04:10 06-12-2025

Tesla Model Y Performance deliveries delayed: software holds, hardware checks, missing VINs

For some Tesla Model Y Performance buyers in the U.S., December handovers have fallen through as Tesla pushes back dates and offers conflicting explanations. Certain customers are being told the delay is due to an expected software update that will take 24–48 hours—unusually long by the brand’s OTA standards. Others are hearing that their car is already at a service lot, but delivery is paused to verify that a safety-related hardware component was correctly installed at the factory, with on-site installation planned if needed.

A third group faces the most unsettling scenario: their assigned VIN disappears, and the message says Tesla will build a new vehicle and reassign one as soon as possible, without clarifying why. When a VIN vanishes from an account, it reads less like a routine holdup and more like a problem affecting part of a batch—serious enough that replacing individual cars outright may be simpler than fixing them.

Other Model Y trims don’t appear to be affected, so the issue looks specific to the Performance version. Against that backdrop, a community hypothesis points to potential questions about battery cells: more modern Panasonic NMCA units are being mentioned, offering a modest bump in energy density and range (in the publication, up to 306 miles on the EPA cycle). If the trouble does stem from the battery or related systems, it would line up with both the urgent software push and the choice to rebuild some vehicles.

There’s still no official, unified explanation from Tesla, and the lack of traditional PR communication only heightens the anxiety around these delays.