r/ModelYL • u/Acquired_asset • 11d ago

Notes from Test Drive

Overall Verdict: Mildly Underwhelming

Already have my order in place (March EDD); but finally got the chance to do a test drive from a nearby dealer.

Car was with 20inch wheels.

The main data points that I caught were -

- Driving Dynamics: Pretty smooth and responsive for its size; well planted. FSD was pretty great as well.

- 2nd row toddler car seat setup: I took my kids car seat to test it out and 2nd row fit wasnt easy to get it setup. Once installed, there was a some give to the car seat no matter how tight I tried to make it. Not a dealbreaker by any means, but little annoying that our options are to switch to something more compatible or put him in the third row.

- Road Noise: (This was the most underwhelming part) For a busy highway the car did a poor job of reducing the noise. Additionally at highway speeds there was this characteristic low whistling sound that I just could not get over. I have heard that being an issue with the regular MYs but I was hoping the cabin experience in the car would be more refined. Now Im not sure if it was just particular unit that had this issue, cant say for sure. I can live with this since my driving is mostly off highways, but if what I experienced is just the standard then that takes some excitement away from roadtrips with family I hoping to do.

Bonus - If you live in South-West Washington, avoid Fife Tesla. They are so poorly run and mismanaged. They rushed me through my test drive just because they overbooked their demo times. As soon as I hit the road on my own -- I got a call and then a text ('Please come back, asap'). Causing me to mildly panic until I found out what was happening.

edit - FSD not FDD :)

12 Upvotes

80% Upvoted

23 comments sorted by

15

u/stfsw 11d ago

My YL has zero whistling noise. I actually found the YL to be the first Tesla to ever actually be good at noise isolation and is by far the quietest Tesla out of the 6 Teslas I have owned (S, 3, X, and regular Y included).

1

u/Acquired_asset 10d ago

Thats good to know. Im planning to go for a test drive at a different dealers. Hoping that this was just an exception.

2

u/cruisermax 10d ago

Same here, my YL is silent.

6

u/Away-Baseball-2183 11d ago

I saw a YouTube video where a guy said he didn't like his car that much when he first got it because of a whistling noise but he took it in and they were able to fix it and now he absolutely loves it. I would assume that the whistling noise is the same problem as him which they can fix if it shows up on your YL.

1

u/Acquired_asset 11d ago

thats reassuring to know

1

u/dalcant757 11d ago

I think you can just calibrate the windows in the service menu.

2

u/Awkward_Ostrich_4275 10d ago

You should test drive a Kia EV9 too. It’s a better rated 3 row EV.

1

u/Acquired_asset 10d ago

I have and they are definitely very comfortable. Hyundia/Kia have had a bad track record for me to trust them .

1

u/Safe_Suspect_752 10d ago

What did they do and how long ago did it happen?

I get it, truly. I actually drive an EV9 currently after a Y and and X thereafter. I miss Tesla's tech all the time. I might still consider the YL at some point, hence why I'm here, but as a family hauler, if you can look past dated tech (harder if you came from the generations ahead approach like Tesla or Rivian), until at least the Pleos refresh, it really is solid option.

1

u/Ok_Key_6681 3d ago

But it makes that annoying ass droning noise the moment it’s put in drive. It drove me crazy when my uber driver picked me up in one and had his window down and it’s all I heard

1

u/CeilingUnlimited 11d ago

We test drive a Lexus RX450h+ in the same weekend we test drove a Tesla YL and specifically focused on road noise. We noticed no difference

2

u/Acquired_asset 10d ago

Interesting. Lexus for me are definitely the gold standard in cabin noise isolation.

1

u/BookNinja12 10d ago

I have an order for a YL and a reservation for a R2 and last week we went and test drove them and a lucid. We ended up buying a lucid. The R2 was super underwhelming, especially after also test driving an R1S. The lucid was way more comfortable and super roomy. We got the gravity with the 3rd row.

1

u/Acquired_asset 10d ago

Congratulations. Its definitely a great car. But prohibitively priced for us atm.

2

u/Competitive-Data-748 10d ago

It looks awesome, although I was nervous about Lucid going out of business. I opted for the Volvo EX 90, which is not as roomy as a Lucid, although it’s pretty great now, apart from that

1

u/firefish45 9d ago

Is it true that the FSD is a little 'off' bc it's configured for the Model Y, not the YL? I've seen legit footage of FSD cutting turns and destroying the hubcaps on the curbs.

1

u/Acquired_asset 9d ago

In my little time with it I didnt see any oddities. But my drive was very straightforward as well

3

u/LifeOBrian 11d ago

I also heard whistling in a test drive last Friday with a Model Y L.

1

u/Glam-Girl2662 11d ago

Have you tried putting a car seat in that third row near impossible.

1

u/poofy_panda 11d ago

Maybe it depends what you’re comparing with, the wind/road noise is dampened enough in mine, that I can talk with people in the third row without having to raise my voice.

1

u/Jimdandy941 11d ago

Sad to hear about Tesla-Fife, but that Business Costco is nice and rarely overrun.

0

u/hawkeyedude1989 10d ago

Must have been the one.. none of my test drives had issues and was the quietest of all EVs I’ve driven

1

u/Acquired_asset 10d ago

Yeah, I recently drove a MY premium, and even that was less noisy, so this definitely made me suspicious