Interesting Bit of Tesla Trivia
Tesla front license plate holder — why is it on the Model S but not the Model X?
By Jim Ringold
Taking delivery of a new Tesla Model X, I had already made a mental note to get out the dental floss to remove the front license plate holder (we have no front license plates here in Florida). I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the new X had the license plate holder, unmounted, placed in the “frunk.” The nose of the X was beautifully clean, though a bit damp!
I then noticed a Model S that was also being delivered, and it had the front license plate holder installed, firmly stuck (with two-sided tape) to the nose of the car being delivered here in Florida.
This got my curiosity up so, I inquired why the S had the license plate holder and the X did not. To my amazement I found out that when the Model S was crash tested, the front license plate holder was installed on the crash test car. Therefore, all the Model S’s must have the holder installed to meet the NHTSA rating configuration when crash tested. It is up to the new owner to remove the holder, as Tesla cannot do so. (This may apply to outside rear-view mirrors in the future.)
The new Model X was tested without the front license plate holder installed, and therefore, Tesla can put the unmounted license plate holder in the “Frunk,” thus saving me the time and effort of removing the holder without worrying about scratching the front fascia.
This most certainly goes under the category of “Live and Learn” at Tesla Fremont. Thank you guys for testing the new Model X without the front license plate holder installed!
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