The updated Tesla Model Y, codename “Juniper,” has made its long-awaited debut on the brand’s Chinese website.
Being a refresh and not an entirely new generation, this updated Model Y soldiers on with the same basic body as the current model. To this, Tesla has tweaked numerous parts of its exterior, interior, and performance to keep it as fresh as possible in the face of growing competition.
Up front, the updated Model Y gets a new face inspired by the CyberCab and CyberTruck. This includes a full-width lightbar and a re-sculpted, less bulbous front bumper. The sides remain almost entirely unchanged, with new wheel options being the most conspicuous updates.
The rear gets an equally dramatic light treatment as the front with a full-width lightbar featuring the Tesla name spelled out across a diffused central section. The license plate cutout has been moved from the middle of the rear hatch to the lower bumper, creating quite a bit of unbroken body-colored space between the new taillights and the lower bumper.
The inside of the updated Model Y gets a larger update than the exterior, with a new interior that shares a lot with that of the revised Model 3. While it retains the same basic layout as before, with a large centrally-mounted infotainment system condensing everything from the speedometer to navigation onto one screen, the vast majority of it has seen some sort of update. A refreshed dash ditches the wood appliqués of the current model, replacing them with a floating fabric insert on top of the full-width front vent. A strip of user-customizable ambient lighting can be seen spanning the dash, spilling into the front door panels as well.
A new steering wheel that looks virtually identical to the one found in the updated Model 3 also makes an appearance. Though no turn signal is visible behind the steering wheel, it also does not appear to feature the small turn signal buttons like those on the Model 3, so it is unclear if this updated Model Y will follow in the 3’s footsteps by deleting the turn signal stalks, or if there is an actual stalk hiding behind the steering wheel somewhere.
Other interior upgrades include new acoustic glass meant to reduce interior noise, as well as a small touchscreen for rear seat passengers. New electrically-operated rear seats can be folded flat or raised up via a button in the rear cargo area. Twin wireless phone charging pads retain their space below the center touchscreen, while a redesigned center console with dual-sliding lids rounds out the changes in Model Y’s cabin.
Along with updated aesthetics, the new Model Y will hit the road with additional range, traveling an estimated 446 miles on a charge in long-range AWD guise with the standard 19-inch wheels based on the optimistic CLTC range scale. This is a roughly 20-mile improvement over the outgoing model. On the performance front, the same long-range AWD model will be capable of a 4.3 second 0-62 mph sprint, an improvement from the current version’s 3.9 seconds. RWD versions will be able to do the same 0-62 mph run in 5.9 seconds.
In China, deliveries of the updated Model Y will start in March, with the brand offering a special edition “launch series” that includes special badging on the rear hatch, door sills, and puddle lights. It is important to remember that all the specs presented here are for the Chinese model only, as Tesla has not released information on the updated Model Y for other markets. While performance numbers may change, we expect the aesthetic changes seen in this Chinese version to remain largely intact when it makes the jump to the shores of other countries.
