There are just days to go before the newest all-electric SUV made by electric car pioneer Tesla, the Model Y, is introduced to the world.
And in preparation for the launch event for the electric SUV, Tesla has now made it official: adding the Model Y to the main menu of its website and an accompanying page inviting visitors to register to view the Livestream event on March 14, 2019 (US time).
Other than that, Tesla is not giving much away: accompanying the invitation is a high contrast image of the front profile of the electric SUV, which appears (rightly so) to have a higher roof than the Model 3.
The fifth all-electric car to be unveiled by the company, the Model Y completes the promised acronym for the EV maker’s four consumer electric car models: S3XY.
Its launch date was announced last week by Tesla CEO and founder Elon Musk following the warmly welcomed, $US35,000 ($A49,750 at today’s rates) base model of the all-electric Model 3 sedan.
Model Y unveil event on March 14 at LA Design Studio
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2019
Pricing and specifications are under wraps until the Model Y is launched later this week, but Musk has indicated that it will be priced around 10 per cent dearer than the Model 3.
While it shares 3/4 of the architecture of the Model 3, its heavier body means it will have a slightly shorter range than its sedan stablemate.
Model Y, being an SUV, is about 10% bigger than Model 3, so will cost about 10% more & have slightly less range for same battery
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2019
While it is as yet unknown if the Model Y will be made immediately available in the base version, it is known that there will be a mix of the shorter range base Model 3 and higher range and spec’d models being produced at the same time at Tesla’s Fremont car factory.
However, following Tesla’s business model of penetrating the market from the top end down, it is likely that there will initially be a Long Range and Performance Model Y launched.
Meanwhile in Australia, EV enthusiasts patiently await the introduction of the Model 3 to antipodean shores, which is expected to arrive in mid-2019.
Bridie Schmidt is associate editor for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She has been writing about electric vehicles since 2018, and has a keen interest in the role that zero-emissions transport has to play in sustainability. She has participated in podcasts such as Download This Show with Marc Fennell and Shirtloads of Science with Karl Kruszelnicki and is co-organiser of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum. Bridie also owns a Tesla Model Y and has it available for hire on evee.com.au.