatriglia and Alex Davies. “…Musk unveiled a prototype X in 2012, saying production would begin the following year. He later pushed that to 2014, which came and went with a promise that we’d see the X this year.”

There were 4,000 to 6,000 guests at the event, reports Zacks’ Madeleine Johnson, which included Tesla employees, Model X reservation holders, Model S owners, and Roadster (the first Tesla car) owners.

“Musk spent a lot of time touting the safety features of the Model X, arguing that it has dramatically better crash safety than competing SUVs. Advanced sensors and software can detect an impending crash and automatically apply the brakes,” writes Timothy B. Lee for Vox under a hed that refers to the vehicle as “ludicrously fast and ludicrously expensive.” 

There is, in fact, a “Ludicrous Mode” and when The Verge’s Chris Ziegler enabled it, he found that “my brain is basically unable to mathematically comprehend how a car of this width, height, and girth is able to hustle like that,” he says.

Writing for Venture Beat, John Koetsier begins by acknowledging Musk as a “genius” and “massive force for good” but goes on the say: “What’s not amazing is Elon Musk’s public speaking abilities, or, apparently, his ability to orchestrate and manage a major launch event.”  

Koetsier cites Stewart Alsop’s angry Medium.com post about the event, which was scheduled for 7 p.m. but started at 8:50. He called it “‘unacceptable’ and ‘insensitive,’ and worse, saying the presentation and slideshow was amateurish.”

But in the end, the Model X itself was at center stage in most coverage.

“I was hoping I might walk away from my short test drive in Tesla’s Model X without the desire to throw down $130,000 I don’t have… Alas,” concludes TechCrunch’s Greg Kumparak after taking it for a few spins around the test track and declaring it “bad ass.”

And you don’t even have to go anywhere to be blown away by the “revolutionary” vehicle, saysUSA Today’ Chris Woodyard. “Just sitting in the driver seat of the Model X is a thrill. The panoramic windshield that extends back over your head gives the driver not only a clear view of cars ahead on the road, but passing birds, clouds and aircraft. Drone attack? You'll see it coming.”

As for that “bioweapon defense mode,” Musk averred “this is a real button,” Sean O’Kane tells us on The Verge, “in the middle of discussing how clean the Model X is when it comes to air quality both in and out of the car.” 

Musk said: “The button should come in handy ‘if there’s ever an apocalyptic scenario of some kind,’” O’Kane reports, then proclaiming, “we’re trying to be a leader in apocalyptic defense scenarios.”

The only thing the Model X doesn’t seem to provide protection from, it seems, is Repo Man, what with a 17-speaker sound system described in the press kit “as being able to create a concert hall inside the cabin,” writes Mashable’s Nick Jaynes.

“Often this sort of description is akin to shameless embellishment. In the case of the Model X, however, it's pretty spot on.”