Rear jump seats

[Blurry_Eyed]

Just had the rear kid seats installed today in Seattle. We're Sig #267, so I think Tesla is trying to balance getting seats out to existing cars in the order the cars were delivered with the efficiency of installing the seats in cars rolling off the line. While it doesn't appear to be a difficult install for service, it is a drain on the service teams time, so I'd guess they are trying to install some at the factory and balance the supply so they can send out seats to the field.

The kid seats are great! Seem to be very comfortable. The kids haven't tried them out yet, so once they ride in them this weekend I'll see what their reports is. I'll also try to get a feel for how much clearance they have from the rear hatch glass and how they feel the temperature is back there (it's in the high 40's, low 50's here in Seattle right now during the day).

 

[Blurry_Eyed]

Kids rode in the seats today and loved them! Tesla really engineered the seats well. The shoulder height adjustments are so much better than other kid seats I've used. They are just sliders, rather than those pain in the rear slots that you have to move once your child grows out of that slot height adjustment. Also the sternum buckle isn't a plastic clip, it's a nice metal piece that you can slide the seatbelt through. Both of my kids figured it out in no time flat (They are 8 and 4) and are able to insert the belt into the mechanism much easier than they could the clip system they used in their old child seats.

To install them, it looks like Service just cuts holes in the back bench seats to expose the hidden latches. It still looks unfinished because they need to get the plastic insert that will make it look more finished (it's on order), but the system works perfectly without the finishing piece. Also it looks like there were attachment points on the sides of the car where Service inserted the eyelet hooks for the seats to latch on to as well. here is a picture of the bench seat latch points and a series of shots that show the seats in various states of unfolding:

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My 4 year old had plenty of room in the seat (she's about 40.5 inches and 35 pounds). My 8 year old also had plenty of room and I think he will probably be able to grow another 6 to 12 inches and still have enough headroom in the seat (He's about 55 pounds and 48.5 inches). When you look at the car from the rear, on the left side of the car, just under the parcel shelf rail, there is a switch that I've put my son in charge of operating. It will open and close the rear hatch. We have the power lift-gate so it is a power raise and close. Very handy for them! The seats seem very comfortable and have a breathable mesh on them as well as nice padding. Their jackets fit nicely in the well where you also would put the Universal Mobile Connector. on the right side of the car (as you are looking from the back) there is also another little cubby that probably could be a place to store more stuff for them as well. Here are some more pictures of the kids in the seats:

 

[JakeP]

Looks pretty smooth, Blurry! How do they fold all the way flat/down into the footwell? It looks like that axle is fixed into the sides of the rear?

 

[Blurry_Eyed]

Looks pretty smooth, Blurry! How do they fold all the way flat/down into the footwell? It looks like that axle is fixed into the sides of the rear?

The axle is a bit of an optical illusion, there is a mechanism on the side of the seats that extends out and latches to the eyelets that you see in the picture that's second from the top of my picture post. When you unlatch the mechanism that holds the back top of the seat to the rear bench seats and fold it down, it unlatches the axle point and then the seats easily fold down into the rear footwell. Also I think there will be just a bit of space at the bottom of the footwell when the seats are folded in to store stuff. My guess is maybe 4 inches of open space from the footwell to the flat part of the seats when it is folded in the footwell, so you will still have some hidden storage even without the parcel shelf in place.

The temperatures were in the low 40's here in Seattle today and the kids said they felt perfectly comfortable temperature wise. They were sitting in the seats without any jackets on and we had the car temp set at 72 degrees. Also if you want to have sound in the rear only (we often play kids audiobooks for them), turn off Dolby surround and move the fader all the way to the back. It seemed a volume of about 5 to 6 was adequate for them to listen to their audiobook today. Moving the sound to the rear like that allowed my wife and I to talk in the car and not have to much audio noise interfering with our conversation.

It won't be summer here for many months, so I won't be able to give an accurate report on how the seats are when the temps are hot and the sun is really shining, but I suspect it will be fine for the kids back there. I've heard that there is a pretty good solar coating on the rear hatch to protect against heat entering through the glass.

It was really interesting watching the reactions of people pulling up to the back of the car and seeing the kids in there. I could often read the body language of people and see passengers in the back seats of the cars craning their necks to see the kids in the seats. I think the kids also enjoyed the attention they seemed to be getting. Another nice thing my wife and I found is that we can now have semi-private conversations in the car even when the kids are there! If we talk quietly and they have their audiobook going, it's almost like we are in the car by ourselves. Sometimes that's a nice thing to have for us parents!

 

[JakeP]

Thanks for the explanation, and it's great to hear there is still some hidden storage down there...I am already accumulating stuff back there I like to keep with me. Cannot wait for the seats to arrive, as we have already been stymied by the lack of one extra little-kid seat, forcing us to drive a second ICE vehicle!

 

[Bound466]

Last night the kids were in the jump seats, and it was a cool 62 degrees out last night. My wife and I were comfortable up front with the HVAC off. But the kids were saying they were hot, and they had their sweaters off. It was a 45 minute ride. We were opening the back windows for them for a couple minutes, every 15 minutes or so. I am wondering if when the summer comes here in California it might get hotter than usual back there in those seats. I guess we'll find out.

All-in-all, the kids just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them. Blurry_Eyed is right, we adults like them too since the kids are far enough away in their own world, and its a lot quieter up front for us parents. The kids love arriving at school and getting out all themselves. They seem very comfortable for road trips. They were grumpy today since mom took the S out with her lady friends, and we had to drive in the old gas guzzler.

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I meant to add: My wife figured out that the footwell cover fits perfectly behind the jump seats when they are in position to use. It fits right behind the seats, and still allows the seats to lock into place. I'm not sure if it was meant to work that way, but it fits, and we don't need to leave that cover at home like we did the first couple of days.

 

[BryanW]

We've had our car for about 2 weeks now, giving me some time to make some observations about the rear facing seats.

They are fantastic. They are sturdy, fold in about 5 seconds into the floor, and the kids love them. They love sitting back there, and they love the fact they can open and close them with the internal switch.

One problem we have with the rear facing seats is that there are 2 seats and we have 3 kids ages 4-9. Let the arguing about who gets to sit in them begin...

Funny story. Yesterday we took the kids to get their haircuts, with all 5 of us in the car. Our 9 and 6 year old kids were in the jump seats, watching out the back. A highway patrol office pulled in behind me. I was going 67 in a 65mph limit HOV lane. She pulled in close, then turned her lights on and pulled us over. I was pretty confused. When she walked up to the car, the officer said she noticed 2 kids looking out the back window right at her and that didn't seem right. I explained the seats to her, she asked what kind of boosters I was using, and I had to explain that the seats are built in, have 5 point safety harnesses, and that the car was tested for rear impact at 50mph. She was enthralled, and asked if she could take pictures for training other officers about the seats and the Model S. I ended up giving her a tour of the car, showing her the frunk, etc... She confirmed license, registration and insurance, then wished us well on our way. I realized that we must have the first Model S in Utah with the rear facing seats and one of the first in the world, so it's reasonable that she was confused at first about the rear facing seats.

One more observation. After their hair cuts, two of the kids climbed into the rear and closed the hatch from the internal switch. As the door lowered, it trapped one of the balloons they had gotten with their haircuts between the door and the frame of the car. The gently compressed the balloon and then headed back up. The balloon was fine. It was a nice test, I think the door would bounce safely off of a wayward child as well.

 

[JakeP]

BryanW, I am so glad to hear the balloon story. I was peering into the trunk of a Model S at the Menlo Park store, and a Tesla employee pushed the button to close a nearby Model S...the FOBs were tuned to the same frequency, and I had enough time to say "What is that beeping?" before the trunk impacted my skull. It hurt alot, and broke the skin, just a tiny bit. I have been worried ever since what the result would be if a kid's finger was caught at the wrong moment. Thanks for the positive feedback (though I may try the same test with a hotdog or some such)!

 

[Jeeps17]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to relay your rear-facing experiences :biggrin:

The seats are in the top-5 reasons I am buying this car instead of waiting for an X (I have four young kids). Needless to say, I have pretty extensive experience with various child restraints. The Tesla ones, while pricey, do seem very well engineered and convenient to use and stow away.

One thing that is hard to get from the pics posted so far is what kind of view the kids get with the hatch closed. For example, Blurry-Eyed, I can imagine your son had no issues, but did your daughter comment on this?

I just hope the seats got approved with the rest of the car by Transport Canada!

 

[kvietor]

I'm definately getting a little frustrated. I've been waiting since September's delivery for our jump seats. Apparently the seat are in but not the install hardware. Now I'm reading about everyone else's seats and feel more than a little left out. I'll be checking with our service center again tomorrow. :cursing:

 

[Blurry_Eyed]

One thing that is hard to get from the pics posted so far is what kind of view the kids get with the hatch closed. For example, Blurry-Eyed, I can imagine your son had no issues, but did your daughter comment on this?

I asked my daughter tonight how her view was out of the back and she said that she could see very well and she really liked being in the back seats. I think she has a pretty good view out the back, even though she's only about 3' 5" tall. I also checked with my son and he said that he saw really well out of the back as well. The pictures don't really capture the proper perspective on how the kids fit in them. There is actually a lot of space for them and they do have a nice view out the back and have a lot of room between their faces and the rear hatch glass (at least for the size my kids are).

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I'm definately getting a little frustrated. I've been waiting since September's delivery for our jump seats. Apparently the seat are in but not the install hardware. Now I'm reading about everyone else's seats and feel more than a little left out. I'll be checking with our service center again tomorrow. :cursing:

Hang in there. We were Sig # 267 and just had our install Friday night. I think Tesla is trying to get the seats for already delivered cars out in the reservation order, so I would anticipate that you would be getting your hardware very soon!

I suspect part of their rollout plan was to install some seats in the Fremont and Menlo Park service centers so they could monitor how the process went and do quality control. Once they felt comfortable with it, they probably are starting the wider roll out now that they feel confident about the install procedure. Now it's a matter of shipping parts out to all the service centers.

 

[DrTaras]

here is a picture of the bench seat latch points and a series of shots that show the seats in various states of unfolding:

These are GRRRRRRRRRRRREAT photos! Thank you!

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Funny story. Yesterday we took the kids to get their haircuts, with all 5 of us in the car. Our 9 and 6 year old kids were in the jump seats, watching out the back. A highway patrol office pulled in behind me.
gently compressed the balloon and then headed back up. The balloon was fine. It was a nice test, I think the door would bounce safely off of a wayward child as well.

Love the Highway Patrol & Balloon stories! Thanx!

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I'm definately getting a little frustrated. I've been waiting since September's delivery for our jump seats.

I'm probably one of the few people who ordered these seats and don't have any kids to fill them! Mine are 7 & 14 so won't fit. I just thought the idea to be so novel that IN CASE, in a pinch, they'd be there was enough reason to order them and also the wow factor to convert my friends who are on the fence who do have small enough kids to utilize them. That being said, I've told my service that if my number comes up to retro-install them before someone in imminent need, to do theirs first.

 

[Chgd Up]

the footwell cover fits perfectly behind the jump seats when they are in position to use. It fits right behind the seats, and still allows the seats to lock into place.

Just got the rear seats installed as well but am feeling a little dense, I just can't quite get the footwell cover to fit where you say. It seems not to go far enough down and interferes with the upper latch. Any tips or possibly a picture of it stowed there, to make sure I have the orientation correct. It may also just be manufacturing size variation it seem really close to fitting.

Otherwise I am very pleased with the install, just waiting for the hard trim bezel for the latch cutouts. I am planning on having paint armor put on for the full bumper. I'm already having a lot of swirl on the paint elsewhere and know the bumper is going to take a beating with the kids climbing in and out.

 

[Blurry_Eyed]

Just got the rear seats installed as well but am feeling a little dense, I just can't quite get the footwell cover to fit where you say. It seems not to go far enough down and interferes with the upper latch. Any tips or possibly a picture of it stowed there, to make sure I have the orientation correct. It may also just be manufacturing size variation it seem really close to fitting.

Otherwise I am very pleased with the install, just waiting for the hard trim bezel for the latch cutouts. I am planning on having paint armor put on for the full bumper. I'm already having a lot of swirl on the paint elsewhere and know the bumper is going to take a beating with the kids climbing in and out.

I'm also not able to get the footwell cover to fit either. Maybe it's some manufacturing variant with the Signature cars vs. non-Sigs? I have a Sig. Does Bound466 have a production car?

 

[Trnsl8r]

I'm probably one of the few people who ordered these seats and don't have any kids to fill them! Mine are 7 & 14 so won't fit. I just thought the idea to be so novel that IN CASE, in a pinch, they'd be there was enough reason to order them and also the wow factor to convert my friends who are on the fence who do have small enough kids to utilize them. That being said, I've told my service that if my number comes up to retro-install them before someone in imminent need, to do theirs first.

Classy. My kids and I thank you, sir. ;-) (if we ever get the call to come install...)

 

[Jeeps17]

I asked my daughter tonight how her view was out of the back and she said that she could see very well and she really liked being in the back seats. I think she has a pretty good view out the back, even though she's only about 3' 5" tall. I also checked with my son and he said that he saw really well out of the back as well. The pictures don't really capture the proper perspective on how the kids fit in them. There is actually a lot of space for them and they do have a nice view out the back and have a lot of room between their faces and the rear hatch glass (at least for the size my kids are).

Thanks for the follow-up Blurry_Eyed!

Another thing I have wondered about (along a similar train of thought) is how those seats will fare when driving at night.

Anyone have their kids comment on glare from headlights of cars behind them?

 

[FlasherZ]

Thanks for the follow-up Blurry_Eyed!

Another thing I have wondered about (along a similar train of thought) is how those seats will fare when driving at night.

Anyone have their kids comment on glare from headlights of cars behind them?

I asked my boys and they don't have any concerns with headlights behind us. Then again, they tend to be oblivious when they play their ipads and DS's.

 

[Bound466]

I'm also not able to get the footwell cover to fit either. Maybe it's some manufacturing variant with the Signature cars vs. non-Sigs? I have a Sig. Does Bound466 have a production car?

I've got a production model. I will try to snap a couple pictures before I take off for work tomorrow. My wife has a knack for packing and organizing (being an industrial engineer), she fiddled with it for a bit until she figured out the right fit.

 

[Bound466]

Ok, got a couple photos. The trick is that the cover has a fold line where that fold can be matched to where the back of the rear seats join with the trunk floor.

The first pic below shows how we fit the cover there. The second pic shows the seats in place ready to use, with the cover behind them

 

[PattyChuck]

Ingenious! This is most certainly an unintended design "feature", since when I took delivery yesterday, my DES told me to put the cover in the frunk.