Sigalon's Selected Soup Ingredients

It's a minivan. It's an SUV. And it's a leap toward the mainstream from wee, eco-friendly vehicles and pricey Roadsters. Read this blog post by Martin LaMonica on Cutting Edge.

The company last night unveiled the Model X, a sleek-looking cross between a minivan and SUV with clever "falcon wing" doors and a new electric all-wheel drive system. People can start placing reservations tomorrow for the Model X, which is expected to be available late next year with prices in the $55,000 to $75,000 range before tax incentives and rebates.
Beyond making an attractive crossover, Tesla has shown how electric vehicles open up new design possibilities. The Model X isn't just an electric version of competing SUVs, it's a luxury vehicle that has useful features that its internal combustion or hybrid cousins couldn't have.
The key to Tesla's cool design is the powertrain, built around a flat battery pack that extends from the front to rear wheels under the car. This provides a low center of gravity for good handling, but also allows for substantially more interior space than a vehicle with a transmission running under it.

Tesla Model X preview (photos)