What changed
- New entry Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive at $45,900, $9,000 under the Premium RWD
- Model 3 Premium RWD $54,900, Premium Long Range RWD $61,900, Performance AWD $80,900
- Model Y Performance AWD now listed at $84,900, $4,500 below the figure we last recorded
- All figures are list prices before on-road costs
- Tesla's configurator shows estimated delivery of October to November 2026
Image credit: Tesla Australia
Tesla has added a cheaper rung to the bottom of the Model 3 range in Australia. Its configurator now opens with a plain Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive at $45,900 before on-road costs, and the Premium Rear-Wheel Drive that used to open the range holds its $54,900 list price. That is a $9,000 gap between the two rear-drive cars, which is a lot of money for a badge and a spec sheet to argue over.
Further up, the Model Y Performance All-Wheel Drive is now listed at $84,900. The figure on our Model Y Performance page, last checked on 24 June, was $89,400, so the listed price is $4,500 lower. We took that number off Tesla's configurator, not from a Tesla announcement, so we are reporting the price on the page rather than anyone's framing of it.
Model 3 pricing, every variant
All electric, all before on-road costs, read off Tesla's Australian configurator on 1 October 2026.
| Variant | Previously listed | Now | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive | New to the range | $45,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
| Model 3 Premium Rear-Wheel Drive | $54,900 | $54,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
| Model 3 Premium Long Range RWD | $61,900 | $61,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
| Model 3 Performance All-Wheel Drive | $80,900 | $80,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
Three of those four numbers have not moved. What moved is the floor. Tesla calls the $54,900 and $61,900 cars Premium, and we list them as Model 3 RWD and Model 3 Long Range RWD, so on those pages the prices will look familiar and the names will be shorter.
On the entry car itself, Tesla's configurator quotes 572km WLTP on the standard 18-inch Prismata wheels, a 201km/h top speed and 6.2 seconds to 100km/h. The same configurator now lists a 16-inch first-row touchscreen, up from the 15.4-inch unit our car pages currently show, and vehicle-to-load capability at 230V 15A, with the Tesla Outlet Adapter sold separately. We'll bring our Model 3 pages into line once those changes are checked against each grade.
Model Y pricing, every variant
| Variant | Previously listed | Now | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model Y Premium Rear-Wheel Drive | $58,900 | $58,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
| Model Y Premium Long Range AWD | $68,900 | $68,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
| Model Y L Premium All-Wheel Drive | $74,900 at launch | $74,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
| Model Y Performance All-Wheel Drive | $89,400 | $84,900 | RRP excl. on-roads |
The six-seat Model Y L keeps the $74,900 it launched at. Tesla uses the Premium name across the Model Y range too, so the Model Y RWD page you may have bookmarked is now the Premium Rear-Wheel Drive on Tesla's side.
What $45,900 buys you against
Two electric sedans a Model 3 shopper is likely to look at here are the BYD Seal Premium at $52,990 and the Kia EV4 Air Standard Range at $49,990, both before on-road costs on our listings. So the new Model 3 lands $7,090 under one and $4,090 under the other, which is a different conversation to the one Tesla was having when the range opened at $54,900.
Do not stop at the list price, though. The Seal Premium carries a much bigger battery than the Model 3 Premium RWD on our listings, Tesla's configurator does not print a battery size for the new entry car, and on-road costs in Victoria are not on-road costs in Queensland.
Full specification and pricing on the car page. The EV4 comparison is the cross-shop this price now lands in the middle of.
If you are buying through salary packaging
Tesla's configurator puts a novated lease tab next to the cash price. For 2026-27 the fuel-efficient luxury car tax threshold is $91,661, so every car in both tables is under it at list price. The line that bites later is a different one: from 1 April 2027 the full FBT exemption on an eligible electric car is announced to be limited to cars at or under $75,000. At $45,900 the entry Model 3 clears that easily. At $84,900 the Model Y Performance does not. Options and delivery count towards the value tested, so check your own contract. Run the numbers in our novated lease calculator and the running costs in the fuel and charging cost calculator. Current as at 1 October 2026, and general information rather than tax advice.
Tesla's Australian site was also running two promotions when we checked, both stated as ending 31 December 2026: a saving on eligible inventory vehicles, and a trade-in bonus of up to $2,000. Neither changes the list prices above, and both are Tesla's own terms, so read them on its site.
Prices: every Tesla figure here was read from Tesla's Australian configurator on 1 October 2026 and is a list price before on-road costs, which vary by state and territory. The BYD and Kia figures are the list prices on our own car pages. The Model Y Performance figure is reported as the price now listed on Tesla's configurator, not as an announced cut.