u/Key_Effective_7504

Hey guys,

I live in Victoria and I’ve been thinking about buying a new Tesla Model Y.

But then one of my friends who bought a BYD Sealion 7 instead of the Tesla told me the main reason was insurance costs.

So I started checking quotes myself and honestly I got shocked.

The cheapest quote I could find was around $3400/year with RACV, and everywhere else was close to $4000.

I’m 34M, never had any accidents or insurance claims, got my licence at 21, and I’ve been driving a Corolla with comprehensive insurance for the last 8 years.

I honestly didn’t expect Tesla insurance to be THIS expensive.

Can someone explain why? Is it because repairs are expensive or parts take too long or something else?

When I buy a car, I usually keep it for 7–10 years, so insurance costs matter a lot to me long term.

Would love to hear from other Tesla owners in VIC and what you guys are paying.

PS: I live in Kalkallo, 3064

Hi mates,

What are the main things to consider before getting into a novated lease? Any tips for avoiding bad deals or getting screwed?

Also, what’s considered a reasonable maximum interest rate these days for:

- 5-year novated lease

- 3-year novated lease

I’m currently thinking about getting a Tesla Model Y Long Range.

Would really appreciate any advice or things to watch out for.

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I live in Victoria and I’m thinking about buying a Tesla Model Y Long Range.

We are a small family: me, my wife, and one child. At the moment I drive a Toyota RAV4, and we usually do 500–600 km trips when we go on holidays.

For people in Australia who have a Tesla as their main or only car, how has it been for long trips?

Is the charging easy enough on road trips in VIC and nearby states?

Do you ever feel worried about range or charging with family in the car?

Would you recommend the Model Y Long Range as an only family car, or should I keep the RAV4?

Thanks for any advice from real Tesla owners.

My cousin lives in Canada and he recently told me how much cheaper Teslas are there compared to Australia.

I checked the prices myself and was surprised because the Canadian Dollar and Australian Dollar are pretty close in value, but Teslas in Australia still cost a lot more.

Even the FSD subscription is cheaper:

• Canada: around $99
• Australia: around $149

I’m curious why there’s such a big difference.

Is it because of:

• shipping costs?
• taxes?

Feels like Australians end up paying more for a lot of tech products and EVs. Interested to hear what others think.

I’ve been a Toyota person for a long time. I had a Corolla for 8 years and a RAV4 for 6 years, so I always thought my next car would probably be another RAV4.

Recently I test drove a Model Y just out of curiosity. I spent around 45 minutes with it, about 20 minutes using FSD and the rest driving normally.

I honestly did not expect to like it as much as I did. The instant acceleration, one pedal driving, software, app, and overall feel of the car really surprised me. It felt like a much bigger change than I expected coming from Toyota.

The main thing I’m trying to understand now is the ownership experience from people who made a similar switch. Toyota has always felt like the safe and boring choice in a good way: reliable, easy to service, and parts are everywhere.

I’m especially interested in real world experiences from people who moved from Toyota to Tesla as their main car, particularly in Australia.

Things I’m curious about are long-term reliability, service centre experience, mobile service, parts availability, and anything people miss from Toyota ownership.

I’m looking at the 2026 Model Y Premium Long Range in Australia, so Australian ownership experiences would be really helpful to read.

Hi everyone,

I am planning to get a Tesla Model Y Long Range through novated leasing.

My company uses Smart for novated lease and I have received a quote from them.

Before I sign anything, I wanted to ask people here who already did a Tesla novated lease through Smart.

What are the important things I should check in the quote?

What extra things do Smart usually add that I should remove or say no to?

Are there any hidden fees, high insurance, maintenance pack, tyre package, charging budget, admin fee, or anything else that is not worth taking?

Also:

- what interest rate should I look for?

- is it better to do 1 year / 2 year / 3 year lease?

- did you use Smart insurance or arrange your own?

- anything you wish you knew before signing?

I don’t want to make an expensive mistake, so any advice from people who already went through this would really help.

Thank you.

Hey all,

I’m seriously considering making the jump to an EV and at the moment the Tesla Model Y Long Range is at the top of my list.

I’m coming from a Toyota RAV4, so I’m used to the whole “Toyota reliability / easy servicing / parts everywhere / no drama” kind of ownership experience.

One thing I keep wondering about with EVs is:

what actually happens when something goes wrong?

Not the usual tyre rotation or cabin filter stuff — I mean when the car needs an actual repair, warranty claim, parts replacement, sensor issue, screen issue, battery issue, suspension noise, panel repair, software fault, etc.

For those of you who’ve owned EVs for a few years now:

• How has the repair/service experience been?
• How long are wait times to get booked in?
• How long do parts usually take?
• Do they give loan cars?
• Is it easy or a complete headache?

Would love to hear from owners of:

• Tesla
• BYD
• Zeekr
• XPeng
• Polestar
• Kia/Hyundai
• or any other EV brand in Australia

I keep hearing mixed things.

Some Tesla owners say the app booking and mobile service is super smooth, but waits can still be a few weeks for service centre bookings.

BYD seems to get praised for value, but I’ve also seen quite a few Aussies complain that aftersales support and parts can be frustrating depending on the issue/dealer.

Zeekr and XPeng look great on paper too, but being newer brands I’m a little nervous about long-term parts/software support if something major breaks. There’s already been discussion around distributor stability and aftersales uncertainty for some newer Chinese entrants.

So yeah, I’m less interested in “which EV is fastest/coolest” and more interested in:

what ownership is like when real life problems happen.

Would really appreciate honest owner experiences, good or bad.

Thanks legends.