Facelifted Tesla Model Y EV Spotted Testing In Mumbai Without Camouflage [Video]
Elon Musk's EV company Tesla is set to start its India operations soon. Rumours and anticipations around Tesla's entry into the world's third-largest car market, have been around for a while. In the most recent development, we get to see Tesla testing its facelifted Model Y (also known as the 'Juniper' in the US) on Indian roads.
The car was spotted being driven in Mumbai without any camouflage. In the video shared by Motorbeam, two Teslas can be seen, both finished in a shade of Black. Both cars wear 'KA' trade certificate (TC) plates. Tesla India has its head office registered in Bengaluru, Karnataka. This would explain the 'KA' plates.
More About Tesla Model Y Facelift (Juniper)
It hasn't been long since Tesla launched the facelifted Model Y in various international markets. The vehicle is longer than its predecessor by 47mm, even while standing narrower by 1mm. It gets a complete redesign. Adherence to Tesla's new design language has made it more aerodynamic than before- the drag coefficient has been reduced to 0.22, and the same is claimed to translate into a range boost.
The vehicle also comes with a connected lightbar like what you find on the Cybercab Robotaxi. Almost the entire face has been sealed, except for the air dam. The flush-fitting door handles have further helped in improving the aero. The EV offers both 19 and 20-inch wheel options. It remains to be seen which of these would be brought to India. The tail lamps feature LED connecting strips as well. The bumpers are chunkier on the new car.
Tesla has made subtle changes inside the cabin of the facelifted Model Y. The US-spec vehicle gets a central 15.5-inch touchscreen with an updated OS, new fabric upholstery, OTA (Over the Air) updates, ventilated front seats, and an 8-inch touchscreen for rear occupants.
The Model Y is based on a monocoque chassis which is claimed to offer good safety levels in the event of a crash. The EV comes with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). In some markets, it even offers the full Autopilot package as an optional add-on.
The facelifted model Y now claims a range of 719km and 662km on the Long Range AWD and RWD versions respectively. These are in fact, 117km and 59km more than what the pre-facelift car used to offer. The Juniper can do the 0-100kph sprint in just 4.3 seconds on the AWD variants and 5.9 seconds on the single-motor ones. The charging speeds have also improved on the new car.
Critical Time: Juniper Just Got Its First Recall
Interestingly, the latest spy video comes out at a time when the Model Y facelift has just had its first official recall. 172 units of the vehicle were recalled over a defective plastic elbow used in routing the wiper fluid onto the windscreen. Since this cannot be fixed through OTA updates, the manufacturer issued a recall for the affected vehicles to get the issue fixed physically.
Tesla's India Plans
A lot seems to be happening at Tesla India, as it nears the official start of operations. In May this year, we saw Tesla India's country head Prashanth Menon step down, putting an end to his nine-year stint.
In another development, we saw Tesla shed clarity on its India plans. Despite the government coming up with attractive tariff reforms, the carmaker reportedly has no plans to make cars in India. Tesla is, however, said to have finalised showroom locations at prime locations in Mumbai and Delhi.