Where each one leads
Tesla Model Y
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport
- Against cars of the same year, the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 45% less often than average) than the Tesla Model Y (fails 14% more often than average).
Too close to call: NHTSA overall safety rating.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Tesla Model Y | Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 2019–2026 | 2020–2026 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 120,476 (2020–2022) | — |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 125,767 | — |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 59,223 | — |
| In traffic in Finland | 16,297 | — |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Tesla Model Y | Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport | |
|---|---|---|
| New York safety inspections failed | 0.8% | 0.4% |
| … against cars of the same year | +14% | −45% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 1.0% | — |
| US owner complaints | 4,282 | 491 |
| Most complaints about | Forward collision avoidance | Electrical system |
| Model year with most complaints | 2023 (1,186) | 2021 (165) |
| US recall campaigns | 43 | 30 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 420 | 1,649 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 74 | 1 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Tesla Model Y | Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2027) | 5★ (2026) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Tesla Model Y | Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | — | 10.7 l/100 km (2026) |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 0 g/km | — |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 230 kW (308 hp) | — |
| Average mass in running order | 2,051 kg | — |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €53,990 | — |
| Average odometer in Finland | 68,000 km | — |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).