Tesla has officially started production of the new Model Y Performance at its Giga Berlin factory in Grünheide, Germany, marking another milestone in the company’s European expansion.
The start of production was announced by the Tesla Manufacturing account on X, sharing a photo of six freshly built Model Y Performance vehicles parked outside the factory, each finished in a different paint colour, including the new Diamond Black.
The company also shared a photo of the team behind the launch of production.
The Giga Berlin Team behind the Model Y Performance Launch pic.twitter.com/jaSODi72jH
— Tesla Manufacturing (@gigafactories) September 1, 2025
The start of Model Y Performance production comes just weeks after Giga Berlin reached a significant achievement: building its 100,000th refreshed Model Y. This milestone highlights the pace at which the factory, which only began operations in 2022, has scaled up.
Performance Variant Reserved for Europe
While Canadian customers now receive Model Y units directly from Germany, the newly introduced Performance variant remains exclusive to the European market. Tesla made the decision to import Model Y vehicles from Giga Berlin into Canada after adjusting pricing in July to avoid the added costs of tariffs on U.S.-made models. The move brought Canadian pricing to below pre-tariff levels, giving customers more affordable access to the popular SUV.
However, the Performance trim—which features upgraded aerodynamics, sport-tuned handling, new design features inside and out, and improved acceleration capabilities—has not yet been extended beyond Europe. Instead, Canadian buyers only have access to the Long Range configurations shipped from Germany, but must wait to see when Tesla decides to expand the Performance option to North America.
Over the weekend, Tesla began assigning the first VINs of Model Y vehicles from Giga Berlin to Canadian customers, indicating the first deliveries of German-made Model Ys in Canada should start later this month.
