Model Y – First impressions of Tesla’s electric SUV

The Driven

It’s been only three days since Elon Musk unveiled Tesla’s newest electric car, the Model Y compact SUV, was launched during a rock-show style event at its Los Angeles design studio. So, what has been the response so far?

The founder of the electric car and battery storage pioneer presented the car following a retrospective of the company’s achievements to date, including Musk’s own Roadster – the first ever made, as well as of course the Model S, Model X and Model 3.

Arguably the most talked about electric car launch since its predecessor, the all-electric Model 3 sedan, the Model Y will first sell from the northern autumn of 2020, starting at $US47,000 for the rear-wheel, Long Range version ($A66,300 at today’s rates), with the Dual Motor AWD and Performance version also available for at $US51,000 and $US60,000 ($A72,000 and $A84,600 at today’s rates respectively).

The “base” Standard model will be available from the northern hemisphere’s spring 2021, costing $US39,000 ($A55,000 at today’s rates).

A blue Model Y rolled out onto stage at the event joining its stablemates while Musk talked the audience through the various specifications of the Model Y – which starts with real world range of 370km for its base model, and can drive over 240km/hr and accelerate from 0-60mph (96.5km/hr) in 3.5 seconds for its Performance variant.

Musk also pointed out features like safety and handling, which like many other electric cars exceed their ICE counterparts thanks to a low-mounted battery pack and therefore low centre of gravity.

Read the full story on RenewEconomy’s electric vehicle-dedicated site, The Driven…