While most carmakers are on a mission to strip complexity out of their interiors, Tesla is slowly adding extra stuff in. Don’t get your hopes up: it’s still minimalist to the extreme, with essentially no buttons, but the materials have had a bit of an upgrade, the centre console has gained some flexibility and ambient lighting has appeared.
Obviously, the style still isn’t to all tastes, but it somehow doesn’t look as generic as some of the Chinese contenders, and palate of materials and colours is quite cohesive. Even the door bins are soft-touch and carpeted, which isn’t the case on some much more expensive cars.
The British Leyland level build quality that Tesla became known for at one point is long gone, but a loose trim piece in the headliner of our test car still caused a few squeaks.
The centre touchscreen is mostly familiar. As all-screen interfaces go, it doesn’t get much better: it’s extremely clear, logical and responsive, with important functions just one press away.
The lack of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is annoying, but over the years Tesla has expanded its library of third-party apps. As well as Spotify, there’s built-in Apple Music and Podcasts, Tidal, etc, so it’s not the problem that it could be.
Tesla’s upgrade efforts don’t extend to a dedicated driver’s display, which will be a problem for some. I quite like the clear view ahead that this gives, and all your important information is very clear. I just wish that a third of the screen wasn’t dedicated to the ADAS display, which shows you what the car can see. “Well done; you can tell an artic from a traffic cone. Now show me something actually useful”.
In the back, the big news is the addition of a small touchscreen, which means that rear passengers no longer need to ask the front occupants to turn on the heated seats. The screen also does media, YouTube and the like.
The Model Y doesn’t have class-leading knee- or headroom, but they’re good enough, and because the bench is set fairly high, the seating position is comfortable. The backrest can now also recline electrically.
It’s with storage space where the Model Y blows away the competition. The boot is enormous by itself, and that’s before you count the underfloor storage and the big frunk. You can drop the rear seatbacks electronically. A parcel shelf is standard (unlike on early Model Ys), but the way it folds feels home-made. We’d expect a roller cover here.