Tesla Mannequin Y ‘Juniper’ Refresh: This Is It

• Tesla lastly unveiled the long-awaited, up to date model of its Mannequin Y crossover. 
• The brand new mannequin appeared on Tesla’s China web site on Thursday. 
• The redesigned model of Tesla’s finest vendor arrives simply after its first annual gross sales hunch in over a decade. 

A refreshed Tesla Mannequin Y crossover appeared on the automaker’s China web site on Thursday, giving the world its first take a look at the long-awaited, up to date model of Tesla’s best-selling automobile. 

The redesigned crossover arrives at a time when Tesla critically wants a win and is going through unprecedented competitors on the worldwide stage. Its world deliveries sank in 2024—from 1.81 million items to 1.79 million—marking the automaker’s first annual drop in gross sales in over a decade. The up to date crossover may assist reignite gross sales in 2025 and past. Deliveries ought to start in China in March, in line with Tesla’s web site. 

The Tesla Mannequin Y refresh.

Photograph by: Tesla

The up to date mannequin includes a new nostril with an angular mild bar paying homage to Tesla’s Cybertruck pickup and the Cybercab robotaxi unveiled late final yr. It additionally has a beefy mild bar operating throughout its rear. In any other case, the outside styling is essentially an identical to the present Mannequin Y. Just like the Mannequin 3 “Highland” refresh that launched in late 2023, the facet profile of the up to date Mannequin Y seems much like the outgoing mannequin.

The refreshed crossover additionally will get a giant inside makeover that brings it in keeping with the recently-updated Mannequin 3 sedan. That features an ambient lighting strip operating all through the cabin, a display for rear passengers and a stalk-less steering wheel. That is proper, of us—you will not discover standard flip alerts or a gear shifter right here. 

The Tesla Mannequin Y’s up to date inside.

Photograph by: Tesla

On Tesla’s China web site, it says the brand new Mannequin Y has been tuned for higher effectivity and will get an up to date suspension that produces a smoother journey. The latter may clear up one of many largest complaints house owners have concerning the Mannequin Y: its overly stiff suspension and bumpy journey high quality.

The rear display within the new Tesla Mannequin Y refresh.

Photograph by: Tesla

The Lengthy-Vary All-Wheel Drive variant earns a 719-kilometer (446 mile) vary estimate in line with China’s testing process, which is extra beneficiant than the EPA figures we’re accustomed to within the U.S. Tesla quotes a 0-62 mph dash of 4.2 seconds. Tesla can also be providing a lower-priced, rear-wheel drive choice.

The Tesla Mannequin Y refresh at a Supercharger station.

Photograph by: Tesla

Whereas most automakers give their automobiles visible tweaks each few years and full overhauls periodically, Tesla hasn’t modified up the look of the Mannequin Y because it went on sale in 2020. Auto trade analysts say that call—and extra broadly, Tesla’s restricted, stale lineup of automobiles—has dragged down demand for Teslas as competitors within the EV house has intensified. The Cybertruck launched in late 2023 as Tesla’s newest brand-new mannequin, but it surely’s proved too costly and polarizing to develop gross sales in a significant method.

The Mannequin Y is now the best-selling electrical automobile on the planet—and, moreover, one of the best promoting automobile of any powertrain. That is nice for Tesla. But it surely additionally means EV patrons could also be clamoring for one thing new and totally different. Tesla may also want extra fashions—and significantly, lower-priced ones—if it needs to proceed increasing its gross sales, consultants say. The corporate says it should launch simply that this yr, however hasn’t shared any particulars. 

The Tesla Mannequin Y refresh includes a thick mild bar throughout its rear hatch.

Photograph by: Tesla

China is one in all Tesla’s most vital markets and is by far the most important marketplace for electrical automobiles, which helps clarify why the brand new mannequin is happening sale there first. Plus, Tesla is going through stiff competitors within the nation from fast-moving, homegrown EV makers like BYD and Geely. 

There isn’t any phrase but as to when the brand new mannequin will go on sale outdoors of China, or how the small print of the U.S.-bound mannequin might differ from the Chinese language-market one.