The Tesla Model Y is an electriccompactcrossover utility vehicle by Tesla, Inc. Tesla unveiled it in March 2019, started production at its Fremont plant in January 2020 and started deliveries on March 13, 2020. It is the second vehicle based on the Model 3 sedan platform. Model Y will offer optional third-row seats for a seven-passenger seating capacity, currently planned for Q4 2020. There are four powertrains for the Model Y: Standard Range, Long Range, Long Range with Dual-Motor All-Wheel Drive, and Performance. The Long Range AWD model and the Performance model are currently being delivered and the Standard Range model is expected in "early 2021". The Standard Range RWD power train option was dropped from the model line up in early July 2020, apparently due to the EPA range limitations of the configuration. Speculation has been offered that it was advertised only to lower the base price quoted at product launch. This speculation is further backed up by the fact that Tesla had initially suggested the SR Model Y would have a range of 230 miles. The Model Y fills a smaller size segment from its bigger sibling, the mid-sized Tesla Model X.
History
In 2013, Tesla Motors filed for a trademark on "Model Y". In 2015, Elon Musk teased a Model 3-based Model Y with falcon-wing doors. In 2017, the Model Y's silhouette was teased to Tesla shareholders at the annual general meeting in June. Elon Musk also announced that the Model Y would be produced in a new factory, as it was not likely that the Fremont plant would have room to accommodate another production line. In June 2018, a new silhouette was revealed by CEO Musk. With the new image, it was stated that the Model Y would be formally announced in March 2019. The Model Y announcement had been planned for 2018, however production problems with the Model 3 resulted in it being pushed to 2019. In October 2018, Elon Musk revealed that he has approved the finalized design for the first production version of the Model Y, however production would not start until 2020. On March 3, 2019, Elon Musk published multiple tweets, announcing the unveiling event and confirming some specifications. Musk confirmed the vehicle will use standard doors, as opposed to the falcon-wing doors used on the Model X. On March 14, 2019, Elon Musk debuted the Tesla Model Y at an event at Tesla's design studio in Hawthorne, CA, where specifications were announced and the vehicle was shown. Test drives of multiple Model Y vehicles were also offered to attendees after the presentation. Due to its larger size, the Y consumes more energy than the 3, and thus has shorter range. The Fremont Factory was changed to accommodate production of the Y. In November 2019, Tesla announced that the Tesla Model Y would be the first vehicle to be assembled at the first European Gigafactory, Giga Berlin. Tesla reported in the Q4 2019 earnings report on January 29, 2020, that Model Y production has already started in the Fremont factory, that one can now place an order for their premium versions with all-wheel drive, and that delivery of Model Y will begin in Q1 2020. On March 13, 2020 Tesla made their first deliveries of the Model Y, along with publishing its owner's manual.
Specifications
Heat pump
The Model Y is the first Tesla car to use a heat pump instead of electric resistance for interior cabin heating. In cold weather, the Model Y heat pump can be up to 300% more efficient than other Tesla cars' use of electric resistance heating. Because of this, in cold weather the Model Y should lose a smaller percentage of range than is lost by other Tesla cars. Electric cars can lose up to 40% of their range in cold weather when heating the interior cabin. During his teardown of the Model Y, auto analyst Sandy Munro found a component that has been referred to as the "octovalve", which appears to be the next iteration of the superbottle component used in the Model 3. Musk has said that the new heat pump system/octovalve is one of the two most significant changes in the Model Y over the Model 3, the other being the new rear underbody casting. The octovalve supports the Model Y heat pump as part of the car's thermal management system.
Sustainability
According to Sandy Munro, the Model Y is designed to be a vehicle that is highly sustainable:
Its materials minimize harm to workers. For example: by eliminating chrome, which can cause health problems in workers in chrome factories.
Its parts are easy to recycle. For example: the door modules are more recyclable than earlier Tesla cars.
Its use of paint is minimized. For example: by not painting parts that are not visible.
Production
Tesla originally announced plans at the unveil to assemble the Model Y at Giga Nevada, along with the battery and drivetrain for the vehicles, unlike the Model 3, where drivetrains and batteries are assembled at Giga Nevada, with final assembly completed at the Tesla Factory in Fremont, California. Two months later, in May 2019, Tesla confirmed that they instead plan to shuffle production lines at the Tesla Fremont Factory to make space for Model Y production. Later, Model Y will also be assembled at Giga Shanghai in China and Giga Berlin in Germany. US deliveries started in March 2020 for the Long Range AWD version and the Performance version. Deliveries will start in early 2021 for the Standard Range version. After initial rollout, Tesla is expected to begin shipping cars to the Canadian and Mexican markets, and left-hand drive European markets thereafter. Tesla also plans to assemble Model Y vehicles at the Tesla Giga Shanghai factory from October 2021.
