- Tesla's Chinese website offers a seating layout option for the facelifted Model Y, although only five-seat is currently available, implying the possibility of three-row seating variants.
- Previous reports have suggested that Tesla could begin production of the six- or seven-seat Model Y in China by the end of 2025.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) launched the facelifted five-seat Model Y in China today, and information on its Chinese website hints at more seating variants for the crossover in the country.
The US electric vehicle (EV) maker's China site today listed the revamped Model Y and began offering two variants it calls the "Launch Series," with deliveries expected to begin in March.
The two variants include a rear-wheel-drive version that starts at RMB 263,500 yuan ($35,940) and a long-range all-wheel-drive version that starts at RMB 303,500 yuan.
On the overview page for both Model Y variants, Tesla lists a seating layout option below the interior color options, although only the 5-seat version is currently available.
This is unlike Tesla's previous practice, where the company didn't offer seat layout options for the Model Y. The Model 3, which is currently on sale, also doesn't have a seat layout option.
Listing the seating layout option means that Tesla may next start offering the Model Y in China with three rows of seats, possibly six or seven.
Tesla's US website doesn't yet list the facelifted Model Y, which is currently offered in three variants -- a rear-wheel drive version, a long-range all-wheel drive version, and an all-wheel drive performance version.
The company offers five- and seven-seat interior options in the US for the long-range all-wheel-drive Model Y, while the other two variants are available only in a five-seat option.
On August 29, 2024, Chinese media outlet LatePost reported that Tesla would launch updated versions of the Model Y, including a five-seat version under the codename Juniper, with deliveries expected to begin in the first quarter of 2025.
The other is a seven-seat version of the Model Y, with deliveries expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2025, the report said.
The seven-seat version of the Model Y would be based on the updated Model Y, and the seats would be in a 2-3-2 three-row layout, the same as in the US, according to the report.
On September 3, a Reuters report said Tesla planned to build a six-seat version of the Model Y in China starting in late 2025.
The addition of a six-seat model underscores the pressure on domestic competitors in China, while in the US Tesla is prioritizing Autopilot technology and the development of robotaxis, the Reuters report noted.
($1 = RMB 7.3320)
BREAKING: Tesla launches facelifted Model Y in China
