Two Illustrative Tesla UK Orders: Winter Delivery vs Summer Delivery

Sam Whitfield, UK EV writer & Tesla owner · published 2026-07-18 · figures checked 2026-07-13.

Our other guides show the order-to-delivery process as a single sequence of stages. This one runs the same process twice, side by side, for two illustrative Model Y RWD orders that differ in exactly one respect: the calendar month the car is handed over. Same referral code, same 650-mile Supercharging credit, different real-world result.

Note on the dates: both orders below are constructed examples built from Tesla UK's published order mechanics and typical UK seasonal temperatures — not real customers' private orders. Your own dates and local weather will differ; always check your live delivery estimate in the Tesla app.

Order A — clicked in January, delivered in early March

A buyer clicks a verified referral link on 12 January 2026, configures a Model Y (RWD) (£44,990 list, 3.7 mi/kWh mild-weather efficiency), and pays the order fee the same day with the referral confirmed on the order summary. The car is handed over on 2 March 2026, when typical UK ambient temperatures still commonly sit around 5°C.

At the 86% range-retention point for 5°C, the 650-mile credit behaves like 559 real miles in the weeks right after handover, not the full headline figure, simply because the car needs more energy per mile in the cold.

Order B — clicked in June, delivered in late July

A second buyer clicks a verified referral link on 3 June 2026, configures the identical Model Y (RWD), and is handed the car on 28 July 2026, when typical UK ambient temperatures commonly sit close to 20°C.

At the 100% retention point for 20°C, the same 650-mile credit behaves like the full 650 real miles.

The gap, and why it closes on its own

Between the two illustrative orders, the real-miles gap is 91 miles — noticeable in week one, but not permanent. As Order A's UK spring turns into summer, that same car's real-world efficiency recovers on its own; the underlying energy credit was identical for both buyers from the day it was granted. Neither buyer was overcharged, undercharged, or treated differently by the referral programme itself — the difference is entirely down to the weather each car was actually driven in.

Why we picked these two dates

January and June aren't a random pair — they're roughly the coldest and mildest stretches most UK owners will plausibly take delivery in in 2026, using our own published retention curve rather than a worst-case guess. If your own delivery window falls somewhere between these two, your real-miles figure will sit somewhere between 559 and 650 too — closer to whichever end your local weather resembles that week.

What was identical for both orders

• Both had to click their referral link before configuring and paying — no exception for either delivery month.
• Both received the same amount of Supercharging energy credit, worth the same £ figure at identical Supercharger pricing.
• Neither buyer's build slot or delivery allocation was affected by the referral in any way.

Run the £ side of either scenario for your own model and tariff on the Referral-Savings Calculator, or your own real charge times on the Charge Time Calculator.

A verified code for either season

This post discloses referral links plainly: they are marked rel="nofollow sponsored", and we (or the pooled owner) may earn Tesla credits if you order through one — it costs you nothing extra. Tesla VoltBench is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Tesla, Inc. Full referral disclosure.

See the full stage-by-stage sequence on our calculator hub, or the seasonal maths behind this example in our order-timing explainer.