The Decision to Buy a Tesla Model Y: Weighing the Pros and Cons

As I sat down with Jake to discuss his decision on purchasing a new car, he mentioned that he was initially interested in buying a Tesla Model Y. However, after researching and comparing it with other options, he is now considering whether or not it's the right choice for him. As we discussed, one of the main concerns for Jake is the ride quality of the Model Y. He expressed his concern that the ride might be rough, especially when driving at low speeds.

This is a common issue that many Tesla owners have experienced with their vehicles. The Model 3, which is based on the same platform as the Model Y, has also had its fair share of reliability issues. As Mike mentioned earlier, it's possible that the Model Y might experience similar problems. However, it's worth noting that Tesla is known for continuously updating and improving their software, which may help resolve any issues with the vehicle.

Another consideration for Jake is whether or not he should wait for a year to see if there are any significant improvements to the Model Y. With Tesla's tendency to release updates and patches as they become available, this might be a good strategy. However, it's also worth noting that Tesla often introduces new features and technologies with each update, so waiting too long might mean missing out on some of these benefits.

When considering alternative options, Jake mentioned that he was initially attracted to the idea of owning a Tesla solely because of its unique features and performance capabilities. The Model Y is indeed an exciting vehicle, but it's not the only option available in the electric car market. Hyundai, Kia, and other manufacturers offer a range of electric vehicles that might be more appealing to certain buyers.

For instance, the Hyundai Kona Electric is a compact crossover that offers excellent fuel efficiency and a spacious interior. However, it may lack some of the unique features and performance capabilities that Tesla offers. Ultimately, the decision comes down to what's most important to each individual buyer. If they prioritize environmental responsibility and electric range, one of these alternative options might be a better fit.

As we wrapped up our discussion on the Model Y, I mentioned that we would continue to update our readers as more information becomes available. With Tesla constantly pushing out new software updates and features, it's essential for buyers to stay informed about any changes or improvements that may affect their vehicle.

In addition, Consumer Reports will be releasing new content soon on its website, which will provide more in-depth analysis of the Model Y and other electric vehicles. Whether you're a Tesla enthusiast or just looking for an environmentally friendly option, there's never been a better time to consider an electric car.

As always, we invite our listeners to share their thoughts and questions about electric cars and the automotive industry as a whole. Send us your feedback at talkingcars@apple.com, and we'll do our best to address them in future episodes.

The debate surrounding Tesla's reliability has sparked a lot of discussion among car enthusiasts. As it turns out, Tesla is not immune to the common issues that many manufacturers face when introducing new vehicles. Despite their innovative approach to electric cars, there are still several reasons why someone might want to consider alternative options.

One major concern for some buyers is the mystique surrounding Tesla's brand. Owning a Tesla is often seen as a status symbol, and the vehicle itself is perceived as being at the cutting edge of technology. However, this exclusivity comes with a price tag that may be out of reach for many budgets. The Model Y, in particular, is priced competitively with some of the most popular non-electric vehicles on the market.

For those who value the performance capabilities and unique features offered by Tesla, there are certainly options available from other manufacturers. Hyundai's Kona Electric, for example, offers a range of exciting options that might appeal to buyers looking for an alternative to the Model Y.

When it comes down to making a decision about which car to buy, each individual has their own set of priorities and concerns. If you're drawn to Tesla's futuristic design and performance capabilities, then the Model Y might be worth considering. However, if you prioritize environmental responsibility and fuel efficiency above all else, there are plenty of other options available.

As we move forward with our testing and analysis of the Model Y, we'll continue to provide updates and insights for our readers. Whether you're a Tesla enthusiast or just looking for an eco-friendly ride, we'll be here to guide you through the process of choosing the right vehicle for your needs.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enwe give our first impressions of the new Tesla Model Y next on talking cars hi everyone and welcome to another episode I'm John linka I'm Mike Monticello and I'm Jake Fisher and this week we have an entire episode dedicated just to one vehicle and it's a Tesla Model why we bought ours anonymously and online like like you do and it finally came in what we got was a 2020 Tesla Model wide long range all-wheel-drive 384 horsepower combined from two electric motors one speed direct drive transmission all-wheel drive like I said the base MSRP for the model y now 41,100 but the initial versions are all of long range so it the $11,990 long range dual motor all-wheel drive option plus we have $7000 full self-driving capability on this adding in $1,200 for destination came out to a total cost of sixty one thousand one hundred ninety dollars we've been waiting for this for a while but with kovat and with some of the factory shut downs and the ramping up took us a little while but it's finally in our possession Jake Mike you both driven it Mike wrote some interesting stuff on CRO of five things that we're gonna kind of look at about the car Jake from drifting the Model S all the way to updating software you're almost like them Tesla guy tell us tell us your first thoughts on this one well first of all I got to correct you because you said full self-driving capability you got to eat those words full self-driving option package different that's totally totally different so thanks for it but I mean we could get into that or get let's get into that later I mean let let's just talk about this as a car so I mean certainly we've been testing Tesla's for a long time and you know I mean going back to you know the original Tesla Model S that we tested back and you know it's 2012 model I mean it's been it's been a while now you gotta really respect the fundamentals of these cars they are quick they are really fun to drive and this test model Y is really no exception I mean it is it's it feels like you're in a sports car um I mean really big picture what the thing is it's basically a model 3 hatchback I have a hard time even calling it a SUV right little taller it's got to hatch in the back certainly a lot more room inside especially that rear seat but fundamentally just it's a blast to drive just like the three quick great handling very balanced so Mike you uh you know you did a story on it and and can you elaborate a bit on what the benefits are of the body style of the Y over the three because that hatchback really does almost solve a deficiency that an immediate efficiency that that's in the three absolutely like Jake says if you look at this car especially in person it like I brought it home and someone said wait that's an SUV because it doesn't look like an SUV it looks like a kind of a taller more bubble-shaped model three but the benefit is you get extra Headroom and especially the rear seat room you know it's it's like it took all the good things about the model three kept them you know all the the quick acceleration the sports car like handling the fantastic driving position I love the driving position in both cars decent fit and finish but it took the bad things about the there are some of the bad things about the model three and made them better now you've got actual Headroom in the rear seat like plenty of headroom in the receipt now there's more rear seat room it's actually comfortable there is some leg support which there's almost no Alexa 4 in the model 3 so adults can sit in the backseat of that thing now you've got a hatchback configuration yeah you could fold the seats down in the model 3 but now you lift that hatchback fold the seats down you've got tons of room in there so I mean it's it's basically a improved model 3 if you think about it that way is it the vehicle that that that changes the definition now for people of SUV to hatchback I mean because let's be honest you know a Honda HRV is a hatchback basically you know all these all these little SUVs are still hatchbacks now all of a sudden there's like anger people saying it's not a SUV it's a hatchback so you know are we back to the hot hatch world is this gonna be where we're going forward I mean I think that time has come and went I mean we have I mean crossover right that's a common vernacular that we keep on using I mean they're just car I mean let's just get over it their car so I'm not the hatch in the back some are a little higher some are a little lower but you know what I don't want to do is kind of say oh it's a hatchback son an SUV like it's a negative it's not a negative at all I mean you have a lot of functionality a lot of room here just because it doesn't have like big side moldings on it or you know big knobby tires is not a deficiency you know it's a lot of you know really good package I think on this ya know it's it seems it's a well packaged vehicle in space wise of sky I was shocked at how much room is in the front just Headroom and and I tend to sit up high and I you know there's a ton of space up here and it almost the seatbelt anchor was really oddly high and I said you know am i sitting low so it's just it is a roomy vehicle and it does take away like Mike said you know some of the deficiencies those the key ones you know space wise did that we saw in the model 3 o n like what you were talking about John with the you know that that driving position because it's got so much glass area yes it has very thick windshield pillars but it has so much glass area and you and the sloping hood because there's no there's no internal combustion engine up there that you've got this great view out they put the you know arm rests are perfectly positioned and nice and comfortable and it's got this small diameter steering wheel just like the model 3 does it just feels like a great position for going on a curvy road you know yeah yeah it I don't want to get in you know a lot of people like go-cart handling it's like driving a little race car no but it is a good drivers cockpit and a great visibility like you said Jake to set to go back to the one of the first thing you talked about though the driving enjoyment of the vehicle because you know for being a SUV or even a hatchback it's almost a hot hatch yeah you know because of its performance yeah I think that's right yeah I mean it's just it's absolutely quick you know great handling I mean you know we keep on talking to all these nice things about it you know and how it kind of you know I like the way you know Mikey the way you put it it kind of solves some of the problems of the three I think what we can't overlook though is it's not solving some problems of three and you know we talked about that small steering wheel the reason that steering so small is because there's no gauges behind it but let's get into that for a little bit goal has those deficiencies of that model three where they've crammed everything into this one screen that is off-center and you know I don't want to make a big deal I find there's no speedometer I got to look off the side of the speedometer I could get over that but I can't well but but put the things that drive me crazy is you know everything is still in this screen I mean they had an opportunity to give it give me give me an adjustment for the for the for the mirrors just like they have in the model you know ask just like they have on the model acts give me an adjustment for that I don't have to go in through menus give me an adjustment for the wipers give me an adjustment for adjusting the steering wheel uh adjust their vents your vents yes you you have to go in through a menu to point the air vent at you which is just really ridiculous yeah you know I was sticking it through and I'm like okay fine you know you want to update it and really think about different things you know something that's very manual is the mirror the rearview mirror that's manual you know I mean you think about like trying to make this convenience we're like you know one of the neat things that Tesla does is they have all these driver profiles you know you get in there and so like oh you know whatever and it knows how I'm sitting and then you know John and Mike you guys have your own settings you know you want to make everything electric why don't you do that for the rearview mirror that would be actually be helpful adjusting the air vents and making them go through this whole pattern where I have to go and you know just that like a graphic equalizer to try to have the thing not go on my face that's just it just change for change sake and another thing the model y still has the model trees kind of strange two-step door opening procedure where you know you push on one side of the door handle and then you pull on the other side you know on the exterior of the car which is that's something they could have addressed they could have fixed but they chose not to and the other thing this was got you know we keep log books on all of our test cars and this model y is no different and you know it has this very thin it's kind of like credit card as its key and you need to place it in a special spot on the center console to start the vehicle and and one of the comments in logbook from our one of our engineers John Sinclair she said ugh she said I misplaced the card in the vehicle it was so much fun trying to find this thin black card inside the black interior of the vehicle she actually lost the cards she couldn't she couldn't start the car anymore yeah I mean the unlocking with that if you don't have the app up you know you're not you you know unlocking locking your car through the app you use the key and you hold against the door pillar but you know I found the number of times I've just trying to kind of play the game and sure you buy the car sure you own the car yes you become super used to that and the door handles and that's the same excuse that people have said since Mercedes had the control cruise control stock up high and you know all kinds of little things it's it's still just it's some of it for me is there for the sake of being there and it's just over the top cutesy catchiness I mean I mean the excuse you know that is that that's not normally how you do it use your phone you walk up to it and that does work well if you're hooked up to it there's other things that we saw with the three we're seeing with y2 including that which is also I mean the ride the ride is really stiff doesn't have to be stiff to handle well we certainly saw that with the Tesla Model S which you know handles great and rides nice too wind noise there's still quite a bit of wind noise on that which is kind of disappointing for a car that shouldn't be so silent and you know if you've driven a Tesla Model S you know what silence is all about so you know it just kind of inherits a lot of those those Jegs issues - is your guess that that wind noise is that because there's just so much glassy area I mean is that do you think that's at least part of what's going on why there's so much wind noise in the 3 on the Y it seems that way but you know the X has a lot of glass area and it doesn't really seem to be that noisy so you know there's there are ways of making it quiet even with that glass area right well you know I I think I mean the whole roof is glass so you're right but the three and the Y does have a lot more glass so maybe that is part of it right the other thing I noticed was that there's like this boom eNOS quality to the interior from the tires there's a fair amount of tire noise not so much constantly but whenever you hit a bump it kind of like booms throughout the cabin you know so there's maybe some noise insulation things going on there as well or lack of you know one one aspect of it is the the minimalist interior and it kind of gets into the whole pro and con of you know of a car good bad for the model three as well is that so much like you said done through the through the screen but also that it there's almost a divide in some in some ways about is it nice and sleek like a bangin all some stereo you know is is it IKEA like you know Swedish furniture like or is it just for goodness sake the car is sixty is thousand dollars and it's really kind of smart and feeling inside you know where do you guys take with what your take on that side that part of it yes its Martin I mean it's it's it's I mean I think I've said it before about the model three and I'll say this is call most like a Chromebook you know of a car you know it's like it's just the stuff you need and they kind of get rid of the stuff you may not need but I don't think anyone is gonna couldn't complain if they give you you know I hate going down the list again okay like a little thing where I could adjust the mirrors I don't get adjust the steering wheel organ it just does it like those don't make the car worse and they don't make the car cluttered you know so there's a little bit you can add to this that would just make it a lot stock for the wipers please come on yeah I don't think that would that would harm the starkness I mean even if they left out the the gauges behind the steering wheel even if they did that but just some of the things that you you shouldn't have to go through menus so I want to switch gears a little bit and get into the safety features on the car because the the Tesla does come with a full complement of safety features forward collision warning automatic emergency braking lane departure warning Lane Keeping Assist it has a blind spot warning system and I think it's part of the full self-driving package but Jake there's there's a little discussion that we've had about that about that system the blind spot system sort of sort of blind spot so first of all I mean there's a couple packages of them it's confusing because there's you know at the optional autopilot and there's the optional full self-driving package now Tesla to their credit they're providing the safety systems that is standard you don't have to go and jump up to all those things so that's terrific and we actually give give the vehicles points for that that they're just saying standard the one caveat is like you talk about the blind spot warning you know and this is one that really we struggle whether or not we really want to call this blind spot warning at all now the car has lots of sensors it's got lots of cameras it certainly knows if there is a vehicle in your blind spot with virtually every other vehicle the blind-spot warning system works is you look in your sideview mirror and it was a vehicle there that you cannot see through that mirror you'll have some kind of indication you might have a light on and on the mirror on the column but where you're looking for that car what Tesla does that you're using that big multifunction screen that they have and they program it so you can see that car in that screen now on the graphics okay kind of makes sense I could see that car there the problems that's not where you're looking know if I'm gonna be turning I'm gonna look over there I'm gonna look at the mirror I'm gonna and see that and that gives me no indication that you're someone in my blind spot so we don't really see that as a functional blind-spot warning system so I know it sounds a little bit nitpicky I mean it's great that they're providing something standard but if people aren't gonna be able to benefit from it we're not really gonna I don't think that's nitpicky Jake I mean I think that's just John the honest truth I like never see that system over there where should it be you we always want eyes up you want eyes up here maybe eyes up over here right so why would you force people to be looking down there honestly it does no benefit to me whatsoever thy I don't think it's much the same like the Honda system that you know the lane watch you know where you know you turn your rate signal on and there's a display in the screen down here but I'm looking here and hoping not to hit the guy over there not looking here and even Hyundai has a system in some of their vehicles where they'll show the image when you put the camera when you turn it on on the turn so they'll show it in it in the display but there's still blind spot work right yeah well it may be this cool thing to see like okay I'm my eyes are drifting I'm seeing there's no cyclist now I'm looking and there's no light but yet the force made it back into the screen yeah I mean and that's the thing it's like it's forcing you so so it means one thing to say okay it's not there where I want it to be and I don't benefit from it but it's like you're almost training the draw ever say okay I'm turning into the left lane now don't look over there look down over here you know and that's a problem like you don't want to be in the habit of looking down into that big messy screen with all that information when you're changing lanes you want to be looking at well we're in relying on it cuz there's there could write time when it's not there if you become something that you're always using the backup camera and you just decide to back out the driveway staring or you're using that system and the one time it's not there but you instinctively go there right it only rely on it that's the potential for the problem so it's not like that sure I don't get it yes I could drive and I've used it and I haven't had a problem but it's not something to be relied on it definitely isn't where your eye should be and that and the fact you don't rely on is not a dig on Tesla at all because all of these systems they certainly help but they're none of them are 100% there help something to kind of assist you rate assist that's the word that we like to use not drivers so that's a lie right I'm gonna rely drive a reliant system that's not what it's go so yes you need to kind of you know have the belt and suspenders too but they go back like you say forward collision warning aiibi pedestrian detection you know lane departure lane keeping yeah all standard which you know not getting necessarily in a lot of other luxury level expensive vehicles right standard across the board and you know that's why Tesla's getting points for the you know for their system that's right um it does bring us to some more software stuff and and we'll we'll go into another new system that's Ana beta and it's a traffic like stop sign detection Mike D tell us a little bit about the the system that that they're rolling out with yeah the model Y so if you turn the system on if you if you tell you know on the center screen that you want the system to work it will automatically bring the car to a stop at a stoplight but keep in mind the way it's designed is it's gonna bring the car to a stop at every red light yellow light green light or a stop sign so if it's if the light is green the car is gonna try to slow down it's going to slow down for and stop it where it should for a stoplight you're gonna need to pay attention on that and it either hit the accelerator pedal or the stalk on the right side and that will the car you want to keep going through it so that's what it's supposed to do which is a little strange because it is beta and they call it beta which autopilot is still beta and that's been around for you know five years it just means that it's not fully developed this is technology that's not fully developed so the car can read the color of the lights so it says it's designed so you could set it so it'll stop it at at at lights and stop signs it can read it and actually it lets you know that you could see it so when we first met when we first enabled us and tried it it would stop at every green light it would show you that it's a green light it could tell it's a green light but it'll still bring the car to a stop and then you hit that you flip either the stock or you hit the gas and you go again bizarre I mean I suppose it's kind of the abundance of safety that they want to they prefer to stop the not stop right but we just got a new update on the vehicle and this changed the behavior of the system so if I could you know the system's call it traffic light and stop sign contract yes so thank you thank you which they may change too who knows with an update but but that is that that is part of the full self-driving package which you know let me let me be super clear this is not a full stealth shopping car at all never not not even close anyway so yes that is this that's we're talking about we just got a new update so now it will go through the green light if there's a car in front of you okay so it's following the car in front of it it's doing the car in front of it is doing right so if the car in front of you is it does car in front of you and it's green it'll go through it if the car if there's no car in front of you will stop at the green lights so I mean it's just it's one of these things where there's updates and they keep on changing the behavior of the way this car drives so it's you know we're gonna be certainly doing a lot more testing of this it makes it almost hard for us to test them because the behavior continues to change we may get an update next week that changes the behavior again but we're going to be looking at this and other systems and we've talked to some of the others that are part of this full I'm doing the air quotes you know full self-driving which is you know the smart summon where could drive around a parking lots not well but you know there's a lot of these little different features I would say I wouldn't call them conveniences or safety at all but they're interesting and we're not definitely gonna do more testing on them I do want to say that when I drove it he didn't have that update that you're talking about Jake but to test less credit it did say you know Tesla did say that it's designed to stop at all stop let's assume they've now updated that explanation as well but they did say this is what it's going to do so it wasn't you know what I mean like if you read through you see that it operated the way they said it was going to it's but at that time it was still just a little weird the way the way it operated but it's also in it go ahead oh just think that's super important you know so I mean it's not that it's malfunctioning its functioning the way it's designed and they changed the design and now its operating the way the new way it's designed I would say in both situations is not operating the way a consumer would expect it to right exactly I want to say like you I think you already touched on a little bit Jake aught if you look on the screen it says auto steer traffic light and stop sign control navigate on autopilot and some and parking feature all still listed as beta yep yeah autopilot is the steering itself which has been over over five years that is listed as beta so I mean the interpretation is just these are not completed features these are still kind of so wise useful it does it does it give people a false sense of security I mean is that well I mean look we're gonna certainly do a lot more testing on that but I think some of these features I mean autopilot we certainly talked plenty about autopilot and that does give you a false feeling security because it is quite reliable most the design you know that that one or two percent that something happens it could be really tragic you know and let me also be clear about all these things are kind of opt-ins you gotta go and kind of it's almost like sign the release you know it's like yes I wanted to do this I wanted to stop at the lights I want it to you could set it so it changes lanes without even warning you if it sees a car then you think wants to go around it these aren't really I mean I certainly don't feel safer and more relaxed when it's doing these types of things so I don't know if people are necessarily going to it's just it's a feature that people could be like wow that's kind of neat but it certainly doesn't make it more relaxing or or safer yeah I think that in the end all this really needs to be brought up that you know this is Tesla's way of going towards full self-driving it's their steps and stages along the way they know it's not a full system they said it's not you know full self-driving even though that's the name of a package yeah you know and it's and it's we're just going along the way as they send updates of course you know we look at the systems and then redo it reevaluate it and look at it and we'll continue to do this so if the stop sign recognition system gets updated along the way again we'll continue to do that and we'll report on it here it does interestingly enough bring a you know a question often we don't get questions about a car you know that we just bought but we have some one gentleman named Gary who said this question says I'd like an electric car update we own a model 3 like the car but the ride is rough in too low we have a model why and order hope it will be better what other cars should we consider you know Jake you know this is something you wanted to talk about just the the similarities and differences but what it means for him for the car being based on a model threat well I mean I think we recovered a lot of the differences right worth of why I mean you're not necessarily going to get a much better ride you're certainly you're gonna have something a little higher and a little more functional I mean I know Mike we were talking before it's like is this is this the model 3 that you should buy here and it is sort of that argument that like if you're gonna buy the model 3 go ahead by the Y the only caveat I would say about that and and you know the model 3 we do have the reliability data of the model y is you know with Tesla they have not been a very consistent performance to reliability it is possible that the Y might go down a little bit in terms of reliability compared to 3 new introduction I mean again this is not even this is relating on Tesla this is just we see this with all automakers that when they introduce a new model even if it's based on something else sometime new processes new whatever there can be so you're taking a little bit more of a risk when you're looking at a y versus one of their other vehicles you know certainly there are other other options though and so but what about you know one option would be maybe wait about you know a year from now and maybe then would be a good time to think about buying you know get that let them get through any potential kinks in the armor over this next year or so because we know Tesla will update along the way and fix things if that does happen yeah I think like for any vehicle that the tried-and-true now Tesla makes a lot more running changes as they go then got the traditional manufacturers so it is a little hard to say yes wait this period of time but you certainly want to see first your reliability data come out you want to see how Tesla also progressed with model 3 you know model 3 drops off because they focus on why that could be an issue as well and we've seen that with other manufacturers that you know also they focus on the new vehicle and something old drops off and vice versa III find it hard thinking about what other cars to consider because I think about the the Tesla mystique and in some of the Tesla mindset as much like you get into for the owners like I don't think at times if there is another vehicle that a person who has a Tesla and then has one on order with you know it didn't Sarah I mean maybe if you had an S you would go for a take hand just to be new and different you know in that in that stratosphere of price but really I couldn't say like oh you know the Hyundai Kota the Kia and Niro would be a really great option for you it's never a bottle ami it's something it's those cars it's just the way the world is well it's the problem is that I don't know Gary you know I mean like I remember the very first talking cars that we did like a zillion years ago it was actually a call-in show we could like talk to people I had hair I did too well that wasn't that long ago so um but you know it depends on what's important to you so to a lot of people if you're just looking for electric car and you want something to get around you want to be environmentally conscious you know what I mean I wouldn't wouldn't not consider the the Hyundai Kona I mean the Hyundai Kona has a lot going for it it is a very nice vehicle but John you are exactly right and it does not have that Tesla mystique it does not drive like a performance car like the like the Tesla does so it depends on what's important to you and why you're interested your said you just sit down and so he's like why am i interested in Tesla is it because I want something that's like you know just in the future and drives like a sports car and super fast or do I want something because I want to be environmentally responsible I want something electric because there there are other options well on that note we're gonna wrap up this episode you know we're still putting the model Y through testing so we'll continue to have updates as we put it through tests if there are any software updates and any changes we are gonna have some new content coming up soon on Consumer Reports org also please check the show notes below for more information on what we talked about about the model Y and also as always send us your questions talking cars at iCloud comm as always thanks for watching and we'll see you next timewe give our first impressions of the new Tesla Model Y next on talking cars hi everyone and welcome to another episode I'm John linka I'm Mike Monticello and I'm Jake Fisher and this week we have an entire episode dedicated just to one vehicle and it's a Tesla Model why we bought ours anonymously and online like like you do and it finally came in what we got was a 2020 Tesla Model wide long range all-wheel-drive 384 horsepower combined from two electric motors one speed direct drive transmission all-wheel drive like I said the base MSRP for the model y now 41,100 but the initial versions are all of long range so it the $11,990 long range dual motor all-wheel drive option plus we have $7000 full self-driving capability on this adding in $1,200 for destination came out to a total cost of sixty one thousand one hundred ninety dollars we've been waiting for this for a while but with kovat and with some of the factory shut downs and the ramping up took us a little while but it's finally in our possession Jake Mike you both driven it Mike wrote some interesting stuff on CRO of five things that we're gonna kind of look at about the car Jake from drifting the Model S all the way to updating software you're almost like them Tesla guy tell us tell us your first thoughts on this one well first of all I got to correct you because you said full self-driving capability you got to eat those words full self-driving option package different that's totally totally different so thanks for it but I mean we could get into that or get let's get into that later I mean let let's just talk about this as a car so I mean certainly we've been testing Tesla's for a long time and you know I mean going back to you know the original Tesla Model S that we tested back and you know it's 2012 model I mean it's been it's been a while now you gotta really respect the fundamentals of these cars they are quick they are really fun to drive and this test model Y is really no exception I mean it is it's it feels like you're in a sports car um I mean really big picture what the thing is it's basically a model 3 hatchback I have a hard time even calling it a SUV right little taller it's got to hatch in the back certainly a lot more room inside especially that rear seat but fundamentally just it's a blast to drive just like the three quick great handling very balanced so Mike you uh you know you did a story on it and and can you elaborate a bit on what the benefits are of the body style of the Y over the three because that hatchback really does almost solve a deficiency that an immediate efficiency that that's in the three absolutely like Jake says if you look at this car especially in person it like I brought it home and someone said wait that's an SUV because it doesn't look like an SUV it looks like a kind of a taller more bubble-shaped model three but the benefit is you get extra Headroom and especially the rear seat room you know it's it's like it took all the good things about the model three kept them you know all the the quick acceleration the sports car like handling the fantastic driving position I love the driving position in both cars decent fit and finish but it took the bad things about the there are some of the bad things about the model three and made them better now you've got actual Headroom in the rear seat like plenty of headroom in the receipt now there's more rear seat room it's actually comfortable there is some leg support which there's almost no Alexa 4 in the model 3 so adults can sit in the backseat of that thing now you've got a hatchback configuration yeah you could fold the seats down in the model 3 but now you lift that hatchback fold the seats down you've got tons of room in there so I mean it's it's basically a improved model 3 if you think about it that way is it the vehicle that that that changes the definition now for people of SUV to hatchback I mean because let's be honest you know a Honda HRV is a hatchback basically you know all these all these little SUVs are still hatchbacks now all of a sudden there's like anger people saying it's not a SUV it's a hatchback so you know are we back to the hot hatch world is this gonna be where we're going forward I mean I think that time has come and went I mean we have I mean crossover right that's a common vernacular that we keep on using I mean they're just car I mean let's just get over it their car so I'm not the hatch in the back some are a little higher some are a little lower but you know what I don't want to do is kind of say oh it's a hatchback son an SUV like it's a negative it's not a negative at all I mean you have a lot of functionality a lot of room here just because it doesn't have like big side moldings on it or you know big knobby tires is not a deficiency you know it's a lot of you know really good package I think on this ya know it's it seems it's a well packaged vehicle in space wise of sky I was shocked at how much room is in the front just Headroom and and I tend to sit up high and I you know there's a ton of space up here and it almost the seatbelt anchor was really oddly high and I said you know am i sitting low so it's just it is a roomy vehicle and it does take away like Mike said you know some of the deficiencies those the key ones you know space wise did that we saw in the model 3 o n like what you were talking about John with the you know that that driving position because it's got so much glass area yes it has very thick windshield pillars but it has so much glass area and you and the sloping hood because there's no there's no internal combustion engine up there that you've got this great view out they put the you know arm rests are perfectly positioned and nice and comfortable and it's got this small diameter steering wheel just like the model 3 does it just feels like a great position for going on a curvy road you know yeah yeah it I don't want to get in you know a lot of people like go-cart handling it's like driving a little race car no but it is a good drivers cockpit and a great visibility like you said Jake to set to go back to the one of the first thing you talked about though the driving enjoyment of the vehicle because you know for being a SUV or even a hatchback it's almost a hot hatch yeah you know because of its performance yeah I think that's right yeah I mean it's just it's absolutely quick you know great handling I mean you know we keep on talking to all these nice things about it you know and how it kind of you know I like the way you know Mikey the way you put it it kind of solves some of the problems of the three I think what we can't overlook though is it's not solving some problems of three and you know we talked about that small steering wheel the reason that steering so small is because there's no gauges behind it but let's get into that for a little bit goal has those deficiencies of that model three where they've crammed everything into this one screen that is off-center and you know I don't want to make a big deal I find there's no speedometer I got to look off the side of the speedometer I could get over that but I can't well but but put the things that drive me crazy is you know everything is still in this screen I mean they had an opportunity to give it give me give me an adjustment for the for the for the mirrors just like they have in the model you know ask just like they have on the model acts give me an adjustment for that I don't have to go in through menus give me an adjustment for the wipers give me an adjustment for adjusting the steering wheel uh adjust their vents your vents yes you you have to go in through a menu to point the air vent at you which is just really ridiculous yeah you know I was sticking it through and I'm like okay fine you know you want to update it and really think about different things you know something that's very manual is the mirror the rearview mirror that's manual you know I mean you think about like trying to make this convenience we're like you know one of the neat things that Tesla does is they have all these driver profiles you know you get in there and so like oh you know whatever and it knows how I'm sitting and then you know John and Mike you guys have your own settings you know you want to make everything electric why don't you do that for the rearview mirror that would be actually be helpful adjusting the air vents and making them go through this whole pattern where I have to go and you know just that like a graphic equalizer to try to have the thing not go on my face that's just it just change for change sake and another thing the model y still has the model trees kind of strange two-step door opening procedure where you know you push on one side of the door handle and then you pull on the other side you know on the exterior of the car which is that's something they could have addressed they could have fixed but they chose not to and the other thing this was got you know we keep log books on all of our test cars and this model y is no different and you know it has this very thin it's kind of like credit card as its key and you need to place it in a special spot on the center console to start the vehicle and and one of the comments in logbook from our one of our engineers John Sinclair she said ugh she said I misplaced the card in the vehicle it was so much fun trying to find this thin black card inside the black interior of the vehicle she actually lost the cards she couldn't she couldn't start the car anymore yeah I mean the unlocking with that if you don't have the app up you know you're not you you know unlocking locking your car through the app you use the key and you hold against the door pillar but you know I found the number of times I've just trying to kind of play the game and sure you buy the car sure you own the car yes you become super used to that and the door handles and that's the same excuse that people have said since Mercedes had the control cruise control stock up high and you know all kinds of little things it's it's still just it's some of it for me is there for the sake of being there and it's just over the top cutesy catchiness I mean I mean the excuse you know that is that that's not normally how you do it use your phone you walk up to it and that does work well if you're hooked up to it there's other things that we saw with the three we're seeing with y2 including that which is also I mean the ride the ride is really stiff doesn't have to be stiff to handle well we certainly saw that with the Tesla Model S which you know handles great and rides nice too wind noise there's still quite a bit of wind noise on that which is kind of disappointing for a car that shouldn't be so silent and you know if you've driven a Tesla Model S you know what silence is all about so you know it just kind of inherits a lot of those those Jegs issues - is your guess that that wind noise is that because there's just so much glassy area I mean is that do you think that's at least part of what's going on why there's so much wind noise in the 3 on the Y it seems that way but you know the X has a lot of glass area and it doesn't really seem to be that noisy so you know there's there are ways of making it quiet even with that glass area right well you know I I think I mean the whole roof is glass so you're right but the three and the Y does have a lot more glass so maybe that is part of it right the other thing I noticed was that there's like this boom eNOS quality to the interior from the tires there's a fair amount of tire noise not so much constantly but whenever you hit a bump it kind of like booms throughout the cabin you know so there's maybe some noise insulation things going on there as well or lack of you know one one aspect of it is the the minimalist interior and it kind of gets into the whole pro and con of you know of a car good bad for the model three as well is that so much like you said done through the through the screen but also that it there's almost a divide in some in some ways about is it nice and sleek like a bangin all some stereo you know is is it IKEA like you know Swedish furniture like or is it just for goodness sake the car is sixty is thousand dollars and it's really kind of smart and feeling inside you know where do you guys take with what your take on that side that part of it yes its Martin I mean it's it's it's I mean I think I've said it before about the model three and I'll say this is call most like a Chromebook you know of a car you know it's like it's just the stuff you need and they kind of get rid of the stuff you may not need but I don't think anyone is gonna couldn't complain if they give you you know I hate going down the list again okay like a little thing where I could adjust the mirrors I don't get adjust the steering wheel organ it just does it like those don't make the car worse and they don't make the car cluttered you know so there's a little bit you can add to this that would just make it a lot stock for the wipers please come on yeah I don't think that would that would harm the starkness I mean even if they left out the the gauges behind the steering wheel even if they did that but just some of the things that you you shouldn't have to go through menus so I want to switch gears a little bit and get into the safety features on the car because the the Tesla does come with a full complement of safety features forward collision warning automatic emergency braking lane departure warning Lane Keeping Assist it has a blind spot warning system and I think it's part of the full self-driving package but Jake there's there's a little discussion that we've had about that about that system the blind spot system sort of sort of blind spot so first of all I mean there's a couple packages of them it's confusing because there's you know at the optional autopilot and there's the optional full self-driving package now Tesla to their credit they're providing the safety systems that is standard you don't have to go and jump up to all those things so that's terrific and we actually give give the vehicles points for that that they're just saying standard the one caveat is like you talk about the blind spot warning you know and this is one that really we struggle whether or not we really want to call this blind spot warning at all now the car has lots of sensors it's got lots of cameras it certainly knows if there is a vehicle in your blind spot with virtually every other vehicle the blind-spot warning system works is you look in your sideview mirror and it was a vehicle there that you cannot see through that mirror you'll have some kind of indication you might have a light on and on the mirror on the column but where you're looking for that car what Tesla does that you're using that big multifunction screen that they have and they program it so you can see that car in that screen now on the graphics okay kind of makes sense I could see that car there the problems that's not where you're looking know if I'm gonna be turning I'm gonna look over there I'm gonna look at the mirror I'm gonna and see that and that gives me no indication that you're someone in my blind spot so we don't really see that as a functional blind-spot warning system so I know it sounds a little bit nitpicky I mean it's great that they're providing something standard but if people aren't gonna be able to benefit from it we're not really gonna I don't think that's nitpicky Jake I mean I think that's just John the honest truth I like never see that system over there where should it be you we always want eyes up you want eyes up here maybe eyes up over here right so why would you force people to be looking down there honestly it does no benefit to me whatsoever thy I don't think it's much the same like the Honda system that you know the lane watch you know where you know you turn your rate signal on and there's a display in the screen down here but I'm looking here and hoping not to hit the guy over there not looking here and even Hyundai has a system in some of their vehicles where they'll show the image when you put the camera when you turn it on on the turn so they'll show it in it in the display but there's still blind spot work right yeah well it may be this cool thing to see like okay I'm my eyes are drifting I'm seeing there's no cyclist now I'm looking and there's no light but yet the force made it back into the screen yeah I mean and that's the thing it's like it's forcing you so so it means one thing to say okay it's not there where I want it to be and I don't benefit from it but it's like you're almost training the draw ever say okay I'm turning into the left lane now don't look over there look down over here you know and that's a problem like you don't want to be in the habit of looking down into that big messy screen with all that information when you're changing lanes you want to be looking at well we're in relying on it cuz there's there could write time when it's not there if you become something that you're always using the backup camera and you just decide to back out the driveway staring or you're using that system and the one time it's not there but you instinctively go there right it only rely on it that's the potential for the problem so it's not like that sure I don't get it yes I could drive and I've used it and I haven't had a problem but it's not something to be relied on it definitely isn't where your eye should be and that and the fact you don't rely on is not a dig on Tesla at all because all of these systems they certainly help but they're none of them are 100% there help something to kind of assist you rate assist that's the word that we like to use not drivers so that's a lie right I'm gonna rely drive a reliant system that's not what it's go so yes you need to kind of you know have the belt and suspenders too but they go back like you say forward collision warning aiibi pedestrian detection you know lane departure lane keeping yeah all standard which you know not getting necessarily in a lot of other luxury level expensive vehicles right standard across the board and you know that's why Tesla's getting points for the you know for their system that's right um it does bring us to some more software stuff and and we'll we'll go into another new system that's Ana beta and it's a traffic like stop sign detection Mike D tell us a little bit about the the system that that they're rolling out with yeah the model Y so if you turn the system on if you if you tell you know on the center screen that you want the system to work it will automatically bring the car to a stop at a stoplight but keep in mind the way it's designed is it's gonna bring the car to a stop at every red light yellow light green light or a stop sign so if it's if the light is green the car is gonna try to slow down it's going to slow down for and stop it where it should for a stoplight you're gonna need to pay attention on that and it either hit the accelerator pedal or the stalk on the right side and that will the car you want to keep going through it so that's what it's supposed to do which is a little strange because it is beta and they call it beta which autopilot is still beta and that's been around for you know five years it just means that it's not fully developed this is technology that's not fully developed so the car can read the color of the lights so it says it's designed so you could set it so it'll stop it at at at lights and stop signs it can read it and actually it lets you know that you could see it so when we first met when we first enabled us and tried it it would stop at every green light it would show you that it's a green light it could tell it's a green light but it'll still bring the car to a stop and then you hit that you flip either the stock or you hit the gas and you go again bizarre I mean I suppose it's kind of the abundance of safety that they want to they prefer to stop the not stop right but we just got a new update on the vehicle and this changed the behavior of the system so if I could you know the system's call it traffic light and stop sign contract yes so thank you thank you which they may change too who knows with an update but but that is that that is part of the full self-driving package which you know let me let me be super clear this is not a full stealth shopping car at all never not not even close anyway so yes that is this that's we're talking about we just got a new update so now it will go through the green light if there's a car in front of you okay so it's following the car in front of it it's doing the car in front of it is doing right so if the car in front of you is it does car in front of you and it's green it'll go through it if the car if there's no car in front of you will stop at the green lights so I mean it's just it's one of these things where there's updates and they keep on changing the behavior of the way this car drives so it's you know we're gonna be certainly doing a lot more testing of this it makes it almost hard for us to test them because the behavior continues to change we may get an update next week that changes the behavior again but we're going to be looking at this and other systems and we've talked to some of the others that are part of this full I'm doing the air quotes you know full self-driving which is you know the smart summon where could drive around a parking lots not well but you know there's a lot of these little different features I would say I wouldn't call them conveniences or safety at all but they're interesting and we're not definitely gonna do more testing on them I do want to say that when I drove it he didn't have that update that you're talking about Jake but to test less credit it did say you know Tesla did say that it's designed to stop at all stop let's assume they've now updated that explanation as well but they did say this is what it's going to do so it wasn't you know what I mean like if you read through you see that it operated the way they said it was going to it's but at that time it was still just a little weird the way the way it operated but it's also in it go ahead oh just think that's super important you know so I mean it's not that it's malfunctioning its functioning the way it's designed and they changed the design and now its operating the way the new way it's designed I would say in both situations is not operating the way a consumer would expect it to right exactly I want to say like you I think you already touched on a little bit Jake aught if you look on the screen it says auto steer traffic light and stop sign control navigate on autopilot and some and parking feature all still listed as beta yep yeah autopilot is the steering itself which has been over over five years that is listed as beta so I mean the interpretation is just these are not completed features these are still kind of so wise useful it does it does it give people a false sense of security I mean is that well I mean look we're gonna certainly do a lot more testing on that but I think some of these features I mean autopilot we certainly talked plenty about autopilot and that does give you a false feeling security because it is quite reliable most the design you know that that one or two percent that something happens it could be really tragic you know and let me also be clear about all these things are kind of opt-ins you gotta go and kind of it's almost like sign the release you know it's like yes I wanted to do this I wanted to stop at the lights I want it to you could set it so it changes lanes without even warning you if it sees a car then you think wants to go around it these aren't really I mean I certainly don't feel safer and more relaxed when it's doing these types of things so I don't know if people are necessarily going to it's just it's a feature that people could be like wow that's kind of neat but it certainly doesn't make it more relaxing or or safer yeah I think that in the end all this really needs to be brought up that you know this is Tesla's way of going towards full self-driving it's their steps and stages along the way they know it's not a full system they said it's not you know full self-driving even though that's the name of a package yeah you know and it's and it's we're just going along the way as they send updates of course you know we look at the systems and then redo it reevaluate it and look at it and we'll continue to do this so if the stop sign recognition system gets updated along the way again we'll continue to do that and we'll report on it here it does interestingly enough bring a you know a question often we don't get questions about a car you know that we just bought but we have some one gentleman named Gary who said this question says I'd like an electric car update we own a model 3 like the car but the ride is rough in too low we have a model why and order hope it will be better what other cars should we consider you know Jake you know this is something you wanted to talk about just the the similarities and differences but what it means for him for the car being based on a model threat well I mean I think we recovered a lot of the differences right worth of why I mean you're not necessarily going to get a much better ride you're certainly you're gonna have something a little higher and a little more functional I mean I know Mike we were talking before it's like is this is this the model 3 that you should buy here and it is sort of that argument that like if you're gonna buy the model 3 go ahead by the Y the only caveat I would say about that and and you know the model 3 we do have the reliability data of the model y is you know with Tesla they have not been a very consistent performance to reliability it is possible that the Y might go down a little bit in terms of reliability compared to 3 new introduction I mean again this is not even this is relating on Tesla this is just we see this with all automakers that when they introduce a new model even if it's based on something else sometime new processes new whatever there can be so you're taking a little bit more of a risk when you're looking at a y versus one of their other vehicles you know certainly there are other other options though and so but what about you know one option would be maybe wait about you know a year from now and maybe then would be a good time to think about buying you know get that let them get through any potential kinks in the armor over this next year or so because we know Tesla will update along the way and fix things if that does happen yeah I think like for any vehicle that the tried-and-true now Tesla makes a lot more running changes as they go then got the traditional manufacturers so it is a little hard to say yes wait this period of time but you certainly want to see first your reliability data come out you want to see how Tesla also progressed with model 3 you know model 3 drops off because they focus on why that could be an issue as well and we've seen that with other manufacturers that you know also they focus on the new vehicle and something old drops off and vice versa III find it hard thinking about what other cars to consider because I think about the the Tesla mystique and in some of the Tesla mindset as much like you get into for the owners like I don't think at times if there is another vehicle that a person who has a Tesla and then has one on order with you know it didn't Sarah I mean maybe if you had an S you would go for a take hand just to be new and different you know in that in that stratosphere of price but really I couldn't say like oh you know the Hyundai Kota the Kia and Niro would be a really great option for you it's never a bottle ami it's something it's those cars it's just the way the world is well it's the problem is that I don't know Gary you know I mean like I remember the very first talking cars that we did like a zillion years ago it was actually a call-in show we could like talk to people I had hair I did too well that wasn't that long ago so um but you know it depends on what's important to you so to a lot of people if you're just looking for electric car and you want something to get around you want to be environmentally conscious you know what I mean I wouldn't wouldn't not consider the the Hyundai Kona I mean the Hyundai Kona has a lot going for it it is a very nice vehicle but John you are exactly right and it does not have that Tesla mystique it does not drive like a performance car like the like the Tesla does so it depends on what's important to you and why you're interested your said you just sit down and so he's like why am i interested in Tesla is it because I want something that's like you know just in the future and drives like a sports car and super fast or do I want something because I want to be environmentally responsible I want something electric because there there are other options well on that note we're gonna wrap up this episode you know we're still putting the model Y through testing so we'll continue to have updates as we put it through tests if there are any software updates and any changes we are gonna have some new content coming up soon on Consumer Reports org also please check the show notes below for more information on what we talked about about the model Y and also as always send us your questions talking cars at iCloud comm as always thanks for watching and we'll see you next time\n"