My friend Irvin just picked up a 2026 Tesla Model X Plaid in Ultra Red — and watching the delivery brought back every feeling from when I had mine.
Irvin has been in the channel before. He runs IrvLabs, does accessories for Rivian and Super 73 bikes, and has been an EV guy for a while. His garage currently has a Rivian R1S Gen 1 Quad in Limestone. Now it has a Model X sitting next to it. This is his second Model X — the first one went through a Tesla buyback. So the real story here isn’t just the delivery. It’s why he came back.
What stood out
- Irvin’s first Model X was bought back by Tesla — he ordered another one anyway
- The 2026 Model X Plaid is the only trim with the yoke steering wheel
- Ultra Red with white interior and six-seat captain’s chairs configuration
- New ambient lighting, front cameras, and black badge treatment on the 2026
- Guy math in full effect: the Plaid was “practically the same price” as the standard six-seater
Why he got a second Model X after a Tesla buyback
The first Model X had issues from week one. Driver door popping open on its own at charging stations. The car staying on overnight in the garage — radio on, AC running, nobody inside. Weather seals coming off. Enough documented problems that Tesla offered a buyback, which Irvin says is faster and cleaner than going the lemon law route since no lawyer is involved. He got everything back on both buybacks, though the second one had a mileage deduction calculated from the first service visit.
So why go back to the same car? I asked him that directly. His answer was straightforward — there’s nothing else like it. He went through the full catalog. Gas, hybrid, electric. Nothing matched the Model X on the combination of size, functionality, falcon doors, and that panoramic windshield. The Lucid Gravity came close but has a thick fixed sun visor cutting across the upper glass. For Irvin, the unobstructed windshield isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s the whole point. Sequoia trees from the front seat. Zion canyon walls overhead. You don’t get that in anything else.
I’ve been through two Model X (one of them a Plaid) myself and I get it. The reliability issues are real and documented — our buyback story here — but so is the experience when everything works. That windshield is something else.
2026 Tesla Model X Plaid in Ultra Red exterior — front 3/4 shot at the Santa Clarita Tesla dealership showing the new black badge, updated wheel design, and front camera placement on the bumper.
Why specifically the 2026 Tesla Model X Plaid — and not the standard
The yoke is the reason
Irvin had the yoke on his previous Model X and didn’t want to go back to a round wheel. The 2026 Tesla Model X Plaid is the only configuration that comes with it. If Tesla ever offered the yoke as an option on the standard Model X, he would have gone standard — the Plaid performance wasn’t on his priority list. But the yoke is locked to the Plaid trim, so here we are. He’s on FSD most of the time anyway, so it’s rarely in his hands.
The six-seat captain’s chairs situation
He wanted the six-seat configuration with captain’s chairs in the second row. When you price out the standard Model X with the six-seat upgrade, you get close enough to Plaid pricing that the gap shrinks fast. Add the floor mats, a few other options — guy math kicks in and suddenly the Plaid is “basically the same.” It’s not the same. But that’s how these decisions go and there’s no shame in it. I’ve been there.
Ultra Red — the color he actually wanted
His first Model X was ordered before Tesla announced Ultra Red. He’s been waiting. White interior, red exterior, red brake calipers — this is the full build. Standing next to it in the lot, it’s hard to argue with the choice. The 2026 Model X Plaid in Ultra Red with white cabin is one of the cleaner configurations Tesla offers right now. If you want to see how this same spec drove in the real world, I covered it when I had mine — my Ultra Red Plaid delivery day here.
Interior of the 2026 Model X Plaid — white cabin with yoke steering wheel, six-seat captain’s chairs in second row, and ambient lighting embedded in silver trim. Delivery center lighting.
What’s new on the 2026 Model X
This isn’t a deep spec breakdown — we were in a parking lot, not a review bay. But a few things stood out on the 2026 that are worth flagging for anyone cross-shopping or upgrading from an older X.
- Front cameras: Now integrated into the bumper, visible from outside
- Ambient lighting: Embedded into the silver trim pieces so it disappears when off — genuinely elegant execution, even if Tesla is late to this party
- Black badge treatment: Cleaner look than the chrome badges on earlier models
- Updated wheel design: New spoke pattern, noticeably different from previous gen
- Dark headliner: Pairs well with the white interior without making the cabin feel heavy
If this unit shipped with FSD V14, we’ll have more footage in a future video of us actually running it in the parking lot. Watch for that.
R1S and Model X in the same garage — does it make sense?
Irvin’s current setup is a Rivian R1S Gen 1 Quad Motor plus a 2026 Tesla Model X Plaid. On paper that sounds like overlap — two large, expensive, seven-passenger EVs. In practice they cover different ground. The R1S handles the off-road and outdoor use case. The Model X does the family driving with the falcon doors and the windshield. If you want to understand how those two actually compare back to back, I put together a full breakdown — Rivian R1S vs Tesla Model X Plaid comparison here.
The 2026 Tesla Model X Plaid is not a cheap decision — Plaid pricing with the Ultra Red, white interior, six-seat config, and floor mats puts you well into six figures. But watching Irvin take delivery, inspect the vehicle, and sit in the second row with that look on his face — the one where you’re already thinking about the next road trip — it’s hard to call it the wrong call. Congratulations to the homie. The Ultra Red looks different in person.
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