Tesla has started deliveries of the new Model Y in Australia, with the company’s local country director, Thom Drew, sharing the news that the first deliveries will start in Sydney on Thursday.
The deliveries will be the Model Y launch series cars, which are the first arrivals into Australia as they were first available to order.
The new Model Y, starts from $58,900 before on-roads for the single-motor RWD variant that can accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 5.9 seconds.
There is also a top-spec dual-motor all-wheel-drive (AWD) variant that sees its pricing start at $68,900 before on-roads, also coming in quicker to 100 km/h in just 4.8 seconds.
This AWD variant also comes with a bigger battery which can deliver up to 551 km of range, instead of 466 km seen on the RWD variant. The RWD variant features a lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery which can be charged up to 100% each time.
These new variants are $4,500 less than the original special Launch Series vehicles, which Tesla threw in a few perks to make them special vehicles for early adopters of this model.
These such as free paints, upgraded badging and acceleration boost for AWD variant, which would normally need to be purchased separately.
The 2025 model features multiple upgrades over the previous generation Model Y, many of which have been requested by owners of the previous generation car.
These include improved range, faster acceleration, updated exterior styling with new paints, interior lighting, ventilated front seats, rear passenger controls and entertainment screen, powered second-row reclining seats, upgraded suspension, upgraded acoustic glass for a quieter ride and much more.
In April, we drove the new car’s Long Range variant and are reassured that it has received some significant improvements under the skin, in addition to the styling updates on the outside.
Early this week, we also got to drive the entry RWD vehicle which adds more power over the previous generation car along with significant suspension upgrades, allowing the car to be more comfortable on the road while giving great handling on curvy mountain roads where we got to test in Southern Highlands.
With such significant updates, Tesla hopes to ramp deliveries and sales in the coming weeks, helping it recover from a slower start to the year.
We believe Tesla is onto a winner with the updated model, and with deliveries starting in Sydney today, thousands more will experience the car in months to come, helping lift Australia’s EV adoption numbers in 2025 to new highs.
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.