• Fast in a straight line
• Plenty of overtaking power
• Responsive at any speed

What power options are there?

The Tesla Model Y has several different power options available. The cheapest and least powerful is a single-motor setup powering the rear wheels. It’s still fast – with a 6.6 second 0-60 time.

A dual-motor setup with four-wheel drive is available with two power outputs. The Long Range car has 384hp, while the Performance model is 60hp more than that. These power outputs are slightly less than you get in a Model 3, but still mean that the Model Y is good for a 0-60mph time of 4.8 seconds, or 3.5 seconds in the Performance model.

In typical Tesla fashion, the Model Y accelerates briskly and with zero drama – simply put the car into drive and floor the accelerator pedal. The Model Y is quick off the line, and it’s rapid when accelerating at higher speeds, too. Power delivery is linear, and it doesn’t really tail off until you’re approaching triple-digit speeds, so it’s more than responsive enough for everyday use.

Tesla offers multiple levels of energy recovery in the Model Y, from freewheel coasting to high resistance that charges energy back into the battery and means you can drive the car using one pedal and with hardly ever needing to use the physical braking system.

What’s it like to drive?

• Fast steering rack
• But it’s not very sporty
• Firm ride can be uncomfortable

The Tesla Model Y is fast in a straight line, but that headline figure is fairly irrelevant compared with the sheer ease of driving, and how happy the car is to trickle along in the busiest of conditions. Its steering is relatively heavy and direct compared with rivals, but it never feels nervous as it weighs up nicely at motorway speeds.

That sporty steering promises much, but the Model Y’s handling is acceptable, rather than outstanding. It feels stable in corners, and there’s not too much body roll, either. Grip levels are also generous, so it’s all there, but ultimately a Kia EV6 is more rewarding on a back road.

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The ride quality is quite disappointing on typically rough city streets, too, and you can partly blame that on its large 20-inch wheels. It fidgets nervously over expansion joints and potholes, and although it never gets uncomfortable, it is shaded by the BMW iX1 in this department.

Noise levels are also higher than in some of its rivals, with the odd rumble and bump from the suspension, as well as tyre noise at speed being higher than in cars such as the Skoda Enyaq and Audi Q4 E-Tron.