2026 Tesla Model Y Performance First Drive Review: Speedy, Now With More Refinement

• The Tesla Model Y Performance tops the electric SUV's lineup.
• With 510 horsepower on tap and an estimated 0-to-60-mph time of 3.3 seconds, it's still tremendously quick for the price.
• Upgraded front seats and a new screen spruce up the interior.

— Palo Alto, California

Approaching the 2026 Tesla Model Y Performance gave me flashbacks. See, Edmunds kept a 2020 Model Y Performance in the garage well past the usual one-year, 20,000-mile stretch, and in that time, it proved to have great performance chops, but it presented significant issues as well. There were problems with build quality and persistent rattles throughout the cabin, and its range never lived up to its estimate. But the biggest problem was its suspension, to the point that senior features editor Clint Simone deemed the Model Y Performance "the worst-riding car I've ever driven in my entire life." I can't say I blame him.

Thankfully, Tesla addressed these concerns. After just a short time behind the wheel, it became immediately apparent that the Model Y Performance had changed for the better.

High-quality ride

The Model Y Performance has a new adaptive suspension. Compared to the standard Model Y, there are stiffer sway bars and new bushings to help control the SUV's weight under aggressive driving. There are two suspension settings — Regular and Sport — and both are light-years better than what you got in the outgoing Model Y. In its Regular setting, the ride is a hair stiffer than what you're getting in the Model Y Premium, but it still deals with bumps, potholes and pavement expansion joints without any drama. For something with 21-inch wheels and pretty low-profile tires, the sense of road isolation is really impressive. And the cabin is whisper quiet, even at highway speeds. 

This represents a complete turnaround from the last-generation Model Y. In fact, my biggest complaint about the new setup is that I wish the Sport setting dialed up the stiffness even more. The difference between the two settings isn't that noticeable, and on the winding roads south of San Francisco, California, I ended up wanting a bit more stiffness to counteract the body roll through tighter turns.

The same thing be said about the steering. The Model Y Performance has three settings — Light, Standard and Heavy — and I was hoping for more weight from the wheel across the board. The Y lacks the darty feeling of the Model 3 Performance. But Tesla says this was by design, to better match the suspension and the fact that the Model Y Performance has to do double duty as a family car, not just a performance car.

Plenty of go

Power has been increased to 510 horsepower, 50 more hp than what you get in the Model Y Premium. This also decreases the Y's 0-to-60-mph time to an estimated 3.3 seconds.

With or without the launch control activated, this thing has plenty of off-the-line burst. The Model Y Performance comes standard with all-season tires, so there's a bit of squeal when you're launching, but after a slight hesitation, power comes on immediately. This EV offers way more straight-line speed than you'd need from any family vehicle but, hey, you're buying the Performance for a reason. 

One difference between the Model Y Performance and the Model 3 Performance: no Track mode. Tesla tells me that its data indicates that people weren't using it enough in the last generation of vehicles, so it was removed. There is a reduced stability control mode, but the nannies are still too aggressive for my liking. A set of more aggressive settings would unlock the vehicle's full performance potential. 

My biggest complaint while driving the new Model Y Performance is braking. Not the performance, but the lack of feel from the pedal, and that under hard braking the antilock braking system activates but you don't get any feedback or pulses, just a small pop-up on the screen, which, because Tesla, isn't actually in front of you. Plus, with the tendency of the Model Y's rear end to get a bit squirrely during panic stops, the lack of pedal feel is disconcerting.

Interior and styling upgrades

It's not just performance bits that have been added, there are also unique front seats with added bolstering and a new 16-inch center touchscreen. These seats are my favorites of all the available Model Y chairs; they keep you in place without pinching your sides and also now offer an extendable thigh support, along with heating and ventilation.

The new screen doesn't feel like a big change from the old one, mostly because increasing from 15.4 inches to 16 inches in size isn't that noticeable. But the exterior cameras do seem a bit sharper, and if you're streaming video on the screen while parked, it will look even better.

On the outside, you'll notice a carbon-fiber lip spoiler (matched by carbon-fiber inserts on the dashboard) and a large rear diffuser to help optimize air flow. But the best styling upgrade are the 21-inch wheels — you can even pop out those plastic inserts if you want to make them look even meaner.

Go fast, go far

Tesla engineers told me that as a family vehicle, it was important for the Model Y to still offer over 300 miles of range, even with its Performance upgrades. Helping to achieve that is a battery pack with new chemistry that has more capacity (84 kWh) without growing the size and weight of the pack. Range has climbed up to an EPA-estimated 306 miles, just 21 miles behind the Premium AWD. And of late, Tesla's vehicles have been achieving ranges much closer to their estimates in our testing, so we can't wait to see how this one does on the Edmunds EV Range Test.

The Model Y Performance starts at $58,880 including destination charges, and my test vehicle cost $66,880 thanks to the addition of the $8,000 Full Self-Driving (Supervised) package (something we'd suggest most folks skip).

This new Model Y Performance still delivers blistering straight-line performance, but in a significantly upgraded package. You're still getting the family-friendly cargo and passenger space the Model Y is known for, with a suspension that has been properly softened to allow you to drive this SUV every day without complaint.

Photos by Brian Wong