Tesla has been teasing the existence of an “affordable” model for years. The idea first surfaced in 2020 during a battery event, when CEO Elon Musk said denser batteries would allow the company to build a $25,000 car. Rumors of the mythical cheap Tesla stuck around until Musk squashed any plans of such a vehicle back in October, calling it “silly and pointless.”
The company hasn’t completely given up on breaking into a more affordable segment, telling investors it plans to launch cheaper models by the end of 2025. Tesla will reveal its first affordable model tonight—but it won’t be an entirely new car. As confirmed by Musk back in July, it’ll just be a Model Y with less standard equipment.
The Model Y in question should look a bit different, too, if these spy shots taken of an undisguised prototype turn out to be legit. These photos, published to X by user Ryan Mable and shared by The Verge, show a white Model Y with slightly revised fascias running on Florida manufacturer plates driving around near Tesla’s Austin, Texas headquarters.
How Different Will It Look?
The most obvious difference lies in the nose, where there’s no longer a lightbar uniting the two headlights. The car in these photos has that space occupied by an extended bumper area. The updated, slimmer headlights from the normal Model Y are still present, though. Out back, the central taillight has been replaced by what looks to be a black piece of plastic, and all badging has been removed. The tailgate piece has also been redesigned to reach over into the lower black plastic portion of the bumper, which looks kinda awkward.
@SawyerMerritt spotted an uncovered cheaper Model Y variant driving near Giga Texas pic.twitter.com/Fy6devXree
— Ryan Mable (@RyanMable) October 2, 2025
These images match up with a photo shared by The Tesla Newswire, a fan account on X that tracks Tesla happenings. The image, shared earlier this month, shows an identically restyled Model Y that was, according to that account, lifted from code within Tesla’s own website. It’s impossible to make any guarantees without an official announcement, but considering that, plus the manufacturer plate, this car is likely what we’ll be seeing revealed later tonight.
What Will The Cheap Model Y Be Missing?
Tesla hasn’t made any official statements with regard to standard equipment or specs, but that hasn’t stopped people from finding out what to expect. The Verge cites a hacker on X who goes by GreenTheOnly, who claims to have discovered exactly what the cheap Model Y will be missing compared to its more expensive counterpart in a tweet published last month, citing Tesla’s own firmware:
simplified fiberglass headliner
simplified cabin lighting (footwell only)
simplified seat controls (single axis)
no power mirror folding
no puddle lamps
no glass roof
no second row display
no tpms
simplified 18″ wheels— green (@greentheonly) September 20, 2025
In case you can’t see the above tweet, some subtractions to the cheap Model Y could include obvious cost-cutting moves, like no glass roof, no second-row display, a cheaper fiberglass headliner, no power-folding mirrors, simpler seat controls, and smaller 18-inch wheels. Weirdly, this hacker also reports that the cheap Model Y won’t have a tire pressure monitoring system, even though TPMS sensors have been mandatory in the United States since 2007. If I had to guess, it’s possible their data was tied to a car destined for sale outside of the U.S.
The hacker, as well as Electrek, say the affordable Model Y will also have a “downgraded” suspension setup. But while the hacker says there will be rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive options, Electrek seems to think the car will be rear-wheel drive only. That is to say, we won’t know for sure just how much stuff has been taken out until Tesla reveals all the info.
How Much Will It Cost?
Tesla hasn’t released a number, per se, but its German CEO leaked a few details on the car yesterday ahead of tonight’s reveal, including some hints about its design and an approximate starting price. From German publication Handelsblatt:
The US electric car manufacturer Tesla plans to launch a light version of its Model Y this year. German CEO André Thierig announced this at an internal event on Monday at the Tesla plant in Grünheide. Series production and delivery will begin “in a few weeks.”
The Model Y Standard has a “completely redesigned front, completely new bumpers, a completely redesigned rear, and different lights. It simply looks like a different car,” Thierig said at the launch. Regarding the planned price, the plant manager said: “It will be about ten percent cheaper than the current Model Y.”
Let’s do the math here. The current Model Y starts at $44,990 before destination charges. Ten percent of that number is $4,499. Subtract that from the car’s MSRP, and you get $40,491. This lines up with the $40,000 starting price rumored by several outlets already. The lowest I’ve seen reported is $39,990, by that Tesla fan page I mentioned earlier.
The ironic part about all of this is that up until recently, the current Model Y was actually cheaper than this new model, thanks to the $7,500 federal tax credit. Previously, you could’ve gotten a nicer Model Y for less money. But now, because of the disappearing incentive, you’ll be paying more for a car with less equipment.
Would You?
It’s unclear right now whether Tesla will extend that $6,500 lease credit it came up with at the start of the month to owners of the cheaper Model Y. That would make the car way more palatable for buyers looking to save some cash. Because while $39,990 is certainly cheaper, it’s definitely not cheap. It’s also nowhere near that magical $25,000 mark promised by Musk all those years ago.
This begs the question: What would you be willing to pay for a stripped-out Model Y? I think that $35,000 mark is the sweet spot here; it would put the car right in line with cars like the Hyundai Kona Electric and the Chevrolet Equinox EV, two of the cheapest electric cars on the market. Otherwise, I don’t see a way to justify buying the Tesla over either of those cars (especially the Chevy, which gets over 300 miles of range).
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Definitely not. The competitors at that price aren’t that de-contented. And a budget-looking version of an already plain looking car will look downright cheap for a 40K car. That being said, I’m not a potential Tesla customer. This may bring in a few extra customers though, as it inches ever so slightly towards affordability.
No, I wouldn’t.
How do you take a stripped down, minimalist interior and cut more than $5000 from the cost? Contract the interior to GM? Even if I was inclined to like Tesla (I’m not), I still think their cars are ugly.
Not in a billion years would I be caught dead in this derp-mobile or any of the brand’s other offerings.
Yeah even if it was free, I’d rather walk than be mistaken for someone who would buy a Tesla in 2025.
I can still wait a few years and buy it for half. And only if Elon is no longer in charge.
Can it NOT include any phony self-driving bullshit? That should cut the price, eh?
Might as well market directly to Uber and Lyft drivers.
For that kind of money, I could have a fleet of clapped-out 2000’s era BMWs. Hey, as long as one of the fifteen is working, I’ll always have a daily driver.
As a taxi passenger, I find the “full price” Y to be extremely uncomfortable, unpleasant, and uninviting. A de-contented version has to be worse. So no.
Even putting aside the horrible politics, ethical issues and overall cringe of the company’s owner…this whole car looks looks like it was conceived at 4pm on a Friday. Just a completely lazy and uninspired taxi-spec version of a car that’s been on the road for 6 years with only a minor facelift to show for it.
I think this could be made cheaper still. Could Tesla do some more de-contenting?
Like rather than an expensive touchscreen that controls everything, could they cheap out and put buttons and dials on, and control stalks for wipers/ lights and turn signals?
Manually operated glove box?
Is there anything else we can take off, like removing the computer that automatically drives it onto train tracks?
The less it costs, the more likely people are to take a chance and buy one.
The problem is that all of those “cheaper” options would need full development, from scratch.
I’m pretty sure the touch screen comes out cheaper than physical switches (aside from the glovebox). That’s why companies like them. The story they tell us is that it’s “futuristic” but really it’s just cheap.
Plus the screen and other hardware will need to be replaced a lot sooner than buttons and knobs would. You know who supplies the screens and hardware?
It’s 2025, a random 16″ 2.5K portable monitor costs under $200 (possibly under $100 unassembled in bulk), and the latest flagship smartphone SoC is ~$200. Throw in $80 for 16GB of RAM and $80 for a 1TB SSD, and that’s $560 for a very heavy overestimate for parts that were always going to be needed no matter how many buttons and knobs could realistically be present.
A manual glovebox is reasonable, but reduced ADAS specs is significant engineering, and removing ADAS altogether is not possible due to IIHS safety rating requirements.
As an EV owner for >12 years and well >100k miles, I can firmly say there is absolutely no scenario I would buy a Tesla if Elon benefits in any way, especially when there is perfectly good competition out there.
So overwhelmingly looking at the responses, “No, Elon is a Nazi”.
I’ll add that paying just 10% less to get an even shittier Model Y is not an appealing proposition. And Elon is a Nazi.
No. My dollars seem to be the last vote that counts in the dystopia we’ve blundered into. They aren’t great cars and they have been designed for me to not be able to fix them in the long-term. My ability to repair even serious problems with our family fleet, right in the garage, has kept us mobile and saved tens of thousands over the years. Who supports this company and their corrupt approach?