This afternoon I just learned that Tesla has quietly downgraded its performance breaks on the Model Y Performance and even put a cover to hide the change in a deceptive move.
When going from the Model Y Long Range to the Performance version, the biggest difference is the improved brakes. The Performance version comes with Brembo brakes which are much more powerful and provide much better stopping performance. The other differences are mostly software related, such as faster acceleration and a higher top speed, but these are essentially the same powertrain. There are also bigger wheels in the Performance version, but this could be seen as either a positive or a negative by the consumer. Overall, the improved brakes are the biggest difference and arguably the most significant improvement when upgrading to the Performance version.
However, we now learn that Tesla has downgraded the Model Y Performance brakes and has done it in a very quiet way.
ZEV Centric, a company building accessories for Tesla vehicles, spotted and exposed the change. A few days ago they had a tweet about it, that went viral.
Zev Centric wrote a blog post on its website about Tesla’s performance brake downgrade and you can see the link in the description of this video. In that blog post, it said “As many of you might already know our tweet on 01/07/23 went a bit viral and is still trending. In September of last year we first noticed that the rear caliper had changed on the Performance Model Y to a Mando with a metal cover plate. This was a bit disconcerting considering we love the performance parts we "think" we are paying for when getting a "Performance Package." We immediately notified some of our brake pad vendors so that they could update their brake pad application list. Some time passed and we had hoped this was just a temporary change to the production line up due to supply chain shortages but then realized it seemed to be a more permanent change when we took delivery of our 2023 Performance Model Y at the end of December.”
ZEV Centric was working on some customers’ Tesla Model Ys and some of their own Model Y vehicles and discovered the downgrade. They said “We already have a 2020 MYLR and a 2022 MYP that belong to other members of the company and now have added a company owned 2023 MYP to further develop. We brought all 3 into the office to do some comparisons and a quick tear down. It was at this time that we opted to snap some photos, shoot some video, take some measurements, and reveal what is hiding behind the rear covers. Little did we know that not many people were aware of this downgrade and Tesla still markets it as a performance upgrade on their website.”
Armen Hareyan is the founder and the Editor in Chief of Torque News. He founded TorqueNews.com in 2010, which since then has been publishing expert news and analysis about the automotive industry. He can be reached at Torque News Twitter, Facebok, Linkedin and Youtube.
