TESLA MODEL Y LONG RANGE RWD

Battery upgrade lets this rear-drive version stretch its legs to 373 miles

- KRIS CULMER

The car industry had never seen a rise like Tesla's and probably never will see another.Just a decade ago, this was a new firm introducing a car with a novel propulsion method and minimal supporting infrastructure.

Today, it's the maker of the world's best-selling car.

Rivals never rest, though, and so for 2024 Tesla has replaced the Model Y crossover's 60kWh battery in the single-motor RWD variant with a new pack. We think it's the 75kWh battery from the AWD Long Range but Tesla always refuses to discuss capacity, annoyingly.

Whatever it is, it has increased the starting price slightly from £44,990 to £46,990 but boosted the official range from 283 right up to 373 miles (or 351 miles on the bigger alloys), with official efficiency remaining at 4.0mpkWh.

In every other regard, the entrylevel Model Y stays as it was.

So, externally, it's still ungainly. A proper facelift is reportedly coming next year, hopefully fixing the crossover's face, as seen with the Model 3 saloon.