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Tesla Model Y gets the full ‘Jay Leno’s Garage’ treatment: ‘It is fun, and it is addictive’

Credit: YouTube | Jay Leno's Garage

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Devoted automotive enthusiast and outspoken Tesla fan Jay Leno got his hands on the Model Y Performance, the electric automaker’s newest crossover. Leno, a retired late-night talk show host, has had a long history of dealing with some of the world’s most impressive and famous cars. From a man whose car collection is worth an estimated $52 million, Leno has seen it all, which makes him an ideal candidate to give an honest and legitimate review of the Model Y.

Leno has a storied history with Tesla vehicles. After coming into contact with the first-ever production model of the Tesla Roadster in 2008, which Elon Musk delivered himself, Leno has owned a 2012 Model S and has also gotten firsthand looks at the Cybertruck and the Next-Gen Roadster.

The Model Y is different, though. It is Tesla’s second “mass-market” vehicle behind the Model 3, and it is expected to be the company’s most popular vehicle. Leno’s thoughts on the car, and his test of the Performance variant’s instant torque, gave plenty of insight for anyone walking the hypothetical tightrope between buying the vehicle and holding off.

Undoubtedly one of Leno’s favorite parts of the Model Y, which also applies to any Tesla vehicle, is the fact that the car is primarily locally sourced. “I like American-made stuff,” he said. While recognizing that Tesla employees do not make some of the car’s parts, the vast majority of the vehicle is. The seats, for example, are manufactured at a facility just a few miles away from where the cars are made in Northern California.

Versatility

Leno’s analysis sheds light on the fact that the car is perfect for the “young family.” The speed, particularly in the Performance variant, is excellent for those who want to have some fun while going from Point A to Point B. Meanwhile, the spacious trunk and fold-down rear seats would adequately pack a canoe, kayak, or simply give the kids enough room to make it to soccer practice comfortably. Leno even states that the Model Y could be the perfect place to sleep in an emergency.

Jay Leno highlights the spaciousness of the Tesla Model Y. (Credit: YouTube | Jay Leno’s Garage)

Heat Pump

The heat pump that Tesla included in the Model Y was all the buzz in early-2020. Leno mentions that the efficiency of a heat pump highlights and compliments the efficiency of the vehicle overall, citing the system’s past uses in other cars. The system was included to help with range loss in cold climates, which was an issue with owners who dealt with long, harsh winters while driving their electric cars.

Tesla Model Y heat pump (Credit: Erik via YouTube)

Interior

Despite recent reports from Edmunds that have stated Tesla’s minimalistic interior design is dangerous and inconvenient, Leno is a fan of what the Model Y looks like from the inside. From the wireless charging to the wood grain dash panel, Leno is in favor of Tesla’s design. It has certainly made the past interior designs of luxury vehicles look more intimidating than they are. Still, a large screen and a couple of steering wheel buttons are self-explanatory, and Leno enjoys it.

Leno enjoys the interior aspect of the Model Y, stating that the wireless charging feature was among his favorite additions. (Credit: YouTube | Jay Leno’s Garage)

Performance

Leno admits that the Y feels a lot like his 2012 Model S, but the Y gives a slightly different experience considering its shape and center of gravity. The build of the car certainly doesn’t take away from the Performance. “You get the speed of a muscle car, with all the load-carrying capacity of a crossover. It’s a very eminently practical vehicle, and it’s fast,” Leno said. “It is fun, and it is addictive.”

The Model Y’s instant torque is impressive, even to a seasoned auto enthusiast like Jay Leno. (Credit: YouTube | Jay Leno’s Garage)

Final Thoughts

Leno is a fan of Tesla, and the Model Y is just another vehicle that he loves. He stated that even though he likes the all-electric crossover, “I’m gonna wait for one of those Roadsters.” Leno does not have any children or grandchildren to haul around, and while he loves the sustainable aspect of Tesla, he has no use for an electric crossover. His Model S is still his daily driver because he believes the environmental impact is crucial and practical, and it fits him and his wife comfortably and in sleek style.

Watch Jay Leno’s extensive review of the Tesla Model Y below.

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Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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EVgo taps Tesla Superchargers for mass charging expansion

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Credit: EVgo

EVgo has tapped Tesla Superchargers for its most recent efforts to expand its charging presence in the United States, a move that seems logical based on the effectiveness of the automaker’s own infrastructure.

EVgo opened its first Supercharger site in Illinois, a 12-stall station near downtown Chicago at 3145 South Ashland Avenue in the Riverside Square & River’s Edge center, right beside a grocery store. This marks the start of the company’s plan to deploy hundreds of Supercharger stalls across the United States, primarily at grocery-anchored Regency Centers properties where drivers can shop, eat, or run errands while they charge.

The new location uses Tesla’s Magic Dock technology so both NACS and CCS vehicles can plug in natively without drivers needing to carry their own adapters. Peak power reaches 325 kW at this site, with pricing set between $0.25 and $0.35 per kWh depending on the hour—the same rate for Tesla and non-Tesla drivers.

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The stalls also appear in Tesla’s in-car navigation and Trip Planner, making them easy for Tesla owners to find and route to. Illinois has seen EV registrations rise nearly 60 percent over the past two years, and EVgo’s broader network has experienced more than 700 percent growth in charging demand over three years, so the timing fits the market’s trajectory.

Choosing Tesla hardware through the Supercharger for Business program turns out to have been a smart, practical move.

Tesla’s V4 stalls and cabinets deliver high, reliable power with a proven track record of strong uptime, while Magic Dock delivers true dual-standard compatibility in one package. Because the sites show up in Tesla’s navigation tools, EVgo instantly gains visibility among millions of existing Tesla drivers, which should raise utilization and help the company double its addressable market as more vehicles adopt NACS. EVgo still owns the stations and sets pricing, yet benefits from Tesla’s established hardware, longer cables, and operational support.

The result is faster, lower-risk infrastructure expansion that serves every EV driver—Tesla or otherwise—with convenient, high-power charging at everyday retail locations. For drivers, that means fewer adapters, more predictable stops, and a denser network just as electric vehicles become everyday transportation.

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Tesla Giga Texas reportedly moves to 24/7 production

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Credit: @JoeTegtmeyer/X

Tesla’s Austin Gigafactory is reportedly shifting to round-the-clock vehicle production through the end of 2026, according to longtime drone observer Joe Tegtmeyer.

In his November 2 update, Tegtmeyer, widely regarded as one of the most reliable independent sources on Giga Texas activity (we call him the Drone GOAT), stated that the plant has added a night shift, creating two 12-hour production shifts.

Tegtmeyer said in his video:

“Now, I do have some interesting news about that when it comes to the production schedule here at Giga Texas, and things are actually looking pretty good, especially when you think about what the demand is and the delivery numbers that they’re looking for and what they’re expecting. So, normally they have shifts Monday through Friday. It’s a day shift and it’s about 10 hours long or so, give or take. But now they’re on day and night shifts and they’re going to 12-hour days. So they’re going to be adding or they have another shift. They have 12 hours for both of them. In addition to that, the typical downtime that we’re going to be seeing around the holidays, specifically Thanksgiving and Christmas to the New Year time frame is actually changed. And we’re not going to see those big several day events where there is no production. At least that’s what the plan is right now. So, it’s really a great sign, I think, when we consider what they’ve done in the past and what production and the deliveries have been so far. So, maybe it’s shaping up to be a really strong quarter.”

Previously, General Assembly typically operated on a single roughly 10-hour day shift, Monday through Thursday or Friday. The new arrangement keeps General Assembly on its Monday-to-Thursday schedule while adding overnight capacity, and most other areas of the factory continue working the full week with some weekend activity.

Notably, the plant is also forgoing the multi-day shutdowns around Thanksgiving and the Christmas–New Year period that have occurred in prior years

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Giga Texas currently builds the Model Y, the larger Model Y L, the Cybertruck, and the Cybercab robotaxi. Tesla has not confirmed the shift change or specified which lines will receive the extra output. Recent comments suggest Cybercab production has been constrained by the pace at which the Robotaxi fleet can absorb new vehicles, making the Model Y and Model Y L the more likely beneficiaries as the company works through order backlogs.

Tegtmeyer’s November 2 footage and commentary also highlighted broader site progress. Cortex 2 continues to expand, with additional compute coming online, a roughly 25 percent lengthening of the structure on the north end, and work on a third cooling plant.

The Boring Company tunnel site showed increased activity in the large launch pit, while the Advanced Technology Chip Fab (a SpaceX–Tesla joint R&D facility) continued steel superstructure and heavy truss installation, along with concrete pours.

The reported capacity increase arrives as Tesla aims for a strong fourth quarter following solid third-quarter results. While unconfirmed by the company, the information aligns with Tegtmeyer’s consistent track record of accurate on-site observations.

If Tesla makes the decision to sustain the all-day production plans, the dual 12-hour shifts would meaningfully raise weekly output potential at one of Tesla’s most important manufacturing hubs.

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Tesla opens new “Cybaer” Engineering Center in Berlin

Tesla opened its Berlin Engineering Center, uniting four sites and 30 labs near Giga Berlin.

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Tesla has opened a new engineering hub in Berlin, putting the teams that design and test its European parts about 30 minutes from the factory that builds them.

The Berlin Tesla Engineering Center, or BTEC, opened Wednesday in the Köpenick district. Tesla Europe said on X that the project went from permit to operational in under a year and consolidates four engineering sites and 30 labs onto a single campus. It is the company’s third hub of this kind, after Fremont and Shanghai.

“We’re combining materials, powertrain, vehicle engineering & validation under one roof, enabling a short feedback loop between development & ramp,” Tesla Europe wrote.

 

Tesla converted the former production halls of a cable factory for the site. About 250 engineers and technicians are starting there, most of them relocated from existing Tesla facilities such as Tilburg in the Netherlands. Tesla has already applied for approval of a second phase that would take the headcount to roughly 500, and it put the total investment at €100 million.

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The labs cover battery cells, motors, materials and complete vehicles, and a large hall is set aside for safety testing of components, including airbags. During the opening, staff demonstrated a pedestrian leg impact test on the front of a Tesla using a catapult rig, Tagesspiegel reported. The center’s logo is a cubist Berlin bear that employees call the “Cybaer.”

Tesla said its Berlin design and engineering teams already contributed to the Model Y, Semi and Roadster, and that the work continues at BTEC. The center will handle technical problem solving for Giga Berlin in Grünheide while also developing and validating parts for vehicles built in China and the United States.

“We came here to stay,” BTEC head Brückner told dpa. “We serve all of Europe via Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg.” He said a site close to the plant was a priority, and that the old industrial building allowed Tesla to move quickly.

That proximity matters more now that Giga Berlin is growing again. In June, Tesla said it would raise Model Y output at the plant to 7,500 vehicles per week and hire 1,000 more workers after a record first quarter of more than 61,000 units. The factory recently built 7,000 Model Ys in a single week for the first time. Tesla also more than doubled the planned 4680 cell capacity at the site to 18 GWh per year in May, and has talked about eventually taking Grünheide to one million vehicles annually.

Sales are giving Tesla reason to invest. KBA data released the same day showed Tesla’s German registrations nearly quadrupled year over year in October to 2,932 units, bringing the total for the first ten months of 2026 to 47,742.

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