Tesla outs cheapest-to-drive Model Y with the longest range

Tesla just released the Model Y with the longest range on the hush-hush, and teased that it is also the cheapest electric SUV to drive.

According to Tesla's official specs, the new Model Y version offers unsurpassed consumption of just 14.9 kWh/100 km. For comparison, the AWD version eats up 2 kWh more to cover the same distance.

Tesla calls this new trim a Model Y Long Range RWD, and it is exactly what is said on the tin, as it sits above the base RWD version with Chinese LFP batteries, and just below the Long Range AWD model with Panasonic's 2170 cells.

The Model Y Long Range RWD is reportedly also powered by the Panasonic 2170 cells. This would somewhat explain the better efficiency compared to its LFP RWD sibling, but also the longer range compared to the AWD model with the same battery tech, as it has one less electric motor to lug around.

The cheapest-to-drive Model Y is rated for 600km (373 miles) of range on 19-inch wheels at Europe's WLTP cycle, as that's where it will be sold first. While in the more demanding EPA estimate terms this would probably be closer to 340 miles on a charge, that's still higher than the Long Range model offered in the US.

Tesla's most efficient Model Y will initially be sold in Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Spain, Germany, and Norway, as well as countries like Lithuania where its €39,990 ($42,800) price is the cheapest in Europe, and may invite many takers.

The new Model Y Long Range RWD is made at Tesla's Gigafactory in Berlin, and raises the number of trims available in Europe, where the Model Y was the bestselling vehicle in 2023, to four.

Just as its other versions, the Model Y LR RWD is available in the Berlin-exclusive Midnight Cherry Red multi-coat paint color, too, for which buyers will have to shell out €2,600 extra.

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