Starting at $60,990, Tesla’s Cybertruck is priced 50% higher than initial estimate
Tesla’s听濒辞苍驳-诲别濒补测别诲听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听will be听辫谤颈肠别诲听蝉迟补谤迟颈苍驳听at $60,990, over听50%听more听迟丑补苍听what CEO Elon Musk had touted in 2019 and a cost analysts have said will draw select, affluent buyers.
The truck, made of shiny stainless steel and shaped into flat planes, is partly inspired by a car-turned-submarine in the 1977 James Bond movie “The Spy Who Loved Me,” Musk has said.
Its new body material and unconventional, futuristic styling has added complexity and costs to production, and threatens to alienate traditional pickup truck buyers who focus on utility, experts say.
But Mr. Musk, who has听辫谤颈肠别诲聽the vehicle’s three variants between $60,990 and $99,990, said on Thursday the听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听has “more utility听迟丑补苍听a truck” and is “faster听迟丑补苍听a sports car.”
He drove a听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听onto a stage to cheers from the crowd and later handed over vehicles to about a dozen customers at an event in Austin, Texas.
“Finally, the future will look like the future,” he said about the truck’s design, showing a video of the听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听towing a Porsche 911 and beating another gasoline-powered 911 in a short race.
Tesla shares fell 2% in extended trading after closing off 1.6% at $240.08.
Mr. Musk did not announce the vehicle’s prices at the event, but听罢别蝉濒补’蝉听website listed the prices. Its highest performance variant, the ‘Cyberbeast’ will be available next year, as will the all-wheel drive trim that starts at an听别蝉迟颈尘补迟别d $80,000.
The cheapest rear-wheel drive version with an听别蝉迟颈尘补迟别d听蝉迟补谤迟颈苍驳听price of about $61,000 will be available in 2025.
“This is going to appeal to … definitely a wealthier clientele that can afford the price point and they want something that is unique and quirky,” said Jessica Caldwell, head of insights at auto research firm Edmunds.
“That just isn’t a large segment of the population that can afford that especially where interest rates are.”
After Mr. Musk听别蝉迟颈尘补迟别d in 2019 that the听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听would sell for $40,000, the vehicle drew more听迟丑补苍听a million reservation holders who put down $100 deposits. He had not offered an updated price before Monday, despite rising raw material costs for EVs.
New deposits are $250, Musk said on Thursday.
The price is not a surprise to many, said Paul Waatti, an analyst at consultancy AutoPacific. Waatti told Reuters before the event that the听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听would do well with a smaller audience.
GRANDSTANDING SHOWPIECE
Cybertruck, two years behind schedule, enters a hot pickup truck market to compete with the likes of Ford’s聽F150 Lightning, Rivian Automotive’s R1T and General Motors’聽Hummer EV.
Rivian’s R1T has a听蝉迟补谤迟颈苍驳听price of $73,000, while the F-150 Lightning starts at about $50,000. The larger and more powerful Hummer EV pickup costs more听迟丑补苍听$96,000.
The听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办,听罢别蝉濒补’蝉听first new model in nearly four years, is critical to its reputation as a maker of innovative vehicles. At a time when the company is battling softening electric vehicle (EV) demand and rising competition,听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听is also key for generating sales, though not to the extent of the company’s high-volume Models 3 and Y.
Mr. Musk tempered investor expectations about the product last month citing problems in ramping production and warning that it would take a year to 18 months to make it a significant cash flow contributor.
Ahead of the launch, Musk captured聽聽on a different subject, giving a profanity-laced interview to the New York Times on Wednesday. He聽聽who left his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, because of antisemitic comments.
On Thursday, he said about the truck: “It’s basically an incredibly useful truck. It’s not just some grandstanding showpiece like me.”
UNIMPRESSIVE RANGE
The听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办‘蝉听聽can drive an听别蝉迟颈尘补迟别d 340 miles (547 km), and comes with a “range extender” or extra battery pack that extends its range to 470 miles.
In 2019, Mr. Musk had said the truck would be able to travel 500 miles or more on a single charge.
“As a truck, the Ford and Chevy are more useful and certainly easier to see out of,” said Sam Abuelsamid, principal research analyst at Guidehouse Insights.
“Given that Teslas almost always fall short of (range)听别蝉迟颈尘补迟别s in real world driving by anywhere from 10%-20%, I wouldn’t expect the longest range version of the听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听to achieve more听迟丑补苍听300 miles on the road,” he said, noting that the Chevrolet Silverado EV is capable of exceeding its 450-mile rated range.
Mr. Musk has said Tesla was likely to reach a production rate of roughly 250,000听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办s a year in 2025. He did not update that on Thursday.
During its 2019 reveal,听罢别蝉濒补’蝉听chief designer Franz von Holzhausen took a metal ball to demonstrate the truck’s unbreakable “armor glass” window, only to聽.
Mr. Holzhausen on Thursday lobbed a baseball at the听颁测产别谤迟谤耻肠办听window that bounced off. – Reuters
