Tesla News

If there is one word to describe the Australian car industry in 2026, it’s diversity.

The US carmaker’s outspoken CEO Elon Musk has announced via X that it will stop selling its FSD semi-autonomous driving software outright to buyers from February 14, 2026, instead pivoting to a subscription-only model.At this stage it’s unclear whether this will be a global directive or something specifically for the US market. We’ve reached out to Tesla Australia and will update this story once we hear back.Tesla rolled out its FSD (Supervised) software in Australia last year as the first right-hand drive market.It’s currently available to purchase outright on Model 3 and Model Y with Hardware 3 and 4 camera systems for $10,100, or $149 per month.FSD (Supervised) is a Level 2 advanced driver assist system which requires you to comply with all current state and federal laws. According to Tesla, “Under your supervision, your car will be able to drive itself almost anywhere with minimal driver intervention”.Tesla also stipulates this does not make the car autonomous. While using the software you need to be fully attentive, have your hands on the steering wheel and be ready to take over at any point.It uses the car’s interior camera to ensure you’re paying attention to the road ahead and after a number of strike-outs for not obeying the rules, it’ll lock you out of the software for a number of days.All you need to do to start FSD (Supervised) is input a destination into the navigation system then either press the start button on the touchscreen or the right scroll wheel on the steering wheel while driving.It’s unclear why Tesla is moving to a subscription-only model for its FSD software, but it follows a decline in new vehicle sales globally. It sold a total of 1.64 million cars during 2025, which is down 8.3 per cent year-on-year.It has also been dethroned by BYD as the best-selling EV carmaker in the world. The Chinese carmaker sold a total of 2.26 million EVs during 2025, which is up 27.9 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting that BYD did sell a total of 4.6 million vehicles globally, including plug-in hybrid vehicles and commercial vehicles like buses and trucks.

Uptake of electric vehicles stepped up again in 2025.

Tesla has been rolling its new, budget-oriented Standard line-up into different markets and the next is firming as China.As reported by Car News China, an image of the Model Y Standard appeared on the Tesla China website on its home charging webpage last week but quickly disappeared again.According to the publication, Weibo user Anting Dafan, who reportedly contacted Tesla said it is gearing up to launch not only the Model Y Standard but also the Model 3 Standard in China. The latter will reportedly launch first.Tesla initially launched the Model 3 and Model Y Standard in the US, but it’s now being offered in a number of European countries with German production.Given Chinese production of the Standard models is reported to commence soon, this means it could be closer to an Australian launch.Virtually every Tesla currently sold in Australia, excluding the German-made Model Y Performance, is made in China.If the Chinese-made Model 3 and Model Y Standard do come to Australia they will likely reduce the asking price for both models by a considerable amount.Car News China reports the Model 3 and Model Y Standard will be priced around 200,000 yuan (~A$42,800). In China the current Model 3 RWD costs 235,500 yuan (~A$50,400) and the Model Y RWD costs 263,500 yuan (~A$56,400) in China, representing potential price cuts of 35,500 yuan (~A$7600) and 63,500 yuan (~A$13,600), respectively.If similar pricing differences carry over to the Australian-specification Model 3 and Model Y Standard, this could see pricing start from around $47,000 and $45,000, respectively. It’s unlikely the Model Y Standard will be more affordable than the Model 3 Standard though.Details of the Chinese-made Model 3 and Model Y Standard are yet to be confirmed.In other markets both the Model 3 and Model Y Standard are slower to 100km/h, likely meaning they come with a less powerful rear-mounted electric motor.The Model 3 Standard can do the 0-100km/h sprint in 6.2 seconds (1.0 seconds slower than the Premium RWD) and the Model Y Standard can do the 0-100km/h sprint in 7.2 seconds (1.6 seconds slower than the Premium RWD).It also appears both have a smaller battery pack than the rest of the line-up. Tesla doesn’t disclose exact battery capacities, though the Model 3 and Model Y Standard can travel up to 534km, according to WLTP testing.There are different 18-inch wheel designs and fewer exterior paint colour selections. The Model Y Standard also ditches the front and rear LED light bars, adaptive high-beam functionality and panoramic glass sunroof, however the Model 3 Standard retains the latter two features.Inside, both models receive fabric and synthetic leather combination upholstery. There’s no interior ambient lighting, the steering column is manually adjusted and the second-row touchscreen is deleted.Additionally, there’s a less-sophisticated sound system with fewer speakers, no ventilated front seats, no heated outboard rear seats and manually adjusted second-row air vents.The Model Y Standard in particular has an open centre console unlike the Model Ys which have storage cubbies with retractable lids.Under the skin both the Model 3 and Model Y Standard have passive shock absorbers unlike the other non-Performance trims which have frequency dependent suspension.All the safety hardware tech for both models is carried over, including the eight exterior cameras which allow for Full Self-Driving (FSD) as an optional extra.The potential introduction of the Model 3 and Model Y Standard in Australia could help spur sales. In 2025 Tesla sold a total of 28,856 new vehicles, which is down 24.8 per cent year-on-year.The Model Y is still the best-selling electric vehicle (EV) in Australia and saw 4.6 per cent year-on-year sales growth, sales of the Model 3 were down over 60 per cent year-on-year.

Sales of new Chinese-made cars in Australia have been on the rise for a number of years now, but 2025 saw it reach new heights.According to VFACTS sales data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, a total of 221,699 new vehicles imported from China were sold in Australia, which is up 25.9 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting that this figure doesn’t include Tesla and Polestar sales. Every Polestar and almost every Tesla (excluding the updated Model Y Performance) sold in Australia are made in China.Combining this Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) sales data, it’s understood more than 252,000 Chinese-made cars were sold in Australia during 2025. An exact figure can’t be determined as Tesla doesn’t provide any data indicating how many of its Australian-delivered cars were made in China and Germany.Even despite this, China has now overtaken Thailand as the second largest new vehicle import market in Australia. A total of 249,958 Thai-made new vehicles were sold in Australia during 2025, which is down 8.2 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting that this is still behind Japan, which has been the largest new vehicle import market in Australia for decades now. A total of 358,981 Japanese-made new vehicles were sold in Australia last year, which is down 5.3 per cent year-on-year.The large jump in Chinese-made new vehicles in Australia is likely attributable to the wealth of new Chinese brands that launched last year. Examples include Deepal, Geely, JAC, Jaecoo, Leapmotor, Omoda, XPeng and Zeekr.These brands are able to scale quickly in Australia as they view it as a test market for further expansion. Plus, there are no import tariffs to hinder potential sales.There was also astronomical growth in a number of existing Chinese brands in Australia. Sales of Chery vehicles were up 176.8 per cent year-on-year and BYD vehicles were up 156.2 per cent year-on-year.Chinese brands GWM, BYD and MG have all cemented their place in the top 10 best sellers and continue to grow.Although Chinese-made car sales rose a considerable amount last year, the top 10 best-selling models were largely imported from Japan or Thailand. The best-selling Chinese-made car last year was the 10th placed Tesla Model Y with a total of 22,239 examples sold.A number of non-Chinese carmakers have been taking note of how Chinese-made cars have been performing in Australia and are quickly pivoting to producing models in that country.As examples, the Cupra Tavascan, Kia EV5, Lotus Eletre and Emeya, as well as the forthcoming Hyundai Elexio, Mazda 6e and Mazda CX-6e are all made in China.For now we'll have to wait and see, but China could soon topple Japan and become the biggest new vehicle import market in Australia if it continues its trajectory.

Tesla has finally extended its warranty period in Australia.

The Australian new car market is going through one of its biggest changes to date.A wave of budget-focused Chinese brands has washed over the market in the past two years, eating away into the sales of many established carmakers.The emergence of new technologies such as hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery electric vehicles will change the cars we drive forever.Despite that, some things have stayed the same. Diesel-powered utes and 4WDs are the dominant force in Aussie motoring, but new models are snapping at their heels.Here are the best selling 100 vehicles in Australia during the past year.

These are officially Australia's favourite cars.

There’s a new king in the global electric vehicle (EV) sales race.China’s BYD has officially dethroned Tesla as the best-selling EV carmaker in the world based on sales data from 2025.BYD claims to have sold a total of 2.26 million EVs during 2025, which is up 27.9 per cent year-on-year.For context, Tesla claims to have sold a total of 1.64 million cars during 2025, which is down 8.3 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting BYD’s EV sales now make up just under half of the Chinese carmaker’s total vehicle sales. A total of 2.29 million BYD plug-in hybrids (PHEV) were sold during 2025, which is down 7.9 per cent year-on-year.During 2025 BYD sold a total of 4.6 million vehicles globally, including 57,000 commercial vehicles like buses and trucks.BYD’s sales rise comes as Tesla growth has slowed due to incremental updates, changes or additions to existing models, weaker demand for the Cybertruck than originally projected, plus a slower rollout of its robotaxi service.Additionally, it’s likely Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s brief foray into US politics and aligning himself with US President Donald Trump soured the relationship some existing Tesla buyers had with the company.Despite this, Tesla rolled out its 'Full Self-Driving (Supervised)' semi-autonomous driving software to its vehicles in Australia during 2025. It was the first right-hand drive market to do so.Locally, full 2025 vehicle sales data hasn’t been released yet, however until November BYD has sold a total of 45,672 vehicles which is up 147.3 per cent year-on-year.The company’s best-selling vehicle in Australia is the Shark 6 PHEV dual-cab ute with a total of 16,398 examples sold until the end of November, followed by the Sealion 7 mid-size electric SUV.Tesla on the other hand sold a total of 26,271 vehicles in Australia until the end of November, which is down 24.4 per cent year-on-year.Although the Model Y mid-size electric SUV is still the best-selling EV in Australia with a total of 20,241 examples sold until end-November, sales of the Model 3 electric sedan tanked in comparison.Only 6030 examples of the Model 3 were sold until the end of November, which is down 60.7 per cent year-on-year. This is one of the steepest sales declines in terms of outright sales volume in Australia during 2025.Looking to 2026, BYD appears set to extend its lead and potentially become a top-three best-selling brand. It has a number of new vehicles launching in Australia, plus its new premium (and separate) Denza brand.It’s unclear what Tesla has in the pipeline for Australia during 2026. It just launched the updated Model Y Performance locally which is made in Germany unlike the rest of the local line-up which is made in China.The company has been rolling out the stripped-back Standard versions of its Model 3 and Model Y to more markets and it’s unclear whether Australia is part of that plan.

The only constant is change – a smart person once said that.