Rear facing kids seats and test drives.

[jerry33]

Installing the seats afterwards is supposed to be a no-brainer.

[Jkam]

Installing the seats afterwards is supposed to be a no-brainer.

Actually I've heard otherwise. Apparently if you decided to add the rear seats after the car has left Tesla, it will apparently cost more than $1,500. Supposedly they have to add some extra bolts and connectors. While that would be easy when the car is in production, it probably takes more effort after the fact.

Also I inquired whether I could remove the seats myself when I'm done with them, and was told a Tesla specialist would have to do the removal. I don't know how true that is, but that is what I was told by a Tesla rep.

[VolkerP]

In that picture above, it looks like that girl might come close to the glass; maybe it is just the angle of the photograph.

Yes, I agree that she looks like barely fitting in. Must be close to the 5' limit.

Either way, I haven't seen any data regarding rear crash testing and the effect on the seats. Until then, no seats.

I think it was in the shareholder meeting video, where Elon stated that rear-end crash testing was done not just with 35mph but 50mph (=double the kinetic energy) and in addition to that not only central but offset crash. With positive results, I assume since it would be pointless to brag about test results where the passengers were harmed.

There is one double-octagon crash structure in every vehicle side and one seems fitting to deal with a 50mph rear end crash. The intruder has to come to terms with a 800lbs battery pack, not the rear seat passengers

[MikeK]

You guys are reading a lot into this. Any event like this, the company has a set of policies, like "No driver swaps, no turning off the traction control, no kids in the way back, etc." All designed to make the event run smoothly, avoid delays and provide a positive experience. The folks at the event typically don't have a lot of discretion to sway from those rules, so you get silly situations. I'll bet that the kids were asked to move, even thought it introduced a delay rather than avoiding one, because that was the rule and the Tesla folks were expected to follow those rules.

[kevincwelch]

You guys are reading a lot into this. Any event like this, the company has a set of policies, like "No driver swaps, no turning off the traction control, no kids in the way back, etc." All designed to make the event run smoothly, avoid delays and provide a positive experience. The folks at the event typically don't have a lot of discretion to sway from those rules, so you get silly situations. I'll bet that the kids were asked to move, even thought it introduced a delay rather than avoiding one, because that was the rule and the Tesla folks were expected to follow those rules.

I don't think people are reading into things; I think the conversation migrated a bit and was overtaken by people (like myself) who would like to test drive with their kids and want to see some data regarding the safety. That's all. Wish Tesla was more forthcoming with this data, but I'm not going to say there is some conspiracy here.

[ElSupreme]

I don't think people are reading into things; I think the conversation migrated a bit and was overtaken by people (like myself) who would like to test drive with their kids and want to see some data regarding the safety. That's all. Wish Tesla was more forthcoming with this data, but I'm not going to say there is some conspiracy here.

If I was Tesla I would be worried about people behind the cars, and someone pulling behind them. Having a fender bender with people, especially kids, between the bumpers would not be good! I think the no jump seats policy is more about the rear end incident than cabin safety.