Tesla covers its high-voltage battery in Australia for 8 years, with a guaranteed minimum of 70% capacity retention over that period, and the warranty transfers to a subsequent owner. Tesla's own wording is that the warranty "will follow your vehicle and be transferred to the new owner" - which matters more on a used Tesla than on almost any other brand, because it means the cover you are buying is real.
The part that catches people out is the distance limit, because Tesla uses two.
The terms, by variant.
| Variant | Years | Kilometres | Capacity floor | Transfers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model 3 Premium RWD and Model Y Premium RWD | 8 | 160,000 km | 70% | Yes |
| Model 3 Premium Long Range RWD, Model 3 Performance AWD, Model Y Premium Long Range AWD, Model Y Performance AWD and Model Y L | 8 | 192,000 km | 70% | Yes |
That is a 32,000 km difference between two cars that look nearly identical in a listing. If you are buying a 2022 Model 3 with 150,000 km on it, whether you have 10,000 km of cover left or 42,000 km depends entirely on which variant it is - and the seller may not know.
Tesla's separate basic vehicle warranty moved to 5 years with unlimited kilometres from 1 January 2026, up from 4 years and 80,000 km. The battery terms did not change with it. Do not let one be quoted at you as the other.
Model S and Model X are not listed on Tesla's current Australian warranty page, as they are no longer sold new in right-hand drive here. If you are buying one, get the terms in writing from Tesla for that specific vehicle rather than assuming the Model 3 and Y terms apply.
What 70% actually protects you against.
The 70% floor is not a promise your battery will stay healthy. It is a promise that if capacity falls below 70% of original within the warranty period, Tesla repairs or replaces it.
In practice, most Teslas do not get near 70% inside 8 years. Typical degradation on a well-treated pack runs steeply in the first 30,000 km or so and then flattens considerably. A car sitting at 88% at 100,000 km is behaving normally. A car at 76% at the same distance is not, and the gap between those two is worth thousands at resale - but neither triggers a warranty claim.
That is the honest limitation of a capacity floor: it protects you from catastrophe, not from a bad buy.
How to check where a specific car stands.
Three things decide whether the warranty is any use to you.
- The in-service date, not the build year. An 8-year clock starts when the car was first delivered.
- The variant, which sets whether the limit is 160,000 or 192,000 km.
- The tested State of Health today, which tells you how much of the 30% buffer has already been used.
The first two you can establish from the paperwork. The third you cannot see from the dashboard - the range estimate a Tesla shows is a prediction based on recent driving, not a tested State of Health result, and it moves with weather, driving style and load.
If a battery is below 70% and still in warranty.
Document it before you do anything else. A dated, certified State of Health test with the vehicle identified is the evidence a claim rests on. Tesla will run its own diagnostics, but going in with a written third-party result changes the conversation from a complaint to a documented case.
If the car is out of warranty, the test result is still worth having - it is the difference between negotiating on a number and negotiating on a hunch.
Terms verified 13 September 2026 from Tesla's Australian vehicle warranty page at tesla.com/en_au/support/vehicle-warranty. Manufacturer terms change, and the terms that apply to any given car are those in force when it was first sold. Always confirm with the manufacturer for the specific vehicle.