Source: Tesla

On February 11, Tesla has officially confirmed that its new Model Y will be available in a highly anticipated three-row, seven-seat version by the end of 2025 in China.

"We're starting with the Launch Edition," said Lars Moravy, VP of Vehicle Engineering at Tesla, in an interview with Jay Leno posted on Monday.

"All other variants—the Dual-Motor base edition, Rear-Wheel Drive, Performance, and seven-seater options—will be available later this year."

However, the RWD and Long Range AWD versions are already available for pre-order in China, at a price of 263,500 CNY and 303,500 CNY, respectively.

The main news we are learning here as far as for the Chinese market is that Tesla still has a Performance and a 7-seater variants to introduce later this year.

The Model Y facelift “Juniper” was globally launched on January 10, with the "Launch Edition" featuring an updated interior and exterior design, improved suspension, and enhanced soundproofing.

However, the Launch Edition only offers a five-seat configuration. As the best-selling electric vehicle worldwide for the past two years, there has been strong demand in China for a seven-seat version of the Model Y.

Last year, Tesla had already launched a 7-seater version of the Model Y in the U.S., but the third row of seats was very compact, suitable for children or smaller adults only.

Source: Tesla

That optional seating upgrade cost approximately 3,000 USD. Some local media outlet expects a different configuration than the old retrofitted Model Y, featuring instead a lengthened wheelbase to better accommodate the third row.

At this moment, the 7-seater Model Y is only expected late this year, during the fourth quarter for mass production.

Extending the wheelbase has been done by other automakers, including Audi with the bespoke Chinese market exclusive Audi A6L and Audi A8L, for which the wheelbase is lengthened to offer more rear space that Chinese consumers seek.