Model X doors are electrically powered. When you approach Model X carrying a key, the doors automatically unlock. The front doors open when you press the door handle.
You can also set the driver’s door to open automatically upon your approach. The door partially opens (between 20° and 45° depending on obstacles detected by sensors). Touch Controls > Locks > Automatic Doors. If this setting is on, you can also open the driver’s door by double-clicking the key fob’s lock/unlock button. A subsequent double-click opens the front passenger door.
You can also specify that you want to unlock only the driver’s door when you shift into Park by touching Controls > Locks > Driver Door Unlock Mode.
The front doors may not fully open or close automatically when parked on a very steep hill. Never rely on Model X to fully open or close the doors for you when parked on a steep hill.
To close doors from the outside, you can:
Manually push them shut.
Single-click or triple-click the key fob’s lock/unlock button (if the Close All with Key Fob setting is on, only a single click is needed to close all doors and trunks—a triple-click is needed if the setting is off).
Once inside you can close the doors by touching Controls > Close.
Note
Powered doors stop moving if an obstacle is detected.
Warning
Before allowing an automated feature to open or close a front door (rather than doing so manually), it is important to check that the area around the door is free of obstacles (such as people and objects). You must proactively monitor the door’s movement to ensure that it does not contact a person or object. Failure to do so can result in damage or serious injury.
Opening Front Doors from Interior
To open a front door while sitting inside, press the button located at the top of the interior door handle and push the door open.
You can also use the touchscreen to open and close doors when inside Model X. Touch (Controls > Locks), then choose the door you want to open or close. In addition, when you press the brake pedal, the driver’s door automatically closes.
Opening and Closing Falcon Wing Doors
Model X has falcon wing doors that easily open and close by pressing a button, using a key fob, using the mobile app, or touching the associated icon on the touchscreen. The falcon wing doors are equipped with several sensors that detect the presence of people and objects and, if an object is detected, the door stops moving. Based on detected objects, the doors may adjust their outward and upward movement in an attempt to avoid contacting the object. For example, if an object is detected above Model X, the door’s movement may extend further outward but lower, whereas if an object is detected beside the door, the door may extend outward much less.
Warning
It is important to keep your hands clear of the falcon wing door frames at all times. Proactively check the door frame area prior to closing, and monitor the movement of the door during closing to ensure that it does not come into contact with a person or object. Failure to do so can result in damage or serious injury.
Warning
Before opening or closing a falcon wing door, it is important to check that the area around the door is free of obstacles (people and objects). Although the doors have many sensors, it can not detect all objects at all times, particularly when moving. At any given moment, there may be areas near the door that are not in the detection zone. Therefore, when opening or closing a falcon wing door, you and your passengers must stand away from the door as it is moving, while proactively monitoring the door’s movement and being prepared to take corrective action at any time. To stop a door from moving, single-click the falcon wing door button on the key fob, press the switch on the door or door pillar, or touch the button on the touchscreen.
To open a falcon wing door from outside Model X, press the door handle or press the falcon wing door button on the key fob (see Keys).
To open a falcon wing door from inside Model X, press the switch located on the door pillar, or touch the associated door icon on the touchscreen (Controls > Locks):
Note
If Model X is locked, using the switch (illustrated above) the first time unlocks the associated door. Pulling it a second time opens it.
To close a falcon wing door, press the button located on the inside of the door. You can also use the key fob (see Key Fob), use the switch on the door pillar (illustrated above), or touch the associated door icon on the touchscreen (Controls > Close).
If a falcon wing door or the front trunk is left open when you attempt to shift out of Park, a notification requiring you to confirm your intent to drive appears on the touchscreen. The falcon wing doors may automatically close once you begin to accelerate. In addition, your vehicle speed is limited if you choose to keep the front trunk open while driving. It is your responsibility to ensure doors and trunks are properly closed before driving.
Note
To prevent children from opening falcon wing doors using the interior switch, turn on child-protection locks using the touchscreen (Controls > Locks > Child Locks). See Child Locks.
Note
You can configure Model X to open the falcon wing doors to a lower height setting by using the touchscreen (Controls > Locks > Falcon Door Height).
Note
If a falcon wing door detects an obstacle while closing, it reverses a few inches before it stops moving.
Warning
Whenever a front door is partially open (approximately 20°) as you are opening or closing the associated falcon wing door, you MUST keep your hands (or any object) away from the opening edge of the front door. When a falcon wing door passes by a partially opened front door, the distance between the two doors is very narrow. Objects, such as hands or fingers, placed in this area, are not detected by sensors and can therefore become pinched between the doors. To avoid bodily injury, it is a good practice to keep your hands away from the front door whenever you are opening or closing a falcon wing door.
CAUTION
Remove accumulation of snow or ice before opening a falcon wing door. Snow can get inside Model X and ice can prevent the door from opening.
CAUTION
In rainy weather, leaving a falcon wing open while opening the liftgate can result in rain water falling from the liftgate into the rear seating area.
Note
Falcon wing doors open only when Model X is stationary.
Warning
When opening or closing a falcon wing door, it is important to proactively monitor the movement of the door to ensure that it does not come into contact with a person or object. Failure to do so can cause serious damage or injury.
Obstacle Detection
A falcon wing door stops moving when one of its many sensors detects an obstacle, or when the door senses resistance because it has made contact with an object. The touchscreen displays a warning. In these cases, provided it is appropriate to continue opening or closing the falcon wing door, you can override obstacle detection by pressing and holding the switch located on the door pillar, or touching and holding the associated door icon on the touchscreen.
When Model X detects a low ceiling (for example, in a garage), it opens the falcon wing doors (and trunk) to a lower height, even if no obstacle is detected. You can override this height and open the doors higher by touching the associated door icon on the touchscreen (Controls). The touchscreen displays a message asking you if you always want to open the doors to the higher height at this location, and saves your choice. The next time you open the falcon wing doors at this location, Model X opens them to the height you saved.
Warning
Before overriding a falcon wing door’s default opening height, visually inspect the area to ensure adequate clearance between the door and the detected object.
Warning
Applying adhesive products such as wraps, stickers, rubber coating, etc. on the outside of the falcon wing doors can affect the sensors’ ability to detect obstacles properly.
Calibration
If the falcon wing doors lose calibration, the main Controls window on the touchscreen displays a Calibration Required message. To calibrate the doors, first ensure that both doors have plenty of space to open and close and are clear of passengers, objects, etc. Touch Controls > Service > Calibrate Doors, then press and hold the Calibrate button until calibration is complete. During calibration, the lower door opens all the way out (requiring extra space on the side of Model X), the upper door moves all the way down, and then the lower door closes.
Opening Interior Doors with No Power
To open a front door in the unlikely situation when Model X has no power, pull up the manual door release located in front of the window switches.
CAUTION
Manual door releases are designed to be used only in situations when Model X has no power. When the vehicle has power, use the button located at the top of the interior door handle.
To open the falcon wing doors, carefully remove the speaker grille from the door and pull the mechanical release cable down and towards the front of the vehicle. After the latch is released, manually lift up the door.
Front Door Reset
Since your Model X does not have traditional door handles that you can pull from the outside, it is equipped with pop actuators (sometimes referred to as “ice breakers”) that are used to assist in opening the front doors in cases where resistance is detected, such as ice buildup in cold weather. The pop actuator is located just above the front door latch and extends as necessary to open the front door. Once the front door opens slightly, the pop actuator gently retracts back into the door.
If the pop actuator is unable to retract because it is stuck to or caught on something, the pop actuator can be extended manually to extract the object by performing the following:
Carefully close the door latch using a pen, screwdriver, or comparable tool (never use a finger or body part and avoid damaging the paint); Model X will detect this as though the door is closed.
Make sure Model X is unlocked, then press the exterior door handle or pull the interior door handle to reset the latch and extend the pop actuator.
As the pop actuator extends out from the door, quickly extract the object.
Warning
The pop actuator will attempt to retract back into the door almost immediately after the door handle is pressed or pulled. The pop actuator retracts gently, but will not release automatically if something gets caught.
Warning
As with all mechanical and moving parts on the vehicle, never put body parts in, or near, moving components. Make sure children are monitored when opening and closing doors. Interacting with moving components, including the pop actuator, can cause serious damage or bodily injury.
Interior Locking and Unlocking
While sitting inside Model X, you can lock and unlock all doors and trunks by touching the lock icon in Controls.
The icon changes to indicate whether doors are locked or unlocked.
Driver Door Unlock Mode
Enabling Controls > Locks > Driver Door Unlock Modeonly unlocks the driver door when you first unlock Model X.
Walk-Away Door Lock
Doors and trunks can automatically lock when you walk away carrying your phone key or paired key fob. To turn this feature on or off, touch Controls > Locks > Walk-Away Door Lock.
When the doors lock, the exterior lights flash once and the mirrors fold (if Fold Mirrors is on). To also hear a confirmation sound when Model X locks, touch Controls > Locks > Lock Confirmation Sound.
Model X does not automatically lock if:
You check the Exclude Home checkbox and Model X is parked at the location you have designated as Home. For details on how to designate a location as Home, see Home, Work, and Favorite Destinations.
A phone key or paired key fob is detected inside Model X.
A door or trunk is not fully closed.
The phone key’s Bluetooth setting is turned off.
Key fob or phone key remains within range for five minutes after all doors have been closed.
Drive Away Locking
Model X automatically locks all doors (including the trunks) when your driving speed exceeds 5 mph (8 km/h).
Child Locks
Model X has child locks on the rear doors to prevent them from being opened using the interior release buttons. On the touchscreen, touch Controls > Locks > Child Lock. You can choose Both to engage the child lock on both rear doors, or you can choose Left or Right to engage it on just a specific door.
Warning
It is recommended that you turn on child locks when children are seated in the rear seats.
Unlock on Park
When you stop Model X and engage Park, you can choose to unlock all doors. To turn this feature on or off, touch Controls > Locks > Unlock on Park.