Done deal! Tesla Model YL six-seater confirmed for Australia; top-selling electric SUV family set to expand within months
Tesla’s long-rumoured six-seat Model Y has been confirmed for Australia, with newly published Australian Design Rule (ADR) approval documents detailing a stretched, heavier and more family-focused variant of the country’s best-selling EV.
The updated Road Vehicle Descriptor (RVD) for the Tesla Model Y lists a new variant coded YL5NDB with a maximum seating capacity of six, making it the first three-row Model Y approved for the Australian market.
The six-seat YL is not just a seating tweak but a physically larger vehicle designed to accommodate three rows of seats in a 2-2-2 configuration.
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It measures 4969mm in overall length with a 3040mm wheelbase, making it 177mm longer and with an additional 150mm stretch between the front and rear wheels compared with the regular Model Y.
The documentation also shows the YL tips the scales at 2088kg, making it 96kg heavier than the 1992kg Model Y Long Range.
The Model YL will run Tesla’s familiar dual-motor all-wheel-drive setup.
The front motor (codenamed 3D3) makes 137kW and 219Nm while the rear motor (codenamed 3D7) makes 194kW and 340Nm.
Combined the two can theoretically produce up to 331kW and 559Nm, assuming the two motors can make their maximums at the same time.
However, the Australian certification documentation for the Model Y Long Range claims the “net engine power” is 378kW.
Either way, it should be plenty – and give the Model YL brisk acceleration.
The regular Model Y Long Range is claimed to hit 100km/h in as little as 4.8 seconds; with the extra kilos to shift we’d expect that to extend to something like five seconds in the six-seater.
The Model YL rides on new 19-inch wheels, matching the diameter used on the Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive and Long Range.
However, there’s a staggered tyre setup: 255/45R19 tyres at the front and wider 275/45R19 tyres at the rear.
That makes the rear tyres 20mm broader than the standard 255mm items fitted to other 19-inch Model Y variants.
The two images of the car provided in the government documentation (at the top of this story and below) show it in its pre-delivery state with protective tape round the windows and door handles; expect it to boast the same black highlights as other Model Ys.
It also looks like getting a standard rear spoiler, for a sportier appearance.
However, it misses out on the unique bumpers of the Model Y Performance.
VIN prefixes listed in the ADR approval begin with “LRW”, confirming the six-seat Model Y will be sourced from Tesla’s Shanghai factory, the same Chinese plant that currently supplies all Australian-delivered Model 3s and the current Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive and Long Range variants (the Model Y Performance that went on sale in 2025 is currently sourced from Germany).
Tesla Australia has yet to announce pricing or timing for the new variant, but its positioning appears clear.
The current Model Y Long Range is priced at $68,900 before on-road costs, while the flagship Performance commands $89,400. Given the YL shares the Long Range’s 378kW dual-motor drivetrain but adds a stretched body and third row, it is likely to sit between the two, potentially in the $75,000 to $80,000 range before on-road costs.
With ADR approval now in place, the Model YL’s local launch appears only a matter of time, with Tesla typically working quickly to get cars onto its website ahead of deliveries soon afterwards.
When contacted for comment a Tesla Australia spokesperson said there was nothing to announce.
We’d expect that to change in the near future.
