Tesla blew everyone's mind when they introduced the Model X in 2016. Elon calls it the “Faberge egg of cars.”, and rightly so since it is fancy, is unlike any other mass production car, can be somewhat delicate, and thankfully, becoming more affordable.
Since Tesla releases features when they are ready instead of by model year, it can be a confusing time to buy a used Model X. Below is as comprehensive as a guide as we can make so shoppers can learn what to look out for and understand what they’re buying. For the purpose of this guide, we'll assume buyers are looking at vehicles that are out of warranty since there are fewer things to worry about if a vehicle has an existing warranty.
In a general sense, when shopping for ANY used car, a buyer should look for previous accident history, a clean car fax, evidence of repainting, etc… All of those are still important when shopping for a Model X but this guide is focused on additional things to look out for when buying a used X as well as a post-purchase to-do list.
The top 6 things a buyer should look for when buying a used Model X:
1) Premium Upgrade Package (PUP)
2) Service records
3) A 6 or mid-2017 7-Seater
4) Unlimited Supercharging, maybe
5) Unlimited mile warranty
6) Acceleration Shudder and Tire Life
Buyers should look for a Model X with the Premium Upgrade Package (PUP). This was an option between 2016 and mid-2018 and Tesla made it standard after that. Included in this package is the most impressive feature of any car... ever.
No joke, the Model X will automatically unlock and open the driver's door when the driver approaches with a key in their pocket.
Other features of the Premium Upgrade Package
- HEPA filter
- Three-position dynamic LED turning lights
- LED fog lights
- Leather arm rests, steering wheel and lower dashboard when paired with leather seating
- Alcantara upper dashboard accents
- Soft LED ambient interior lighting
- Bio-Defense mode
- Heated seats
- Upgraded stereo
- Satellite radio
Clearly, it's worth it and so many Model X cars have it that it's just not smart to get an X without PUP and pay almost the same price.
Get Service Records
Buyers should know that Tesla will not share service history information with new owners of a used Tesla. That being said, before the seller removes the vehicle from their Tesla account, make sure the seller shares PDF copies of their service records through the Service section in the mobile app.
Prior service records are important since there is a 1-year warranty on parts if the seller paid for the service.
Buyers should avoid the 5-seater Model X because it only has one AC unit while the 6 and 7-seater Model X has TWO AC units. The additional AC unit for rear passengers is much more effective at cooling the large cabin than the 5-seater's single AC system. In the 6/7-seater Model X, the rear AC system can be set independently from the center screen in the dash (MCU).
To some buyers free supercharging is an important perk. For most Tesla owners, almost all charging will be done at home so buyers should not let future supercharging fees be a deal breaker on an otherwise great deal. The cut-off date for cars with Free Unlimited Supercharging (FUSC) was Jan 2017 so buyers should find an X made before that date AND has NOT been traded into Tesla and resold since Tesla periodically removed FUSC from S/X cars that previously had FUSC and eventually made it a policy to remove FUSC from all cars that previously had it. Thanks Tesla.
Unlimited Mile Warranty
Buyers who are interested in keeping their Model X for a long time and spending a lot of seat time should buy a Model X with a build date before 2/2020. This date is important because up until then Tesla offered a very generous warranty on Tesla S/X high voltage (HV) batteries and drive units that covered 8-years from the date of manufacture and UNLIMITED MILES. This warranty only covered failures, it did not cover degradation. High voltage batteries can cost $14,000 for a remanufactured battery and $22,000 for a brand new one. Drive units, the motors that spin the wheels, can run $6,000-10,000.
Model X cars built after February 2020 have an 8-year and 150,000 mile warranty and Tesla added "with minimum 70% retention of Battery capacity over the warranty period."
Acceleration Shudder and Tire LifeFrom the factory, Tesla Model X cars come with two major design flaws that can cause acceleration shudder and shortened rear tire life. While unfortunate, it is possible to remedy the situation.
In the Model X, the front motor sits higher than the hubs of the front wheels. This height difference forces the half-shafts (drive axles) to rotate at an angle. With low to moderate acceleration from a stop or low speed, this angle of operation for the half shafts is fine however under hard acceleration from a stop or low speed, this angle has proven to be too steep because it can cause deformed internals within the half-shaft. Once the internals are bent, the driver will experience acceleration shudder under hard acceleration from a stop or low speed.
While Tesla will replace half-shafts under the normal bumper-to-bumper warranty, it is not a condition to be taken lightly since it is very expensive to replace out of pocket.
The ultimate fix for these design flaws is to drive the car in "Low" or "Very low" and install adjustable camber and toe arms in the rear so the tilt in the rear wheels can be corrected. This will save the Model X from prematurely wearing out the inner tread blocks of the rear tires and save the front axles from self-destructing due to hard acceleration. Adjustable camber and toe arms can be purchased from N2itive.
Since there are different versions of Autopilot, it's important to explain what to look for when shopping.
Autopilot 1
Tesla started delivering the Model X in 2016 with AP1. For AP1, the sidemarkers on the fenders were flat.
Autopilot 2
In December of 2016 Tesla released AP2 which included side marker cameras in the fenders and additional cameras in the B-pillar and cameras in the top of the windshield. For AP2 or newer, the sidemarkers on the fenders have cameras.
Autopilot 3
In April of 2019, the hardware for AP3 was released and with this hardware Tesla stated they would be able to offer a full-self-driving experience. At the time of this writing, full-self-driving is not actually available however it can be purchased.
SHOPPER NOTE:
The 2016 Tesla Model X cars had their fair share of problems and Tesla bought back a handful due to recurring issues with falcon wing doors and other issues. Shoppers should look for Model Xs that have at least AP2 and higher. Look for the side marker with a camera or a car with a VIN that is higher than 30,000. It was around December 2016 when Tesla was crossing the 30,000 VIN mark and that is when AP2 came out.
AP2 cars have additional functionality. For several years Tesla sold an Autopilot software packaged called Enhanced Autopilot (EAP). EAP allowed the car to change lanes on it's own during navigation, navigate on Autopilot so the car followed highway interchanges towards a mapped destination, and summon. Available as a software update for cars with AP2+ were two more features called Sentry and Dashcam. These additional security features, require MCU2 to display the videos captured by the cars cameras.
There are a few things to look out for when checking out the car in person. The falcon wing doors tend to shift a tiny bit when the car is driven so there are key areas to look out for where the door has rubbed away the paint and may expose bare metal.
Unfortunately, so many Teslas have panel gaps, condensation in tail lights, misaligned chrome trim and other minor issues that they are usually considered "within spec" at the Tesla Service Center and aren't out of the ordinary enough to be negotiation points on price.
SHOPPER NOTE: If a Model X has exposed paint or dull areas of paint around the falcon wing door sill, don't let it be a deal breaker. This is common and further damage can be prevented by covering problematic areas with clear paint protection film. Note the condition and functionality of all lamp housings. Headlights and tail lights are expensive if they need to be replaced and if they cannot be covered under warranty, the sales price should reflect some of that replacement cost. Most Tesla owners will have some form of clear bra and a ceramic coating and while these items can add some value to the selling price of the car, the value is usually only maybe an extra $500-$1k.
For maximum functionality, buyers should look for a 7-seater Model X with a build date after July 2017. In July 2017 the 7-seater Model X offered a 2nd row that folded flat. These seats would tilt and move forward to give access to the 3rd row.
When all the rear seats are folded down, there is enough room to move a 70" TV.
All 6-seat configurations have 2 captains chairs in the second row that do not fold down but much like the 7-seater, the 3rd row DOES fold down for more cargo room.
Before July 2017, the 7-seater was built the same way as the 6-seater but instead of 2 captains chairs in the second row, it had 3 captains chairs and none of the seats could fold down which resulted in less cargo space.
Here is the maximum cargo space for a 7-seater Model X with the non-folding second row.
SHOPPER NOTE: In general, the 7-seaters built before July 2017 and the 5-seater Model X are the least desirable Model Xs. Buyers should ideally buy a 6-seater or a 7-seater with a build date later than July 2017 to get the most functionality out of their Model X.
The instrument panel in the middle of the dash is called the media control unit (MCU). There have been 2 versions of the MCU, the first version (MCU1) was offered in cars between 2012 and Q2 2018.
The second generation of the MCU was introduced in Q2 of 2018 and has a faster processor and comes with an LTE antenna to enable it to play Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, and videos captured on the exterior car cameras. Image maps also download faster and can be navigated more smoothly than on an MCU1.
Buyers should note that the MCU1 can be slow to respond to touch input and often connects via a 3G connection so map imagery will take longer to download and render on the screen. Internally, the memory can also max out and cause the MCU1 unit to become almost unusable.
Physically, there are a couple of ways that the instrument panels can go bad in a Tesla. These issues can happen on both MCU1 and MCU2.
SHOPPER NOTE: An MCU1 unit can be replaced with an MCU2 unit for approximately $1,500 and this upgrade includes a new instrument cluster screen. Many owners who have done this change feel it is worth it and since the Model X hasn’t changed much since 2016, updating the MCU2 can make an older X feel a lot newer. Buyers should keep this upgrade in mind when shopping for an older Tesla and negotiate a price that reflects the older technology. Also, the yellow border can be fixed for $30 at the Tesla Service Center so don’t let that be a deal breaker.
Are the rims in good condition? If not, that should be reflected in the price of the car. Teslas are notorious for going through rear tires. Usually the inner tread blocks of the rear tires get worn out fast so if the car needs to get new rear tires soon, that should be reflected in the price of the car.
SHOPPER NOTE: If the wheels have curb rash, they can be repaired for around $175 per wheel. Rear tires on Teslas can run $350-400 each so if the car needs new rear tires, try to negotiate the sales price accordingly.
Model X drive units are usually reliable. In April of 2019 Tesla introduced their Raven update for the Model X and S. In this update the front drive units were upgraded to use a rear drive unit from a performance Model 3. This change helped increase range efficiency. You can read more about that here.
SHOPPER NOTE: During the test drive, perform a hard acceleration test from a stop to see if any acceleration shudder or vibration is experienced. Depending on the severity of the vibration, the vehicle could potentially need new half-shafts in the near future. This is covered above under Acceleration Shudder" This issue usually only occurs under hard acceleration from a stop and it is completely safe to drive as long as the car is driven under moderate acceleration. Half-shafts are not covered under the battery / drive unit warranty and replacing them can cost around $2,300 out of warranty so if a vehicle has these issues, try to negotiate on the sales price of the car accordingly.
The Model X has been offered with various battery sizes since it was introduced in 2016. They briefly had a 60kWh variant but then settled on bigger size battery packs with a 75kWh, 90kWh, and 100kWh size. In January of 2019 the naming convention for the different battery sizes was left behind and Tesla simply badged the Model X as "Long Range" and then underlined the "Long Range" badge if the vehicle was a Performance version.
SHOPPER NOTE:
90%. This is the maximum percentage of charge Tesla owners should be charging their car for day to day driving. Buyers need to remember this when shopping for a Model X because the real world range will be drastically less than the advertised range. This difference could be due to driving behavior, environment factors like wind, inclines, being measured at 100% charge, etc. That being said, buyers should purchase the largest battery they can afford. The 100kWh or Long Range battery is the largest battery pack Tesla offers and is the ideal pack to purchase.
60kWh The 60kWh pack Model X was a software limited 75kWh pack. Owners can pay Tesla to unlock the unused portion (15kWh) of the battery however since owners could charge to 100% on a 60kWh pack vs 90% (67.5kWh) on a 75kWh pack, the cost to add another 7.5kWh was often deemed not worth it. A Model X 60D would work for in-city commuting but will definitely need to be charged nightly and sometimes supercharged if driven heavily in a day. Owners can expect around 150-160 miles of real world range when charging to a full 100% on a 60kWh pack.75kWh The 75kWh variant of the Model X was popular since it was significantly cheaper than the larger pack and according to Tesla would provide 237 miles of range at a 100% state of charge (SOC). Real world range experienced by 75D owners is actually closer to 165-175 miles when charged to the recommended 90% day to day.
90kWh The 90kWh pack was initially the largest battery available on the X but was replaced by the 100kWh pack in late 2016. Buyers should avoid the 90kWh pack and try to find a 100kWh pack Model X since the price of used 90D cars are so close to 100kWh cars. Real world range seen by 90D owners was around 200-210 miles.
100kWh The 100kWh pack is the largest battery available on the X and is what comes in a "Long Range" X.Buyers should get a 100kWh pack as it can be purchased for around the same price as a 90kWh pack. Real world range seen by 100D owners was around 225-230 miles.
When evaluating the different variants of the Model X since 2016 and considering a wide variety of budgets, here are two recommendations based on what a shopper might value most.
GOOD