Tesla Model Y News

The exciting cheap new Tesla model will just be a stripped-back Model Y.

Model Y gets a battery boost.

Tesla has clawed itself out of its sales slump in Australia, achieving its best monthly sales figure in the past 12 months.

There’s a new number-one seller in town. The Ford Ranger has run down the Toyota RAV4 at the halfway point of the yearly sales race.

Maybe it’s the Ferrari SUV looks or the competitive pricing, but whatever it is Chinese car manufacturer Xiaomi's YU7 electric SUV is selling faster than it’s possible for the company to make, with 240,000 locked-in orders being placed in China within 18 hours after its launch.With a starting price of about A$54,000, the five-metre long five-seater YU7 is a rival to Tesla's Model Y, BYD Sealion 7, Zeekr’s 7X and BYD’s upcoming Tang L. And its popularity should have those carmaking behemoths shaking in their boots.The huge number of orders for the YU7 means Xiaomi's production capacity has been overwhelmed and it will take until early 2027 for it to be able to produce those 240,000 locked-in orders.Xiaomi currently only has one plant located in Beijing with an annual capacity of 150,000 units.  A second plant is under construction and is expected to be operational this month with an annual capacity of 150,000 units as well.In China the YU7 is offered in three grades. The range kicks off with the Standard grade, featuring a single motor powering the rear wheels and producing 235W and 528Nm. Stepping up to the Pro grade brings all-wheel drive and two motors with a combined output of 365kW and 690Nm. Both use a 96.3kWh LFP battery.  Top-of-the-range Max is also all-wheel drive and its motors produce a whopping 508kW and 866Nm. That's enough grunt to throw this SUV from 0 to 100km/h in 3.2 seconds. A bigger 101kWh NCM battery is in the Max.The YU7 is Xiaomi's second vehicle to come to market following the SU7 saloon’s arrival in May, 2024. A rival to Tesla's Model 3 the SU7 has also seen outstanding sales numbers with more than 258,000 sold since its launch. Xiaomi is better known as an electronics maker producing phones especially. While it hasn't been confirmed if the company will come to Australia, given the success of rival Chinese companies like BYD, Geely and MG it's likely the company will bring its products here at some point. 

Euro NCAP’s Technical Manager of Assisted Driving Systems, Adriano Palao, has criticised Tesla’s autopilot software, going so far as to say the suite is “misleading consumers about the system’s capabilities”.The fresh retort of Tesla’s autonomous driving technology comes as Euro NCAP detailed the differences in a variety of similar systems on the market, noting “some systems are more user-centric and safe than others”.Performance testing for the Model S - which is no longer sold in Australia - had the safety body determining that it performed poorly awarding it just 30 per cent for its Assistance Competence score.The Assistance Competence score ranks autonomous features for their performance, clarity of information, how they communicate capability limitations, driver monitoring, and driver collaboration. It is distinguished from the Safety Backup score, which ranks how the systems avoid a collision in a variety of situations, as well as when a sensor is blocked or the driver is unresponsive.The body noted it was jarring the Model S scored an Excellent 94 per cent for its Safety Backup score, but just 30 per cent for Assistance Competence.Euro NCAP said not only does Tesla name the system Autopilot and suggest full automation in its promotional material, but also noted the system’s steering input was resistant to driver attempts to override it, and upon doing so, the entire system automatically disengages, “limiting its usefulness”.The body also noted issues with the centrally-mounted touchscreen, in that the driver had to take their eyes off the road to view alerts.Euro NCAP ultimately said: “Tesla is misleading consumers about their autopilot system’s capabilities simply through its name and marketing, which could have potential safety implications.”Tesla was not the only company marketed on its safety credentials who came under fire in the latest round of autonomous system testing. Even Volvo’s new EX30 crossover was in the firing line, with the safety body earmarking similar concerns about its autonomous driving tech.The EX30 performed better than the Tesla in the Assistance Competence score, landing at 62 per cent, although was marked down for similar reasons to the Model S, it recorded a score less than the Tesla for its Safety Backup, at 72 per cent.Both cars, alongside the MG ZS, were awarded an overall Moderate rating for their active safety suites. Other cars considered in the round of testing included the Kia EV3, Porsche Macan, and Toyota bZ4X, all of which received a Very Good overall score, while the Mazda CX-80 and Xpeng G9 recorded a Good overall rating.Euro NCAP’s latest round of autonomous driving feature testing comes as the technology proliferates across a much wider spectrum of the market. Many brands now spruik some level of autonomous driving through an advanced cruise control suite, although as Euro NCAP notes, not all of these systems are created equal, and just ticking feature boxes does not always result in a safer system.In addition to more thorough testing of autonomous driving systems, Euro NCAP will also include standards for automakers to include physical buttons and dials from 2026, labelling the overuse of touchscreens an “industry-wide problem, raising the risk of distraction crashes”.Euro NCAP said the new protocols will encourage manufacturers to use separate, physical controls for basic functions in an intuitive manner, limiting eyes off-road time and therefore promoting safer driving.Under the new protocols, cars will be marked down by not including physical switches for indicators, hazard lights, the horn, operating windscreen wipers, and activating the SOS function.

Australian new-car sales were resilient in May despite economic headwinds.

Musk's erratic communications surrounding low-cost models caused confusion within Tesla and with investors according to a new report.

For Melbourne drivers who hate those pesky CBD hook turns, Tesla may have found you a solution. That is, if you’re willing to put your life into the hands of computer software.

Tesla says it will turnaround a sales slump, overcome a stagnating of the electric vehicle space in Australia, and take down one of the country's best-selling vehicles in the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, in a series of bold predictions following the launch of the updated Tesla Model Y Juniper.