Tesla Model Y wins News Corp Car of the Year

In a hotly contested field including sports cars, utes, SUVs and four-wheel-drive wagons, a relative newcomer has taken the gong for best new car.

The Tesla Model Y has been named News Corp’s Car of the Year for 2022, eclipsing Ford’s locally designed and engineered Ranger ute.

The Model Y, which arrived in Australia in August and was the number one selling SUV in September, attracted six out of seven votes from the judging panel. The Ranger scored one vote.

The Tesla is the second EV to win the award in the past two years.

READ FULL DETAILS OF CAR OF THE YEAR HERE

The verdict comes just days after the Senate passed the Electric Car Discount Bill, which waives the fringe benefits tax on electric vehicles leased through salary sacrifice arrangements.

The tax break means a Model Y buyer could save up to $5000 a year in lease payments.

The Tesla Model Y has won News Corp’s Car of the Year award. Picture: Thomas Wielecki.

Leasing experts predict that a Model Y will work out $2600 cheaper than the popular Toyota RAV Cruiser Hybrid AWD over a four-year lease term. The calculation is based on an employee earning $100,000 a year and driving 15,000km a year.

Electric vehicles have typically cost thousands of dollars more than their petrol rivals, limiting their appeal to buyers.

But Tesla appears to have overcome that hurdle, attracting more than 15,000 buyers in the first ten months of the year. It dominates the local EV market, accounting for two-thirds of all sales.

All eight finalists were judged against our criteria of value for money, performance, design, technology and safety.

A strong field of finalists greeted the judges this year. Picture: Thomas Wielecki

While the Tesla lost points for its relatively high price, judges noted that low servicing costs and high predicted resale values worked in its favour. Many low-kilometre used Teslas are selling for thousands of dollars more than they cost new.

The judging process highlighted the inherent driving advantages of electric vehicles over petrol and diesel-powered cars. The Tesla was quicker off the mark than most, quieter and smoother to drive. It was also impressively spacious, taking advantage of the extra space freed up by the lack of an engine, petrol tank and exhaust system.

While its 450km driving range will limit its appeal to those wanting to tow and travel large distances, it will suit the majority of buyers, given the fact that roughly 85 per cent of the population lives in urban areas and the average commute is about 16 kilometres.

The final three: the Ford Ranger and BYD Atto 3 were runners-up in this year’s event. Picture: Thomas Wielecki

Ford’s Ranger can travel more than double the distance and can tow 3.5 tonnes, but it is unwieldy, thirsty and uncomfortable to drive around town.

Technology was another strong suit for the Tesla. It allows owners to monitor the car and its surrounds remotely via camera feeds to a smartphone and can upload new features via over-the-air updates. If you’re at the beach on a hot day, you can turn on the airconditioning via your phone so the car is pre-cooled for your trip home.

Top of the pops: the Tesla Model Y. Picture: Thomas Wielecki

While the car is recharging, you can watch Netflix or play online games using the car’s steering wheel.

The Tesla also nailed the safety brief. It received the highest adult occupant protection score ever recorded by independent crash testing body ANCAP and also had the highest score for accident avoidance tech.

Tesla’s semi-automated driving features such as lane-keeping, adaptive cruise control and auto emergency braking work more seamlessly than most in the industry.