When Tesla released the Model Y earlier this year, Canadians were very happy to hear it included a heat pump. Ditching the old heater from the Model 3, the new heat pump was supposed to be make the electric SUV more efficient, especially in cold weather.
Since it was released in the spring in the US and early summer in Canada, we had to wait until the cold weather returned to see our first real-world efficiency tests.
The latest test comes from Paul, otherwise known as Tesla Canuck on YouTube. During a recent cold snap with temperatures hovering around -11°C (12°F), Paul set out on a 51.1km journey to compare the efficiency of his Model Y against his old Long Range Model 3.
At the start of the trip, the battery was at 72% and cold enough to have the blue snowflake. To mimic real-world driving as much as possible, the heat was set to 20°C (68°F), and the heat seater (watch the video) was set to 1 piece of bacon.
Related: Tesla Model Y efficiency tops Model 3 in early cold weather testing
By the end of the trip, the battery was down to 56% and showing an efficiency of 256Wh/km. Compared to his Model 3 at similar temperatures, the bulky SUV with heat pump was ~14% more efficient.
That isn’t the only impressive number revealed by Paul. Check out the full video below to see how it compares to when he performed the same drive in his Model Y, but at a balmy -1°C (30°F).
