Tesla Model Y Performance | Test Drive

10 December 2022 Redazione News, Stories, Tested

We have brought the most performing Model Y to the beautiful hills of the Langhe region to combine good food and fairytale landscapes with the innate human need to continue driving fun cars.

TESLA MODEL Y PERFORMANCE

Words Andrea Balti / Photos Andy Williams

Mankind face the unknown in two ways: being afraid of it, or attracted by it. There is no middle ground and it is essentially impossible that each of us does not have at least some preconceptions that could somehow condition the idea towards something of which we know little or nothing. The case of electric cars is a prime example of this. Although we are in the midst of the electrified revolution, where each brand commits substantial resources to the development of increasingly eco-sustainable and truly exploitable models in the real world, not everyone is able to welcome this imminent turning point as the right one to undertake. Some are afraid of it – in fact – and then there are those like me who wonder if driving fun is therefore destined to die out at lightning speed. Now it is here, the next moment it has vanished and only a faint trace remains.

It’s no secret that Tesla is undoubtedly the forerunner of all this, the first brand with a fully electrified range, the first to make electric cars a reality on everyday roads and the only one with a fast network of its own recharging stations scattered all over the world. To be clear, what the others produce is nothing more than a nuance of what has already been introduced by the American brand of Elon Musk, a pioneer and visionary capable of turning everything he touches into gold. His Model S, Model X, Model 3 and Model Y are proof that a 100% electric car can truly be an alternative to traditional fuel-powered ones, both in terms of range and usability. Some will raise their hand wondering about the usefulness of on-board gadgets such as the numerous arcade games, or the fart generator, but this is not what will interest you if you browse our pages. We direct our attention to a single and essential thing, a situation that knows no half measures and that cannot be circumvented in any way, because it is something visceral and that passes through feelings and emotions. You’re wondering where driving involvement will go and we’re here to find out.

In this regard, Musk’s response was never long in coming. Since the first model, Tesla has always been supported by the instantaneous acceleration offered by the electric unit at disposal. No power cuts, no waiting milliseconds, no interest in conserving the batteries, given that the residual autonomy would still have been enough to reach the desired destination. The Performance variants aim to accentuate everything, just like in the case of the Model Y of our test. It is therefore the Long Range Dual Motor version and therefore equipped with two electric motors, each one readily positioned on the respective axle of traction. Based on the Model 3, with which it also shares the minimalist interior, the Model Y Performance is the model that we have identified at the office as the ultimate Tesla. Why are we so sure? It takes the muscular lines of the Model X and declines it on smaller dimensions – 475 cm long by 162 high – unloading performances that are not only the result of the 75 kWh batteries, but rather the desire to satisfy those who sit at the wheel with precise and extremely reactive dynamics.

No mountain roads this time, but the fabulous hills of the Langhe region in Piedmont, the ideal scenario to enhance the skills of this Tesla, capable of gnashing its teeth through the fast curves that unite beautiful villages that smell of tradition and that at least for today will not be awakened by the roar of some engine unleashed in the vineyards. The Model Y Performance has a slightly higher center of gravity than that of the Model 3, but the batteries are stored under the floor. This weight arrangement, above all taking into account that the car weighs just under two tons – 1,950 kg – is perceived when entering corners, where by making full use of a perfectly stiff set-up, it is possible to move faster than you ever thought possible. The total silence around and inside the car makes the movements even more surreal here. I grip the steering wheel, point the front towards the next bend and its responds with a responsiveness unknown to the world of crossovers. It seems to be literally glued to the ground and the fact of being able to perceive the bite that the tires make on the asphalt just outside Barolo offers a very different driving experience.

Teslas are then cars to be driven with a single pedal and in fact by setting the most pronounced level of “engine brake” there is not only a greater regeneration of the residual energy, but a real brake which in the deceleration phase allows you to play relieving the right foot from the throttle. This translates into a driving style that is impossible to find elsewhere – except on other electric cars, even if usually not so marked – and in the possibility to go hard on some B-road without even having to move your foot from one pedal to another. The Model Y Performance is my personal dark side, a force that attracts towards that sober and dark black dress of hers, capable of hiding among the fields of the hills and leaping from behind a curve without announcing its arrival. After all, there are 513 horsepower and 640 Nm of torque at stake, all made available immediately and without the slightest dispersion thanks to the all-wheel drive and oversized tires at the rear.

The balance when cornering is superfine, the weight to carry with you is not perceived and the small dimensions compared to the Model S and Model X come in handy precisely when you take advantage of the more purely performance side of this car. Conceived and created to move with zero emissions, the Model Y Performance is however also an object capable of thrilling and not just for an argument solely reduced to the lightning-fast reactions of the pair of electric motors. Five people and their luggage placed in the rear and front load compartment can in fact leave for an automotive experience capable of bringing together opposites that attract each other without having to deal with the typical recharging anxieties from which many EVs still suffer today. The gigantic central display, positioned horizontally, is not just the only interface between the driver and the car, but an exceptional system through which to manage every single parameter of the same, practically supplanting all the physical buttons we are used to, with the exception of two small rotors on the steering wheel.

Today the watchword is not Tesla, but Performance. So I continue towards Monforte d’Alba and take advantage of the solitude of a hill which, with its ups and downs and the breathtaking view over the villages below, is able to enhance the exquisitely sporty side of this car. After all, we are still talking about 3.7 seconds for the 0-100 kph. But it’s not just pure acceleration that amazes, because the progression of an immediate and constant torque curve presses the seat with a violence foreign to a car body and a segment usually devoted to different needs. So yes, you can also have fun with electrons alone, because it doesn’t just boil down to emissions or fuel consumption. Obviously you have to take into account that acting like a maniac up and down Langhe means the average range of about 514 km will drop drastically, but at that point you just need to stop long enough to delight your palate with the local delicacies and you will have the energy needed to do it all over again, or simply go home. In fact, it is possible to recharge 80% in just half an hour, but if there are no superchargers nearby, there’s no need to go mad, since the car accepts practically any type of connector.

In addition to the ravioli del plin and an exquisite tagliata di fassona, I devoured hundreds of kilometers of the most fun and frenetic ones of my journalistic experience and for this I have to thank a car that I would never have thought of considering among the most engaging ever driven. Four-wheel drive, excellent weight balance and an exorbitant power make the Model Y Performance the best Tesla I’ve had the good fortune to sit on and probably – to date – the best in the list in terms of value for money. While a single-engine, rear-wheel drive Model Y has a starting price of around €50,000, a model like the one being tested needs at least €22,000 extra (it starts at €72,970). However, what it offers is not only a lot of technology, including autonomous driving, a sober look and outstanding performance, but rather an involvement that mixes every preconception and belief regarding electric mobility, demonstrating that driving fun is not doomed to expire with the internal combustion engine.

I stop the car one more time, before taking a last look at the reassuring Piedmont hills, another way of intending driving involvement never strictly associated with performance or pure speed. But after all, what are speed and acceleration, if we can’t decline them into something broader and that really allows you to experience a thrill the precise moment in which we hold the steering wheel in our hands and get ready to ring a succession of curves, crossing countries ready to be explored in total silence and letting the screeching of tires heard in the distance being our unsuspected fault. It all boils down to that force of attraction that is part of being human, the need to hear the strong rustling of the air on the bodywork and pinch a satisfied look out of the corner of your eye, because today a dark matter like electricity can be the conductor for a future that will continue to talk about driving fun.