Tesla’s performance-oriented models once stunned the world with their abilities to shame some of the most competent sports cars on the market. Do you remember when a stock Model S Plaid set a Nurburgring lap record in 2021? It beat the Porsche Taycan by around seven seconds.
This was major news in the automotive world, seeing as what was essentially a tech company managed to beat a manufacturer with over 100 years of racing experience on one of the most challenging race tracks in the world.
Two years later, it shattered its own record with a special Track Package, setting a time of 7:25.231 that saw it once again become the world’s fastest production EV around the ‘Ring.
Even before it laid down the EV performance gauntlet to established automakers, owners of Plaid versions, which signified the most potent power outputs, had been rearranging the internal organs of friends in exchange for YouTube views. Tesla fully exploited the electric motor’s performance potential.
Fast-forward a few years, and we now have Performance iterations of both the refreshed Model 3 and the Model Y – the latter of the two I have been driving for the past week.
The statistics speak for themselves: the 0-60mph sprint takes just 3.3 seconds, and this deal motor, all-wheel-drive midsized family SUV can gallop all the way to a limited top speed of 155mph.
It is undeniably quick, yet the revised battery and motor setup means it can still manage 360 miles on a single charge, with a 15-minute break at one of Tesla’s Superchargers adding up to 151 miles of range.
Seeing as it is based on the recently refreshed Model Y, it is also arguably the best-looking yet, complete with a rear spoiler, more aggressive body kit, and monster alloy wheels. In Ultra Red paint (as the test vehicle wore), it cut a head-turning figure on the road.
Despite this, it still left me a bit cold after a week in the hot seat.
The world has got faster
One of the biggest issues Tesla faces is that the once-pioneering company is now being left behind by both the traditional automakers, which have finally caught up, and by fresh competition from China and beyond.
Its technology, which is still excellent, isn’t as mind-blowing as it once seemed, and the all-out performance of the, erm, Performance model doesn’t quite punch the guts as it did.
Press all of the required buttons, select the right mode, stamp on the brake, bury the throttle, and suddenly live in a Porsche Taycan Turbo S, Audi RS E-Tron GT, or the latest electric Porsche Cayenne, and it physically hurts. The acceleration is almost unpleasant.
The latest Tesla Model Y Performance delivers a similar experience, but having sampled all of those vehicles above, it no longer feels as savage.
Don’t get me wrong, it is still swift, but there are other electrified family SUVs that can be just as violent.
What’s more, the engineering tweaks that have occurred underneath the skin, including the adaptive suspension, new bushings and dampers, modified steering, wider tires at the rear, and added aero, have only really helped refine the drive, rather than revolutionize it.
Sure, it picks its way through a winding country road with ease, but despite the addition of new ‘Drive Modes’, there’s still zero feel through the steering wheel, the brakes are powerful but not the most progressive (and very squeaky in the test car). At the same time, the seats prove supportive, but the driving position isn’t sporty in the slightest.
Turning stomachs
The truth is, the family doesn’t really want, need, or even enjoy this sort of level of performance on a daily basis.
My youngest son gets physically pumped up about this kind of thing, but after showing off the acceleration once or twice, which he says feels like a “roller coaster,” he soon admitted that it made him feel carsick.
With a Model Y fully loaded with kit for a weekend walk and precious cargo onboard, why on earth would you want to attack the journey with the gusto of Lando Norris chasing an F1 title?
It doesn’t make much sense, which is a shame, because the interior of this Performance is lovely, if a little impractical.
Bright white perforated vegan leather and carbon-fiber decor covered the inside of the test model, which, while very comfortable and cool to look at, proved a magnet for stains.
There are heated seats throughout, adaptive LED cabin lighting, a massive panoramic roof, and, of course, a rear touchscreen that allows the kids to stream YouTube through the powerful rear speakers.
It’s an enticing package, and the body kit does wonders for the Model Y’s gawky styling, but during my tenure, an email dropped into my inbox that announced the fact that the Model Y Standard was dropping to £41,990 in the UK (it’s still $39,99 in the US and AUD$58,900 in Australia). That’s £20,000 less than this Performance edition in my market.
You could buy another, brand new — albeit very small and basic — EV for that money and use it to pop to the shops or stick the dog in when you don’t want to get the Tesla dirty.
Plus, with the Premium Long Range Real-Wheel-Drive model delivering some 387-miles (27 more than the Performance edition) and costing £48,990 (£13,000 less), shaving two seconds from the 0-60mph time starts to feel a little silly, doesn’t it?
If you want an EV that genuinely delivers thrills, test drive a Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, or the new Kia EV6 GT, while the BMW iX2 xDrive30 is a more dynamically accomplished SUV, even if it is a horrible mouthful to say.
In other words, the Standard and Premium Model Ys now represent great value for money and are still some of the easiest EVs to live with. Forget performance and go for practicality.
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