Tesla crowns its popular Model Y SUV line-up with the supercar-bothering Performance variant
- How much does the Tesla Model Y Performance cost?
- What equipment comes with the Tesla Model Y Performance?
- How safe is the Tesla Model Y Performance?
- What technology does the Tesla Model Y Performance feature?
- What powers the Tesla Model Y Performance?
- How far can the Tesla Model Y Performance go on a charge?
- What is the Tesla Model Y Performance like to drive?
- What is the Tesla Model Y Performance like inside?
- Should I buy a Tesla Model Y Performance?
- For everything you auto know about EVs, listen to carsales’ Watts Under the Bonnet: the electric car podcast
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As if the most popular electric SUV in the country needed any more attention, the Tesla Model Y has a new headline act. The new Tesla Model Y Performance has landed in Australia, and as the name suggests, overtakes the garden-variety Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive with its acceleration times and dynamic wares. The Performance also aligns closely with the scintillating Kia EV6 GT on price and equipment. So how does it fare on Aussie roads?
How much does the Tesla Model Y Performance cost?
Official pricing for the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance starts at $95,300 plus on-road costs at the time of writing, or $99,855 plus ORCs when including luxury car tax – the way most vehicle RRPs are listed in Australia.
That pricing positions the dual-motor Model Y Performance about $30,000 upstream of the most affordable, single-motor Tesla Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive, and about $8000 above the equivalent Tesla Model 3 Performance sedan.
A third Model Y variant, the Long Range (with two motors), is expected to undercut the Performance by about $15,000-$20,000, but isn’t yet available in Oz.
According to Tesla’s Australian site, there’s about a one-to-two-month delivery timeframe for the Model Y Performance if you hit order today.
What equipment comes with the Tesla Model Y Performance?
The equipment levels, and indeed the general cabin layout of the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance, closely mirrors the related Model 3 sedan.
Standard trim gets you power-operated and heated synthetic-leather-covered seats and steering wheel, twin wireless phone chargers up front, a large 15-inch central touch-screen and a massive panoramic glass roof.
The Performance differentiates itself from the Model Y RWD with the fitment of LED fog lights and 21-inch alloy wheels (up from 19s).
Other standard equipment highlights include power-folding, auto-dimming and heated side mirrors and automatic climate control with HEPA (high-efficiency particulate absorbing) filter.
The Autopilot system is fitted standard too, leaving the Enhanced Autopilot package ($5100) to add things like summon vehicle/smart summon, auto parking and auto lane changing.
Options include the white seat upholstery ($1500) fitted to our vehicle, black, blue and silver exterior paint ($1500) and a red exterior hue ($2900). Of the five body colours available, only white is a no-cost option.
Then there’s the aftersales provisions. Tesla still pales against mainstream manufacturers with a four-year/80,000km factory warranty (five years and unlimited kilometres is now considered the norm).
The battery warranty is closer to the industry average at eight years/192,000km, and Tesla guarantees the battery won’t degrade more than 30 per cent after that warranty period.
Service intervals occur every two years. Estimates generally suggest a cost of about $1000 per service, with most attention paid to brake fluid, the air-con and HEPA filters and tyres requiring attention – the perks of an EV drivetrain.
How safe is the Tesla Model Y Performance?
In general terms, the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance is very safe, with seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane keep assist and adaptive cruise control systems.
The adaptive headlights also offer a broad blanket of light during night driving.
Those functions, as well as a strong body structure, earned the Tesla Model Y a maximum five-star ANCAP crash test rating in 2022.
Though it is worth noting it misses out on a head-up display and a dedicated driver’s display.
All Tesla Model Y EVs can be optioned with the full Autopilot capability ($10,100), which includes features like full auto driving, auto parking and summon vehicle, plus a traffic light stop function.
What technology does the Tesla Model Y Performance feature?
A 15-inch central touch-screen system is very much the technology interface for the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance, conveying every bit of information including road speed.
The centre screen features over-the-air software updates and pairs with twin wireless phone chargers up front, four USB-C ports, a single USB-A port, 14-speaker premium audio system with subwoofer and a 128GB storage device in the glove box.
There’s no Apple CarPlay and Android Auto to speak of, and Teslaphiles will tell you the vehicle is no worse off for it. The screen is quick to react to commands and offers terrific clarity.
Thankfully, the native mapping system and satellite navigation work well, and there’s a laundry list of novel games and even streaming services (Netflix, Disney+ and YouTube) to make use of when parked or charging.
It would be remiss of us not to mention the smartphone functionality, which is another strong suite, enabling owners to use their phone as a key, or monitor the car via GPS, among myriad other options.
What powers the Tesla Model Y Performance?
The 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance is powered by two electric motors – one on each axle – which is claimed to deliver combined outputs of 393kW and 690Nm.
That’s disputable, as we recently revealed, but it’s still pretty serious performance.
It’s worth noting the Kia EV6 GT outshines the Tesla on paper with its seismic 430kW/740Nm outputs.
Combined, the motors help the Model Y Performance crunch triple figures in just 3.7sec (again, just shy of the Kia’s 3.5sec sprint) and onwards to a top speed of up to 250km.
Like its competitors, it is possible to lock drive to the rear wheels of the Model Y, thereby enabling rear-driven drifts.
Elsewhere, the Performance inherits Performance Brakes and lowered suspension to match its added bite, with aluminium alloy pedals and a carbon-fibre lip spoiler helping distinguish it inside and out.
How far can the Tesla Model Y Performance go on a charge?
According to the manufacturer, the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance will travel up to 514km between recharges on the WLTP cycle.
As is commonplace in the EV segment, that figure appeared optimistic based on our first drive, with 400km considered a better bet in a mix of conditions.
We averaged 17.9kWh/100km across our 300km loan, marginally above the 15.6kWh/100km claim.
The Model Y’s 400-volt battery architecture is compatible with AC charging at up to 11kW, providing a 0-80 per cent charge in about six hours.
That time is pared back significantly to 30 minutes when utilising the vehicle’s full 250kW DC capacity at an Australian Supercharger station, though doing so incurs a power charge of about $51c/kWh at the time of writing, translating to a recharge cost of about $35.
The Tesla Model Y doesn’t offer the vehicle to load (V2L) capability of its peers.
What is the Tesla Model Y Performance like to drive?
There are good and not-so-good elements to the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance on the road.
Since this is an electric vehicle, and specifically a Tesla, let’s start with the otherworldly acceleration.
As you’d expect, power-down is both clinical and car-sickness-inducing – such is the turn of pace. At any signposted speed in Australia, the Model Y Performance has the ability to blast out of the blocks like a trained assassin – maniacal yet completely effective all at once.
This virtue is reaffirmed on wet, greasy Sydney roads impacted by heavy rain during the first day of our testing. Even with standing water about, the Tesla Model Y still doesn’t flinch upon burying its accelerator.
Moreover, its battery and drivetrain modulation are really refined, reaffirming Tesla is still among the leaders in this space.
Holding speed and accelerating during open-road touring and highway driving, as you’d expect, are a cinch, too.
On our initial first drive – a circa 300km trip comprising highway and some rugged country roads – the Model Y acquits itself well, shaking off everyday bumps with ease and offering a planted and surefooted demeanour in gentle driving.
Pockmarked surfaces and potholes manage to transfer sharply through the 21-inch wheels and cabin, and larger washouts take longer to recover from. But all things considered, proceedings are pretty refined for the most part.
The wind and road noise insulation is nothing to write home about, though certainly not the worst in its segment.
That said, from a pure performance perspective, the Tesla Model Y has some shortfalls.
There’s a digital veneer to all the key controls, and indeed the ride and handling mix. Furthermore, the immediacy and tuning of those controls lack consideration for a quasi-performance car.
For example, the steering is darty and weighs up too quickly off centre, and feels artificial in the hands. While the two-tonne Model Y shifts its body around quite admirably, there’s a lack of feedback telegraphed to the driver while doing so.
All the while, the Model Y is beset with bulky A-pillars, a narrow rear window and cumbersome C-pillars, while its driving position is perched and doesn’t allow you to get truly ‘in’ the car; necessary for cultivating vital feeling and feedback.
And the lack of an instrument cluster to convey key figures such as speed steal focus from the task of simply driving attentively.
The sum of all that is the Model Y Performance doesn’t feel like a consummate performance flagship on the road; it just feels like a really fast Model Y SUV.
What is the Tesla Model Y Performance like inside?
Spacious. The Chinese-built 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance feels relatively well-put-together, with no squeaks or rattles in our test car and quality materials used throughout the cabin.
The shut lines inside and outside the vehicle are certainly more consistent than Teslas of old, though won’t have quality control officers at Lexus too worried.
Oddment storage is generally strong, with two big cubbies up front and cavernous door pockets for both front and rear occupants.
The minimalist cabin environment is highlighted by the fact there are just two physical dials, both on the steering wheel – everything else is via the centre screen.
Another boon is the luggage space. The capacious 854-litre boot area is complemented by a separate compartment underneath the floor as well as separate 117-litre frunk up front.
The boot offers quick-fold buttons to stow the second-row seats flat, however it is completely devoid of a spare tyre – which flies in the face of the vehicle’s ‘SUV’ brief.
The rear seat space is equally considerate, with a flat floor, decent width and generous knee-room.
Rear air vents, charging ports and a drop-down arm rest reaffirm the car’s passenger pretensions, as do the glasshouse design and the fitment of three top tether points and ISOFIX attachment points on the outbound pews for child restraints.
The exception to the rule is that the bulky front seats are perched and block out the forward view for rear-seat passengers.
The other particularly vexing sticking point is the mammoth sunroof. On a moderately warm day, we felt as though we were cooking underneath it with the air-con cranked.
Leaving the car in the sun for an hour only exacerbates the issue – posing an interesting conundrum for day-long adventures.
Should I buy a Tesla Model Y Performance?
There’s little doubting the 2023 Tesla Model Y Performance has the on-paper cache to sit atop the line-up.
However, beyond the novelty factor, it’s hard to justify its mammoth $30,000 premium over the very similar Tesla Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive.
That may well be a reflection of EVs in general offering less performance scope between variants compared to traditional combustion vehicles.
Either way, in this case, the Tesla Model Y Performance doesn’t quite offer the signature spark that a veritable performance model truly ought to.
2023 Tesla Model Y Performance at a glance:
Price: $99,855 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Two permanent magnet synchronous motors
Output: 393kW/690Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 79kWh lithium-iron phosphate
Range: 514km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 15.6kWh/100km (WLTP)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2022)
For everything you auto know about EVs, listen to carsales’ Watts Under the Bonnet: the electric car podcast
Join the conversation at our Facebook page Or email us at [email protected]
Keyword: Tesla Model Y Performance 2023 Review