Does Tesla have a serious safety issue with the Model X's giant windshield?
Some owners are reporting cases of double vision at night, which could be rather problematic.
Half the time, I get accused of drinking too much Tesla-brand Kool-Aid. The other half of my time is spent fielding inquiries as to why I'm a terrible person for "hating" on the automaker. That latter group is about to get another magazine's worth of ammunition, because it appears that Tesla might have a big problem with its Model X windshields.
On the Tesla Motors Club forum, user rmiggins described a problem where he's seeing two sets of brake lights and headlights on cars at night. He claims that his vision is totally fine, and moving his head about 3 inches solves the issue. Later on in the post, user Jeff McClure posted a set of pictures, claiming that he has the same issue. With his permission, I've included the photos in this story.
Other users chimed in, claiming similar problems, and that customer service representatives weren't familiar with the issue.
Tesla doesn't appear too concerned, for what it's worth. "Reflections (ghosting) occurs in all laminated glass to varying degrees," a Tesla spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "This is most frequently seen at night and can affect some drivers more than others. We have received only a small number of questions from Model X customers about the windshield and have taken action to address these unique cases."
Some owners have been able to fix the issue by changing glasses or seating position, and others have attempted to add window tint, but it appears that this is not an issue limited to just one or two vehicles. Considering how many people don't use model-specific forums, the problem could be even more widespread. Thankfully, it seems as though not every Model X is affected.
Whether it's a manufacturing issue or related to driver height and the angle of the windshield, affecting a driver's vision in any weather, inclement or not, is cause for concern.
Update, 1:38 p.m. ET: A tip of the hat to our friends at Jalopnik for first bringing this issue out of the forums and onto the internet at large, because I definitely forgot to credit them and that's not right.
Update, 4:52 p.m. ET: Added manufacturer response.
Foreigner said it best: "Fill my eyes with that double vision / No disguise for that double vision / Ooh, when it gets through to me, it's always new to me / My double vision gets the best of me"
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