The Tesla Model Y will not be given its rumoured ‘Juniper’ facelift in the United States, according to Clean Technica, nor in China, according to Car News China.
The emergence of the ‘Highland’ facelift for the Model 3 led to speculation that an update of a comparable significance was also due for the Model Y, though internal communication from Tesla to its sales offices indicates that is not the case. An internal email reportedly wrote that the company is to “communicate transparently that there will not be a redesigned Model Y this year.”
While the Model Y had received minor updates for the China market in October last year, this revision is not to the extent of the ‘Highland’ facelift for the Model 3, which was launched in Malaysia also in October 2023.
Updates brought to the October 2023 Model Y refresh in China include new ambient lighting integrated into the dashboard trim panel, a black finish for the 19-inch ‘Gemini’ wheels that is standard on the Malaysian-market RWD and Long Range versions (previously silver), and a quicker 0-100 km/h time, now 5.9 seconds for the base RWD version, or one second quicker than before.
Launched in Malaysia from RM199k at the brand’s official arrival into the Malaysian market, the Tesla Model Y arrived locally in three forms – Standard Range RWD, Long Range AWD at RM246,000 and Performance AWD at RM288,000. The Standard Range offers up to 455 km of range, while the Long Range AWD and Performance AWD yield up to 533 km and 514 km, respectively.
Deliveries of the Model Y have yet to start as of time of publishing but is expected to happen soon.
