Single Model Y reservation goes through as Tesla tests order page

The Tesla Model Y order page went live on Saturday and Sunday – but only temporarily, as Tesla Australia apparently tested the page ahead of an official pre-order launch.

One lucky customer even managed to place a deposit for a pre-order, though whether Tesla will honour it is very much up in the air.

Pegged by Tesla boss Elon Musk as the EV maker’s best-seller before it was even released, the Model Y has been proving very popular overseas.

In March, it proved the best-selling passenger car in the UK beating the Model 3 in second-place. In California in 2021, it accounted for almost 44% of its segment beating the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V.

Unsurprisingly, its availability in Australia where SUVs are also very popular and interest in EVs is gaining momentum is highly anticipated.

Reports started coming in on social media on Saturday from potential Model Y customers (many of whom have been repeatedly refreshing the page after news of the electric crossover’s pricing in Australia broke on Wednesday) that they had seen a live order page – but only for moments.

“Oh, it’s gone. I saw 2 models. SR and Performance. 70k driveaway for SR. SR was 65500 and Performance was 90900,” said one forum member.

“2nd this, order page did appear, but it seems to be gone again,” said another.

“I tried to place an order and it didn’t go through. We’re getting close!!” said a third.

One reader of The Driven from Western Australia shared a screenshot they managed to capture, showing the driveway price in WA would be $103,795.

But, it seems one lucky customer was able to put an order through.

“Payment cleared from the bank’s side. Fingers crossed it won’t get canceled,” a user on Whirlpool’s Tesla forum named “allenhori” said, sharing the email screenshot below which appears to suggest the order was made at 3:11pm the day before.

“Wow that’s awesome you got an order through. Means the ordering system is ready to go. It’s just matter of time now when they can open it up permanently and we can all order,” said another forum member upon news of the order.

“Amazing that someone got an order in!! Good luck,” said another.

They also said there was no information about potential wait times for delivery, and the deposit fee of $350 was stated at the time as refundable.

Of course, it’s not clear if this order will be honoured by Tesla, and whether the pricing is actually finalised. As mentioned above at least one user says they saw pricing at $65,000 for the RWD variant, and $90,900 for the Performance, and another reader sent us a screenshot of the same.

A Victorian pricing breakdown copied from the pre-order page according to “allenhori” puts the base price for the Model Y RWD now at $67,000 – just $3,100 more than the current Model 3 RWD pricing. Base Performance pricing would now be $91,900 before on-road costs, just $3,000 more than the Model 3 Performance.

Tesla Model Y RWD

• Red paint: $2,900, other paint $1,500
• 20″ Induction Wheels $2,900
• 5 Seats only (no 7 seater option)
• White interior $1,500
• SD: $10,100
• VIC Pricing Breakdown SR:
  Vehicle Subtotal (Including GST): $68,725
  Local Stamp Duty: $2,890
  Local Registration Costs: $243
  Local CTP: $539
  Local Plate Fee: $190
  On Road Fees Subtotal: $3,862
• Drive Away Price: $72,587
  Petro savings: -$16,100
  Victoria Gov. EV Rebate: -$3,000
• Price after est. savings: $53,487

Tesla Model Y Performance

• Vehicle: $92,625 including $1,375 delivery and $350 order fee.
  Luxury car tax: $3,889
  Local stamp duty: $4,058
  Registration: $243
  CTP: $539
  Plate: $190
• On road subtotal: $8,919
• Drive away: $101,544

The prices are notionally a little lower than was leaked by Chasing Cars on Wednesday, and then confirmed to The Driven by a credible source. The RWD was reportedly priced at $67,990 and the Performance at $98,172 (though this was more likely pricing including on-road costs and after savings).

And either way, it looks like the base purchase price including delivery and order fee should make the Model Y eligible for NSW, Victoria and South Australia EV rebates – that is, if it is delivered before state limits on applications end.

The Model Y has been available for purchase in the United States from March 2020, a year after its debut and was originally planned to be on sale in Australia in 2021, but that did not happen.

Now that Tesla’s Berlin facility is up and running, it’s expected that Shanghai-made goods will be available for shipment to Australia.

This article has been updated with more information about pricing, including a screenshot.

Update: Tesla contacted the customer above, who said that, “To all, just got a call from a lovey rep … and confirmed my order’s definitely the first in Australia, but because there is no stock and the configurator’s not live yet, it will be cancelled and fully refunded. No word yet when it will become available. Best of luck everyone for the official launch.”