India-Bound Tesla Model Y: What It Drives Like [Video]

Tesla has recently started production of the right-hand drive Model Y in its Berlin factory, and as per reports, these cars are being made to export in the Indian market. With the Indian government’s recent policy, which allows carmakers to import a certain number of cars at reduced tax rates after they make an investment in the country, Tesla is working at full pace to launch their cars.

The video is uploaded by Bunny Punia on YouTube which shows a walk around and drive review of the Tesla Model Y. The car shown here is the extended range version of the crossover SUV. The car has not officially arrived in India, and this video shows the Thailand spec version finished in a beautiful charcoal grey colour.

As usual, the video starts with the exterior design of the car. The Tesla Model Y comes with a typical Tesla design. The car has its own distinctive design with no front grille. Instead of adding aggressive curves and lines, Tesla has kept the design very minimal. The car does not scream performance, but it definitely delivers.

Coming to the side, the Model Y features frameless doors and flush door handles. Even at the rear, the car does not come with any funky elements, such as connected tail lamps. It features a traditional taillight placement and design. Another key highlight of the design of the car is its roof, which is all-glass to increase the airiness of the cabin. The glass starts at the windshield of the car and continues to the boot door.

Tesla Model Y comes with ample storage space, including 854 litres of boot space, which can be further increased to 2041 litres by folding the 2nd-row seats that are electrically powered. The car comes with 117 litres of front storage space, usually referred to as frunk.

The car comes with multiple elements to increase the aerodynamics. This includes air dams at the front, 19-inch aero alloy wheels, flush door handles and a specially designed windshield. The steering wheel has two stocks behind it and two toggles to control some important aspects.

Now, let’s talk about the interiors. Similar to the exterior, the interior is kept very minimal. The car comes with no buttons, AC controls, or instrument cluster. The entire car’s operations are controlled by the 15-inch infotainment screen. The car comes with hidden AC vents, which adds to the minimalism.

The host mentions that the interiors look futuristic, and the car, being built on EV architecture, offers an ample amount of space. Some necessary controls like boot & frunk opening, AC controls, ORVMs adjustment, opening glove box and many more are controlled from the touch screen itself. However, some people may find the lack of buttons annoying.
Now, the drive review of the Model Y.

The host mentions that he has driven multiple cars throughout his career as an automobile journalist, but driving a Tesla will always be a sweet memory for him. The car comes with two driving modes, chill and standard. He also mentions that he has a driving range of somewhere around 600km on a full charge.

He does a 0 to 150 km/h acceleration test of the Model Y. The car excelled in this test, reaching 100 km/h in just 5.20 seconds and touching the 150 km/h mark in 9.97 seconds.
He mentions that he was not able to engage autopilot as it may be disabled for Thailand. The car won’t come with autopilot in India either, but it will offer certain ADAS features. The host feels that steering is heavy at slower speeds, but as you gain speed, it becomes light. The suspension of the car is on a stiffer side.

Regarding the pricing, in Thailand, the model Y price starts at Rs. 40 lakhs. Internationally, the Tesla Y rivals the Kia EV6, BYD Seal and Hyundai Ioniq 5, and it will rival the same cars in India as well. Details about the pricing are scarce, but we can expect the model Y to be priced somewhere between 40 and 50 lakhs. Please note that these are just speculations, and the actual pricing may vary.