Tesla has improved its factory warranty in Australia to bring it up to the industry average of five years, unlimited kilometres.
The lift from the US electric-car brand’s previous four years/80,000km offer brings it into line with the typical warranty offered by luxury brands locally, including Audi, BMW, Lexus, Mercedes and direct Swedish rival Polestar.
Tesla’s four-year warranty had been criticised for being below the standard, though several brands offer longer peace-of-mind periods ranging from six to 10 years, if some subject to official-servicing-only caveats.
Australia is the first Tesla market to offer the longer warranty period. Battery warranties for Tesla’s two models – the Model 3 sedan and Model Y SUV – remain the same at eight years, with 160,000km limits for Rear-Wheel Drive base-model variants and 192,000km limits for all other variants.
“Tesla Australia & New Zealand is thrilled to pioneer Global Firsts that redefine the driving experience for our customers – such as launching Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in the world’s first RHD market in 2025, and now introducing a five-year, unlimited kilometre new vehicle warranty for 2026,” said Tesla ANZ country director Thom Drew.
“This update aligns with local market expectations and instils lasting confidence in Tesla ownership.”
The new warranty applies retrospectively to any new Tesla models purchased since 1st January this year.
The announcement comes in the week Tesla was confirmed again as the annual EV sales leader in Australia, though with BYD gaining fast in 2025 amid slipping Tesla sales.
Tesla sales in Australia dropped 25 per cent year on year – falling from 2024’s 38,347 units to 28,856 in 2025.
BYD, which has direct rivals to both the Model 3 and Model Y with the Seal sedan and Sealion 7 SUV, boosted sales by nearly 80 per cent in comparison, to reach 25,287 registrations.
