2024 Model Y Juniper facelift won't be released in the US as Tesla asks reps to tout its current deals

The so-called Tesla Model Y Juniper refresh release is fast approaching, with the latest rumors pegging it for launch as soon as next quarter, perhaps in early summer. Tesla is reportedly using the idle time of its Shanghai Gigafactory during the current Chinese New Year festivities to upgrade the manufacturing sections and prepare them for the mass Model Y Juniper production in Q2.

Model Y Juniper refresh US release

Unfortunately, those future Model Y owners in the US who chose to wait on the Juniper refresh instead of taking advantage of the new Model Y price cuts and incentive stacking that Tesla just introduced here, may be in for a disappointment.

According to internal employee communication, Tesla reps are encouraged to make it abundantly clear that there will be no 2024 Model Y Juniper release in North America. "It is important we communicate transparently that there is no refresh for the Model Y launching this year," says the email to Tesla employees.

Alternatively, Tesla may be trying to prevent the inevitable slowdown in sales of a particular model before its facelift arrives. It ends the email on just such a note, asking employees to explain to potential buyers that "there is no better time for customers to start driving the world’s best-selling vehicle" by listing all the inventory, state, and federal discounts they can get right now. Those can bring the Model Y starting price under $30,000 without even mentioning the free FSD and lifetime Supercharging transfers that Tesla just allowed again.

The Juniper facelift is expected to come with a more streamlined and aggressive design that takes cues from the Model 3 Highland refresh. The Model 3 Highland brought ambient LED lighting but the Model Y already has that feature. What it might pick is the big central console display of the Cybertruck that serves as a hub for all vehicle interactions, as well as its new software with 3D visuals of what is going on with or around the vehicle.

Under the proverbial hood, the base Model Y Juniper is expected to sport the M3P manganese phosphate battery technology by CATL that the RWD Model 3 Highland reportedly ships with. It should also come with the recently upgraded UWB Phone Key connectivity, as well as the full Hardware 4.0 suite of the Cybertruck.

The delay of the North American release could be due to the additional crash testing and HW4 FSD certification requirements that the Highland also had to go through and which delayed its launch. It may also be due to dry-coated 4680 battery production ramp challenges as these are the cells Tesla will likely be using here if it wants to continue applying the federal tax credit to Juniper purchases as well.

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