× I tend to shy away from manufacturers’ obsequious press releases when they land in my inbox. There’s seemingly an award for everything these days, whether it’s safety-related or to do with customers’ satisfaction but, on the whole, the gushing praise means my brain switches off after about five seconds. They’re always so biased but one was emailed to me earlier this year which made me read further, and it was to do with the Tesla Model Y. Global sales in 2023 reached a staggering 1.22 million, becoming the first EV to reach best-seller status. Impressive, no doubt, but I’ve formed many opinions about Tesla and the people who buy them over the years in which they’ve took over our roads. They’re ten-a-penny as those outrageous sales statistics suggest, but why? They’re cold, geeky, dull and bought by people who pay for their poncey, overpriced coffees with their Apple Watch, no? They’re fast, no doubt, but they’re about as exciting as a fridge-freezer, right? Yet, when one arrived for a week-long test, I strangely felt slightly excited. Despite petrol most definitely flowing through my veins from a very young age, I was oddly intrigued about the Model Y, which is basically a jacked-up Model 3. Its design is minimalistic and yes, it’s ‘just another Tesla’ - you’ll no doubt see 15 of them on your commute - but I didn’t mind it up close. Getting inside it isn’t as easy as you’d think. You’re given a key card - which is the exact same size as a debit card and a bugger for getting lost - and you hold that against the B-pillar to gain entry. When you finally find its sweet spot, the mirrors pop out and it’s unlocked; open the frameless doors and that minimalistic theme continues inside. It’s light and airy - helped massively by its brilliant, roof-long panoramic sunroof - and there’s lots of space. Settle into its driver’s seat and you’ve got a nice, chunky steering wheel, a drive selector to the right and a huge, iPad-style infotainment system which houses everything. I mean everything, too, as there’s no buttons on the dash. Thankfully, that screen is large, concise and very simple to use. Sure, given it controls all of the Model Y’s features - even its mirrors’ positioning and the headlights - you’re advised to spend a bit of time cycling through its menus, but I found it to be intuitive and far from a chore. Handily, if you’re not the most tech-savvy, there’s a search bar that, when selected, brings up a keypad so you can type out things such as ‘lights’ or whatever you need to find. Move the selector into ‘D’ and away it goes: it’s remarkably supple, it’s well-damped and its steering is quite nice. Who’d have thought it, eh? I don’t quite know what I was expecting, really, but everything feels perfectly admissible. The regenerative braking is a pain at first and is seemingly impossible to switch off but even that, after time, is something you learn to meter out. There’s a decent amount of body roll through the corners but it’s its remarkable turn in that’s quite a shocking thing to behold - I was expecting a cold, dull appliance, not something that can entertain someone as fussy as I am. The thing handles well, and not just in an average way. There’s 384bhp at your disposal but, as is the way with EVs, that feels much punchier because it’s delivered in one big hit - there’s no lag and that power’s there within a millisecond of moving your right foot downwards. It’s good enough for a 4.8-second dash to 60mph in this non-Performance spec. Tesla’s been way ahead of its competitors in the charging stakes and it was interesting to see that first-hand; the firm’s ‘Supercharger’ network is beyond easy to use and the Tesla app has everything you’d ever need to know about them, from locations to how busy they are at any time of the day. They’re by far the fastest open-to-all charge points I’ve used, but the claims of going from next to no miles to 80 per cent in half an hour appear to have been plucked from the sky. I’ve no doubt that it’s possible, but there are so many variables to the claim: you’ll need the other charging points to be vacant, especially, and if they’re not, you’ll more likely go from a handful of miles to 80 per cent in about an hour. A range of 373 miles is claimed, but realistically you’re looking at 300 with mixed driving, especially in the sub-zero cold snap we’ve been having. So, all in all, the Model Y - and my first experience of a Tesla - was a pleasant surprise. It looks good, its interior is great, it’s fast, it’s more entertaining than I ever envisaged it would be and Mr Musk’s firm’s cracked charging. Sure, there are niggles: the key card is sometimes lackadaisical and you’re perplexed how a car this technologically advanced can’t remember that you do not want lane-keeping assist (at all, ever, no thank you) but that - truly - is it. I’ll hold my hands up; I was wrong about Tesla. :