The facelifted Tesla Model Y has arrived in South Korea. The Tesla Model Y RWD is mentioned as “having a battery” of 70.75 kWh, while the Long Range variant “has a battery” of as much as 89.64 kWh. Immediately, speculation began to swirl that this was a completely different version of the car than the one sold outside Korea, the Long Range with a range of “400 miles / 640 kilometers.” Unfortunately, this is the result of not understanding what specifically we are looking at.
Tesla Model Y FL and battery capacity
It has been known for several weeks that the new Tesla Model Y Long Range has LGES cells with 6 percent more capacity than before. This even prompted us to calculate how much energy such a pack could store when fully charged (=86 kWh; the RWD variant has different cells). Meanwhile, in the South Korean fact sheets, we will see such values:
- Tesla Model Y RWD =70.75 kWh and 400 “kilometers” of range,
- Tesla Model Y Long Range AWD = 89.64 kWh and 476 “kilometers” of range.
After all, it must be noted that this is NOT the nominal capacity of the Tesla Model Y FL battery reported by the BMS or even the sum of the capacity of all the cells, but the maximum amount of energy the battery can take in during charging, as the caption indicates. When we factor in charging losses of about 10 percent – an approximate value – the real capacity goes down to 64.3 and 81.5 kWh, respectively, in the neighborhood we would expect from LFP and NCM packs.
While the market is waiting for a Tesla Model Y with a longer range, the manufacturer has rather prepared for a smaller battery. The new Tesla Model Y has better aerodynamics and revised low rolling resistance tires, so it is able to achieve a few percent more range from the old package. In a nutshell: if the manufacturer wanted to, it could reduce the number of cells and the new Model Y would still go farther than the old one. With lower production costs, he would have a refreshed product with better performance.
The presentation of the Tesla Model 3/Y with a large battery is unlikely to happen until the Model S and X packs are not much larger than those installed in the cheapest Teslas – already sales of low-cost variants are cannibalizing the market for the most expensive versions. The other thing is that “something” may unlock this year, when the upgraded Model S and X just hit the market. Last weekend, the waiting time for the manufacturer’s top cars was extended from a few weeks to the July-August 2025 range.
