Tesla Model Y is Electrek’s vehicle of the year
For 2023, Electrek has decided to make the Tesla Model Y its vehicle of the year. Well, it’s not as much us who decided, car buyers did.
With Model Y becoming the first electric vehicle to become the best-selling car in the world, how can we not make it the vehicle of the year?
Generally, when choosing a new vehicle of the year, publications choose new vehicles that launched that year. And there were plenty of fantastic new electric vehicles that came to market in 2023.
But we feel it’s more appropriate to choose the electric vehicle that has had the best impact this year, and by that criteria, I think Model Y is the undeniable winner.
Throughout the year, Model Y has broken records across many markets by not only becoming the best-selling electric vehicle but also becoming the best-selling vehicle period in those markets.
Last year, Model Y already became the fourth best-selling vehicle in the world behind only the Ford F-Series, Toyota Rav4, and Toyota Corolla.
Model Y was at about 750,000 units, while the Corolla was sitting in first with 1.1 million.
In 2023, with all those new records in massive markets, the electric vehicle is on track to beat that number while the Corolla is slightly down.
That should make the Tesla Model Y the best-selling passenger vehicle in the world in 2023.
Tesla achieved that by adding Model Y production to Gigafactory Texas and Berlin on top of the existing production in Fremont, California, and Shanghai, China.
On the demand side, Tesla had to cut prices throughout the year to keep orders coming in amid increasing interest rates, but the automaker was able to do that thanks to its industry-leading gross margin.
The feat is also impressive considering the fact that Model Y starts at exactly twice the $22,0000 starting price of the Corolla in the US.
Most of the industry laughed at Elon Musk when the CEO estimated the demand for the Model Y between 500,000 and 1,000,000 units per year back in 2016.
Now, it’s even exceeding that.
It’s hard to overstate the impact of having an electric vehicle program now reaching 1 million units annually and becoming the best-selling passenger car in the world.
Tesla’s mission was always to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles both directly with its own vehicles and indirectly by putting pressure on the industry. The Model Y managed to do both by adding an enormous number of EVs on the road that are replacing gas mileage and by showing the rest of the industry that if they want to have the best-selling car now, it needs to be electric.
Tesla Model Y
It’s clear why Model Y sells so well. It took everything Tesla did great with Model 3, and there’s a lot of that, and made it into a form factor that fits the most popular segment in the world: small SUVs/crossovers.
The vehicle has the performance and driving dynamics of a sports car, the cargo space of a small SUV, and that’s subjective, obviously, but it looks fantastic.
The design is simple yet strong. Many say it looks too much like Model 3, but can’t you blame Tesla if it happens that Model 3’s design transforms so well into a crossover?
Model Y can also have a factory tow package with a small but still useful 3,500-lbs towing capacity. This contributes to making Model Y a sort of Swiss army knife of a car.
The Model Y also has the same advantages as all Tesla vehicles, like the over-the-air software updates that make the vehicle better (for the most part) every few months.
I know that the spartan interior of the Model Y is a bit polarizing, but I like it:
It’s not crowded with buttons and controls. Even the AC fans and speakers are hidden. It helps create a zen feeling to the vehicle’s interior. Whenever I sit in my Model 3 (very similar interior to Model Y), I feel relaxed, which is a welcomed feeling when you are about to sit Montreal traffic for an hour.
Also, if you haven’t sat in the latest generation of Model Y and Model 3, I would recommend it. Tesla has made a lot of improvements to its seats. I understand that it depends on your body type, but it is perfect for me (6’0″, 180 lbs).
The Full Self-Driving package is a wild card, and its value depends on your faith in Tesla delivering on its promise, but Autopilot is a solid level 2 driver assist system.
If I was going to list all the cool technology in the Model Y, we would be here all day, but as a Northerner, I want to mention the very efficient heat pump in Model Y. It’s a game changer for winter driving in colder climates.
With all that technology, smart design, and performance, a starting price of $44,000, which is $4,000 less than the average new car price in the US, and up to 330 miles of range, it’s easy to see why Model Y would be so popular.
It’s so popular that it is now the best-selling passenger car in the world. But today, it receives its biggest honor yet: being Electrek’s vehicle of the year.
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The all-electric luxury electric SUV is getting significantly cheaper. Lexus launched a new entry-level 2025 RZ trim with starting prices over $10,000 less than last year’s model. And you get just as much driving range.
2025 Lexus RZ electric SUV prices and driving range
Lexus launched its first dedicated EV last year, the RZ electric SUV. Starting at $55,175, the 2024 Lexus RZ 300e has a range of up to 266 miles.
The 2024 RZ 450e AWD, equipped with its dual-moto DIRECT4 system, has a range of up to 196 miles. Prices start at just under $60,000. Both models are offered in Premium or Luxury packages.
Lexus is drastically lowering prices for the 2025 model year. The 2025 Lexus RZ starts at $43,975, and that includes the $1,175 delivery fee.
At under $44,000, prices for the 2025 RZ start at over $10,000 less than last year’s model. The lower price tag comes as Lexus added a new entry-level RZ 300e FWD trim to the lineup.
The 2025 Lexus RZ 300e FWD still has an EPA-estimated 266-mile range (18″ wheels), so despite the lower price, it’s no loss from last year’s model. It’s powered by a 72.8 kWh battery pack from global leader CATL.
Lexus modified the subframe for the FWD model, replacing the rear eAxle from the AWD model. The result is a quieter, smoother drive.
Powered by a 71.4 kWh battery, the 2025 RZ 450e AWD has an EPA-estimated driving range of up to 220 miles (18″ wheels).
| 2025 Lexus RZ model | Starting Price* | EPA-estimated Driving Range |
| RZ 450e AWD | $48,675 | 220 miles |
| RZ 450e Premium AWD w/ 18″ Wheel | $52,875 | 220 miles |
| RZ 450e Premium AWD w/ 20″ Wheel | $54,115 | 196 miles |
| RZ 450e Luxury AWD | $58,605 | 220 miles |
| RZ 300e FWD | $43,975 | 266 miles |
| RZ 300e Premium FWD w/ 18″ Wheel | $48,175 | 266 miles |
| RZ 300e Premium FWD w/ 20″ Wheel | $49,415 | 224 miles |
| RZ 300e Luxury FWD | $53,905 | 266 miles |
The 2025 Lexus RZ is available in three grades. These include the new entry-level model, in addition to the current Premium and Luxury trims.
Inside, the electric SUV has a minimalistic feel with a standard 14″ infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support at the center.
You can also opt for the available 10″ head-up display (HUD), Mark Levinson Surround Sound System, and a host of safety features.
The flat platform provides a spacious interior with 37.52″ of rear legroom, nearly as much as the second row of a Ford Explorer (39″).
With the 2025 model arriving at dealerships soon, Lexus is offering closeout prices on 2024 models with up to $18,500 in lease cash discounts. You can use our link to find the best offers on the Lexus RZ at a dealer near you today.
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Environment
‘Political malpractice’ if Trump undoes climate-geared Biden projects, outgoing U.S. energy secretary says
U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm speaks to the media on day five at the UNFCCC COP29 Climate Conference on November 15, 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty Images
A potential decision by Donald Trump to walk back the Biden administration’s climate-geared projects would impact jobs in areas governed by the President-elect’s own party, outgoing U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told CNBC, urging consistency in Washington’s green transition policies.
Referencing the White House’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement — a 2015 treaty in which nearly 200 governments made non-binding pledges to reduce greenhouse emissions — during Trump’s first mandate, Granholm said the U.S. pressed ahead with projects linked to the green transition that members of Congress wanted to undertake in their districts.
“We are now building all of these projects. We’re building batteries for electric vehicles, we’re building the vehicles, we’re building the offshore wind turbines, we’re building the solar panels. And all of those are factories. And those factories are in districts of members of Congress,” she told CNBC’s Dan Murphy on Friday at the COP29 U.N. climate conference held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
She estimated that 80% of the funding from U.S. President Joe Biden’s legacy bills — the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — went to U.S. districts represented by Republican leadership.
“It would be political malpractice to undo those opportunities when people are just now getting hired,” she said, stressing benefits to the manufacturing sector and noting that the business community of the world’s largest economy and oil producer now wants a clear course from Washington on its climate policy.
“This isn’t about in [the Paris Agreement], out, shifting back and forth. Let’s have a consistent practice,” she said.
When asked for a response on Granholm’s comments, Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for Trump’s transition team, said the president-elect will “deliver” on the promises he made on the campaign trail.
International focus has now shifted on the shape of the U.S.’ future role in global climate policy, as Trump prepares to take the helm at the White House for a second mandate in January, following a sweeping victory against Democrat candidate Kamala Harris. Trump — who has yet to announce his own pick to lead the U.S. Department of Energy — put hydrocarbons at the front and center of his campaigning agenda, pledging to “end Biden’s delays in federal drilling permits and leases that are needed to unleash American oil and natural gas production.”
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in March said that the country already “produced more crude oil than any nation at any time” for the past six years to 2023, averaging a crude oil and condensate production of 12.9 million barrels per day that year — breaking the previous U.S. and global record of 12.3 million barrels per day recorded in 2019, during Trump’s first mandate.
Yet Granholm on Friday stressed that the clean transition is also “unleashed” and will take place regardless of who is leading the White House — and that ignoring climate change risks sacrificing Washington’s position as a frontrunner in the blooming decarbonization industry.
“Why would we take a second, a backseat to an economic competitor like China?” she asked. “They have an economic strategy, they want to be number one. So if we get out of the game, we’re just going to cede that territory all over again. It’s bad strategy for the United States and for workers and for communities across the country.”
As the world braces for the possibility of a second U.S. exit from the Paris Agreement, some climate activists note that the green transition has now gained a different global momentum than during Trump’s first turn at the White House:
“There is no denying that another Trump presidency will stall national efforts to tackle the climate crisis and protect the environment, but most U.S. state, local, and private sector leaders are committed to charging ahead,” Dan Lashof, U.S. director of the World Resources Institute, said in a Nov. 6 statement.
“Donald Trump heading back to the White House won’t be a death knell to the clean energy transition that has rapidly picked up pace these last four years.”
Granholm also identified potential support in Trump’s current entourage, which this week welcomed business tycoon Elon Musk as the president-elect’s choice to head a new Department of Government Efficiency, alongside conservative activist Vivek Ramaswamy:
“His right-hand man, Elon Musk, is somebody who has been strongly in favor of products that … address climate change. Obviously, he’s the founder of Tesla,” Granholm pointed out.
Musk’s environmental stance has come under question over the years, shifting from telling Rolling Stone magazine that “climate change is the biggest threat that humanity faces this century, except for AI” and backing carbon taxes to holding that the world needs hydrocarbon supplies as a bridge to renewable energy.
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