Are the Tesla Model Y’s Third-Row Seats Worth It?
You can make the Tesla Model Y a three-row, seven-passenger electric SUV for $2,000, but is it a good idea?
If you’ve shopped for a three-row SUV, you know bigger is generally better. The smaller the third row, the less useful it is, and larger vehicles usually have more space for that extra row of seats. Our yearlong review midsize 2023 Tesla Model Y is the smallest SUV the company makes, but it’s still offered with a third row if you’re willing to pay. Is it worth it?
Three Ain’t Free
Adding two more seats in the way back comes with two separate costs. The first is monetary, as it currently adds $2,000 to the price tag (when we purchased our long-term Model Y, it cost $2,500). The second cost is to cargo space. Even when folded flat, the third-row seats raise the height of the cargo floor and reduce the total cargo capacity. A five-seat Model Y offers up to 72.1 cubic feet of cargo space behind the first row with the second row folded and 30.2 cubic feet behind the second-row seats. In our three-row Model Y, space behind the front row drops to 67.9 cubic feet with the second and third rows folded, 26.2 cubic feet behind the second row with the third folded, and just 12.8 cubic feet behind the third row. That’s a loss of 4 cubic feet behind the first and second rows.
Tesla’s owner’s manual also says driving around with the third-row seats folded down will increase interior noise, though we haven’t noticed a difference. The seats don’t block the view out the rear window if you keep the headrests down when not in use, so you might as well leave them up until you need the cargo space.
Three for All
As you might expect, those two seats in the way back aren’t spacious. Whereas second-row passengers get 38.7 inches of headroom, 41.6 inches of legroom, 54.0 inches of shoulder room, and 50.8 inches of hiproom, third-row passengers have to make do with just 34.6 inches of headroom, 26.5 inches of legroom, 41.0 inches of shoulder room, and 36.5 inches of hiproom.
The practical implications of this are starker. Third-row passengers having any legroom at all depends on second-row passengers moving their seats forward. Simple math tells us the more room the third row gets, the less the second row does. Maximum legroom for the third row means more than half of the second row’s legroom is lost.
In practice, this can still work with real people if at least two out of three are below average height. I have short legs, so I keep the driver’s seat closer to the steering wheel than other people of my height—5-foot-9. This gives the second row a little more space to come forward and make room for the third. As a result, my 5-foot-4 mother-in-law can sit behind me in the second row and leave enough room for my 5-foot mother to sit in the third row. Stack the short people correctly, and you can make it work.
That’s not to say the third row is especially comfortable, even for a petite person. There’s no toe space under the second row, so they can’t extend their legs at all. They can’t have a long torso, or that headroom will run out quickly, and they can’t have broad shoulders, or they’re going to get real cozy with each other. The floor, thankfully, isn’t too high so their knees rest at an acceptable angle, at least. There also isn’t any room to really move around and shift their weight once they’re in their seats, so all they can do is sit straight forward. Regardless, it’s best if you keep the trips to an hour or less.
