Image: Riz Akhtar
Tesla has just increased the state range of its most popular variant of the world’s best-selling car, the Model Y, by 32 per cent or 145 kms.
The range of the Model Y RWD in the UK has increased from 455 km to 600 km or 373 miles, and the RWD variant is now being offered as a long-range vehicle.
On top of that, the performance of the vehicle has been improved. Acceleration times from 0-100 km/h have also been improved by about a second from 6.9 seconds to 5.9 seconds. The official 0-60 mph time is further lowered to 5.7 seconds.
The key changes have been possible thanks to the long-range Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt (NMC) battery pack.
This battery pack has a higher capacity than the 60 kWh Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) battery in the standard-range RWD variant. The new RWD variant’s NMC battery pack has a 78.1 kWh capacity.
Tesla has traditionally used the NMC battery pack in dual-motor vehicles. These dual-motor vehicles in the line-up include the dual-motor Long Range and Performance variants.
This NMC battery pack on the Tesla Model Y dual-motor Long Range variant achieves 533 km but thanks to the removal of the front motor in the single-motor RWD Long Range variant, it can efficiently deliver up to 600 km on a single charge.
When it comes to charging, the new variant is also able to charge at higher speeds of up to 250 kW, which is up from the 170 kW seen in cars with the LFP battery.
The key downside is that Tesla advises the NMC battery-equipped cars to be charged up only to 80% for daily use, which brings the daily effective range down to 480 km.
On occasional road trips, charging the battery up to 100% to get the full 600 km can also be achieved by setting the charge limit to 100% inside the vehicle.
Looking into the pricing, this long-range RWD variant sees a price increase of £2,000 of over $A3,800, with prices starting from £46,990. The standard-range RWD has had a starting price of £44,990.
Tesla owners UK reshared Tesla’s post on X, calling the improved range Model Y as having “changed the game.”
On the back of this update, an EV enthusiast replied to Tesla’s announcement by saying, “Wow, best of both worlds.”
It’s unclear why Tesla is now equipping the Model Y in the UK with a long-range battery, given the charging infrastructure continues to improve globally, reducing the reliance on long-range vehicles. In Q3 alone, Tesla added 2,800 supercharger stalls to its global network.
Having said that, it could help convince some ICE drivers that EVs can go as far as many ICE SUVs on a single tank of fuel.
At the time of writing, the entry-level RWD variant in Australia is still the standard-range RWD version with the 60 kWh LFP battery pack.
With a new version of the Model Y expected in the coming months, we will keep an eye on whether the local RWD variant of the Model Y also sees a long-range upgrade.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.
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