Our first (and only) test drive of the new Tesla Model Y “Juniper”, at Tesla Mulgrave.

We only had 25 minutes in the car, which isn’t much to fully test it. Not enough time to drive to some winding country roads, but we did manage to find a tightly curved on-ramp to a highway. Driving at speed around it, we definitely noticed more body roll compared to our sportier Model 3. This did freak out my passengers. They also found the acceleration more noticeable in the back seat, which seems to tilt down. Tim described the acceleration as prolapsing his sphincter.

The Model Y absorbs bumps much better, finding a good median between sport and comfort. This new model has the same acceleration as our Model 3, 0 to 100km/h in 6s., one second faster than the previous Model Y.

This is the RWD (rear wheel drive) model, standard range, not the AWD long range. We prefer the RWD because it has an LFP battery, which has no nickel or cobalt, and a longer life span. It’s also cheaper. But slower acceleration and less range.

We booked the test drive online, following the instructions to book a separate slot for each driver. But when we arrived, a Tesla rep told us that we could only have one slot (which means driven by only only person). I tried to point out that we had followed the system, but we got nowhere. If we weren’t from the same family, it would have been fine. It seems that the only way to have a test drive each was for us to have a divorce, but we decided that was a bit extreme.

So much storage space! It’s a TARDIS experience. The rear seats drop down electrically to fit about two cubic meters of storage. The front trunk (the “frunk”) is huge, complete with a drain plug so you can fill it with ice and drinks, or hose it out. The sub trunk can fit a small person. The console drawers are deeper than we can see.