BREAKING: RWD (Single Motor) Cybertruck Discontinued. The Cybertruck now starts at $79,990

[dalton108]

Hmm, let's think about this. So far, Tesla has released a single-motor CT, a dual-motor CT, and a tri-motor CT, with progressively higher prices at each tier.

If they wanted to add another, even more expensive tier, what would be the most logical move?

After we all configured there was talk of a quad motor to match Rivian and, Hummer and then he said we didn’t need it.

My biggest concern at the time was that they would produce a quad motor and charge me more for FSD saying that it wasn’t part of the original agreement and therefore I had to pay the FSD price at the time entering into the new agreement. Of course none of that ever happened.

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[VAF84]

The reality is that the “long range” CT landed in the zone below what competing EV trucks are calling mid range; and range is still a high ranking concern to full size truck owners.

Ultimately, this wasn’t really a “long range” option as much as it was a stripped down alternative to dual motor without much discount to substantiate the losses. The stripped down version ended up competing with GM’s mid trims, with 390+ mi range, that offer an arguably better equipped vehicle (for the trim segment), at the equivalent cost of stripped CT.

Unsurprisingly, that trim ended up with little to no market share.

At this point, CT either needs a 100-mile range boost, or Tesla needs to pivot toward the smaller, less expensive version that many buyers have been asking for.

 

[Sjohnson20]

I kind of think they are just going to keep the Cybertruck as a premium vehicle like the S and X.

The original idea they had was that it would be this huge mass market vehicle. But the full size EV trucks have been flops so far. And it's clear trucks are different than other vehicles when it comes to the buyers and what they want.

Maybe they do the large SUV next since those seem to do better in EV form than the trucks do. The buyers don't seem to have as many demands or use cases for them the way they do trucks.

 

[dalton108]

I kind of think they are just going to keep the Cybertruck as a premium vehicle like the S and X.

The original idea they had was that it would be this huge mass market vehicle. But the full size EV trucks have been flops so far. And it's clear trucks are different than other vehicles when it comes to the buyers and what they want.

Maybe they do the large SUV next since those seem to do better in EV form than the trucks do. The buyers don't seem to have as many demands or use cases for them the way they do trucks.

When you lay down a marker that sustainability won’t work until you crack the number one selling vehicle segment in our country (trucks), it just seems like too much of a capitulation to surrender and do an SUV instead.

IDK.

 

[Mini2nut]

It should have been priced at $59,990.

Not lowering the $69,990 MSRP tells me that margins must be thin on the Cybertruck. I bet that less than 250 RWD trucks were ever manufactured.

 

[Merc_s55]

Rare doesn't mean valuable or desirable. I once saw a 1960s Dodge 4 door car with a 6 cylinder. Apparently only a couple hundred made. I wouldn't take it as a gift. Not worth anything.
As for more power for the CT? Seems to be enough. I want more gadgets. Suicide doors that open and close under power. Tailgate too. Power roof. As I stated before, like my 63 Lincoln. AI a littler more like Jarvis. Etc.

 

[YDR37]

The original idea they had was that it would be this huge mass market vehicle. But the full size EV trucks have been flops so far.

This is true, which is why Stellantis just killed plans for a fully-electric version of the Ram 1500:

As demand for full-size battery electric trucks slows in North America, Stellantis is reassessing its product strategy and will discontinue development of a full-size BEV pickup.

However, the manufacturers aren't giving up on EV trucks yet. In 2026-2027, we are going to see two revised approaches, consistent with this post:

At this point, CT either needs a 100-mile range boost, or Tesla needs to pivot toward the smaller, less expensive version that many buyers have been asking for.

At this time, there are no indications that Tesla plans to do either of those things. But other manufacturers are heading in those directions.

More Range: Other companies are going to offer EV trucks with more range, using an integrated gasoline engine to act as a generator and "range extender". VW is reintroducing the Scout Terra pickup as an EV, and a large majority (over 80%) of pre-orders are for Scouts with the "Harvester" gasoline range extender system. Stellantis has cancelled the fully electric Ram, but still plans to offer the "Ram REV" (formerly the "Ram Charger") with a 3.6L Pentastar V-6 as a generator.

Smaller EV Trucks: Other companies are going to offer smaller, less expensive EV trucks. Slate plans to offer a 2-door compact truck starting in the "mid-$20s" for a very stripped version. Ford plans to offer a 4-door mid-sized truck, probably something like an EV Maverick, for around $30K. If Telo makes it to market, that would be another option.

 

[dalton108]

This is true, which is why Stellantis just killed plans for a fully-electric version of the Ram 1500:
However, the manufacturers aren't giving up on EV trucks yet. In 2026-2027, we are going to see two revised approaches, consistent with this post:

Revised Approach 1: Offer EV trucks with more range, using an integrated gasoline engine to act as a generator and "range extender". VW is reintroducing the Scout Terra pickup as an EV, and a large majority (over 80%) of pre-orders are for Scouts with the "Harvester" gasoline range extender system. Stellantis has cancelled the fully electric Ram, but still plans to offer the "Ram REV" (formerly the "Ram Charger") with a 3.6L Pentastar V-6 as a generator.

Revised Approach 2: Offer smaller, less expensive EV trucks. Slate plans to offer a 2-door compact truck starting in the "mid-$20s" for a very stripped version. Ford plans to offer a 4-door mid-sized truck, probably something like an EV Maverick, for around $30K. If Telo makes it to market, that would be another option.

However, there are no signs that Tesla is pursuing either of these revised approaches. Approach 1 is probably a no-go; Tesla is never going to put ICE engines in their vehicles, Approach 2 is probably possible in theory (either shrink the Cybertruck platform, or add a bed to the Model Y platform), but there are no indications that it is happening.

If Slate doesn’t go out of business trying to get it done, I think they have the right approach. Economically, this feels a lot like when Chevy introduced the S-10. People wanted trucks but couldn’t afford them. If Slate plays it right and hits the price metrics, I think they are going to do real numbers.

Telo is definitely not for me, but I think they’ve got the form factor right. The price is too steep. They think they’re going to sell those to a lot of folks in San Francisco, LA, and other big cities where space is at a premium. Maybe they’re right, but they are betting that their target audience doesn’t care about price. I think their bet is misplaced. Those ppl are brand and image conscious too.

I’m probably closer to their target audience than anybody, and while I don’t care about price necessarily (if I get what I want), aesthetics matter to me a lot. And what Telo has designed is a goofy-looking mess.

Aesthetics are the main reason that, engineering prowess aside, you’ll never see me in a Lucid. Their designs are rancid as far as I’m concerned.

 

[Pulaski]

Good. Make it bigger and better. I'll pay 20% higher price for twice the range and greater towing capacity.

 

[Mini2nut]

“Telo is definitely not for me, but I think they’ve got the form factor right. The price is too steep. They think they’re going to sell those to a lot of folks in San Francisco, LA, and other big cities where space is at a premium. Maybe they’re right, but they are betting that their target audience doesn’t care about price. I think their bet is misplaced. Those ppl are brand and image conscious too.”

The odds are high that the Telo MT1 will not make it to production. I wish them luck but the odds are against them. The capital investment that is required to bring a new vehicle to market is huge. It requires several hundred million and can easily go into the billions. I also feel that Aptera is on the brink of declaring bankruptcy within the next 6 months.

 

[YDR37]

The odds are high that the Telo MT1 will not make it to production. I wish them luck but the odds are against them.

If Telo doesn't make it (and I agree that this is a very real possibility), then I hope that BMW buys up the rights to the design, makes some aesthetic modifications, and rebadges it as the MINI Pickup. It just might work in the MINI lineup.

 

[JoeHill]

Actually not surprising to me. Considering the weight of the Cybertruck and Tesla's performance standards, constraining a Cybertruck to a single motor with all the work it needs to do, is like neutering it to less than chill mode. Elon said, "At Tesla, we don't make slow cars..." so why make a slow Cybertruck? Exactly.

- ÆCIII

0-60 mph in 6.5 isn't slow for a truck. This is especially true for one that weighs over 3 tons. Cybertrucks already have a very high fatality rate per mile driven. How many of those incinerated after losing control of their Cybertrucks were in Cyberbeasts.?
The problem isn't the single motor but the loss of other features that were worth more than $10,000.
Everyone that produced full size EV trucks significantly overestimated the market. My bet is some smaller EV trucks actually sale better than industry leader Ford Lighting has done. And the Cybertruck is incredible ugly unwrapped. So that adds another at least another $5-10K just to make it not look ridiculously stupid. Musk's emphasis on fast vehicles but cheap (poor) driver vehicle interface is why Teslas have such high accident and fatality rates in general.

 

[dalton108]

0-60 mph in 6.5 isn't slow for a truck. This is especially true for one that weighs over 3 tons. Cybertrucks already have a very high fatality rate per mile driven. How many of those incinerated after losing control of their Cybertrucks were in Cyberbeasts.?
The problem isn't the single motor but the loss of other features that were worth more than $10,000.
Everyone that produced full size EV trucks significantly overestimated the market. My bet is some smaller EV trucks actually sale better than industry leader Ford Lighting has done. And the Cybertruck is incredible ugly unwrapped. So that adds another at least another $5-10K just to make it not look ridiculously stupid. Musk's emphasis on fast vehicles but cheap (poor) driver vehicle interface is why Teslas have such high accident and fatality rates in general.

The same thing can be said of Corvettes (Porsche too). And it has— “most dangerous car ever.” Correlation is not causation.

https://www.hotcars.com/corvette-mo...ond position on,4.9 times the overall average.

Idiots buying fast cars and driving outside of their capabilities and in contradiction of controlling traffic laws/common sense is not evidence that the vehicle is unsafe.

“… cheap (poor) driver vehicle interface … .”

an extra special lol at this bit of nonsense! There is absolutely nothing about my C8 Corvette’s driver interface (again the same is true for Porsche) that could be described as “cheap” or “poor” and it is light years behind any Tesla I’ve ever owned, which is every S3XY vehicle + CT.

The Cybertruck has four-wheel steering and drive-by-wire which has been lauded by literally every automotive insider in possession of even rudimentary discernment.

Question: Does your ass get jealous of the shit that comes out of your mouth? Like, do you know anything— at all - about cars?

Fair criticism is fine. This is just plain crazy talk.

 

[YDR37]

Maybe they do the large SUV next since those seem to do better in EV form than the trucks do. The buyers don't seem to have as many demands or use cases for them the way they do trucks.

The best-selling large EV SUV is the Rivian R1S. In the first half of 2025, the R1S outsold every other large EV SUV (Model X, Cadillac Escalade EV, Kia EV9), as well as the Cybertruck.

But even so, the R1S sales numbers are still small -- only about 12,000 in 1H 2025. It's a niche vehicle, not a mass-market hit. So Rivian is pivoting to smaller SUVs (R2, R3, R3X), although I'm sure they will continue to offer the R1S and R1T as long as there is demand.

I expect Tesla could develop a large CyberSUV on the Cybertruck platform, and I wouldn't be surprised if it did outsell the Cybertruck, or even the R1S. But it could do those things, and still be just a niche vehicle. The market for large EV SUVs may be bigger than the market for EV pickups -- but that's not saying much.

2025 is shaping up to be the second straight year of falling Tesla vehicle sales. Tesla needs another mass-market hit (like the Y and 3), not another niche vehicle (like the S, X, and CT).

 

[Setok]

I kind of think they are just going to keep the Cybertruck as a premium vehicle like the S and X.

The original idea they had was that it would be this huge mass market vehicle. But the full size EV trucks have been flops so far. And it's clear trucks are different than other vehicles when it comes to the buyers and what they want.

Maybe they do the large SUV next since those seem to do better in EV form than the trucks do. The buyers don't seem to have as many demands or use cases for them the way they do trucks.

It’s not a huge mass market hit because the pricing is currently completely mismatched with that goal. Something many others have already mentioned on this forum. After the hype of the original launch, and the super enticing pricing, many were then faced with prices 50% higher, or more. That just doesn’t work for mass market penetration. Price matters.

Add to that a very divisive or downright hated leader and you have a pretty tough equation.

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