CyberTruck low sale numbers

[GuyV]

Agree the number 1, 2, and 3 reason is price for what you get. I corrected the typo and niche is now corrected.

Yes there is a very small market for this EV truck and all EV trucks for that mater and that is why price was so important.

The EV pickup market is the entire pickup market to the extent that it outperforms and costs less to own and operate vs conventional pickups. The Cybertruck could have met that challenge as originally spec'd and priced. Elon even called out Ford on pricing and then blew it himself.

Someone is going to get that right and sell like gangbusters. Probably BYD.

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[Coolhandz]

Correcting basic information has been a blast…

You mean it’s a truck? A 6 foot bed?!

Wait what, you can charge at home, while you sleep?!

Doesn’t that thing cost like, 200k?

Oh man. This literally happened to me in a Home Depot parking lot Monday. Seems like at least once a week I am giving a demo and correcting misinformation that has been put out there.

 

[RAY INGRASSIA]

Here goes my thought: POOR TIMING. Original, early marketing spoke to a more reasonably priced version, getting to market (actual availability) was way to long, benefits of electronic vehicles was starting to quickly diminish, competition with electric trucks/suv's got to market faster, bad politics with Elon exposure as friend to Trump.............ALL BAD TIMING AND PREDICTIONS.

 

[hemiarch]

Here goes my thought: POOR TIMING. Original, early marketing spoke to a more reasonably priced version, getting to market (actual availability) was way to long, benefits of electronic vehicles was starting to quickly diminish, competition with electric trucks/suv's got to market faster, bad politics with Elon exposure as friend to Trump.............ALL BAD TIMING AND PREDICTIONS.

Yes. In his defense, when you gamble that much you’re bound to get some stuff wrong, but major mistakes were made. No question.
I like your explanation Ray. Very plausible.
But hear me out. It’s not over till the fat lady sings on this truck. Why? Ask any member of this community. It’s a masterpiece of design and engineering and anyone with a brain who drives one wants one.

 

[mbdsb]

I agree with you.

I'm replying to add some data-- I don't know what makes a market "small", but the average price for a full size pickup is over $70k. And there are about 180k full sized pickups sold every month. So cybertruck pricing is not out-of-wack compared to what people are spending on full sized pickups, and there are a lot of those sold every month.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-rel...hicle-prices-hold-near-50-000--302637526.html

I agree with other posters in this thread too.

The CT is a good product. It is priced similarly to other full sized pickups, particularly given its features.

It is also true that there are a whole bunch of reasons why someone might not want to buy a CT, like other people have already said.
- price (appropriate or not, it's a lot of money)
- unusual design (niche appeal)
- bare stainless steel (even a lot of CT buyers immediately wrapped them)
- BEV pickup (range anxiety-- even if it isn't rational given their real world use cases)
- musk/politics
- misconceptions (about quality, safety, performance, etc. -- social media stuff for clicks)
- just prefer other pickups (favorite brand, etc.)

So it's a good product, but buyers have a lot of options, and a lot of reasons to pick something else.

1. It's niche, not nitch
2. In order price, range, and political polarization are the reasons why it's a low demand vehicle.
3. The average consumer has no clue about things like the PCS failing and isn't using that to disqualify the truck.

There's a small market for $80k+ trucks and even smaller for BEV trucks. They vehicle could be flawless, with 0 issues and would struggle at this price point. Sales would tick up with more range, but even with 500 miles of range it wouldn't be a 125k pee year truck at $80k+.

 

[Electric Metal]

Was going to agree with Gus, but then ya range on paper does act as a deterrent. That being said the charger network does negate that point moderately.

Then there was that whole political foray. My lady was pretty worried about the ramifications of owning a CT. I am pretty annoyed I ever had to deal with this social issue and still haven’t forgiven EM, but the CT was just that neat for me, and still is.

Still haven’t forgiven Elon for what??

 

[Lasttoy]

I've had three S. Still have two. 12 is Vin 239 and 13 is vin 4356. Both have much higher quality LEATHER seats.
Actual range has hurt the hype. I put 40k on mine in 9 months. Most of it either towing 7k or going on 1k trips. I towed a 2k camper two thousand miles. The towing was less than half my F350 cost. If we use it as a "truck" it is great. The Actual range shows they were not able to get the pack cell to produce more juice.
Bottom line. If used for real truck work, it does great.
The bells and bling are extra

 

[Gigahorse]

Price
Range
Price
Pulled Ramp/Mid gate
Price
Range
Price

 

[AlDente]

It's all about the money and Elon knows it. The political stuff didn't help sales much either.
That being set aside, he only has only one thing on his mind. Multi-Planet civilization. The learnings on the cybertruck (drive by wire, high voltage efficiencies, stainless steel body manufacturing) were all for space travel. Sending driverless trucks to other plants to move cargo? Drive by wire helped with that. The stainless steel body should work in space. The high voltage helps with production efficiencies and charging. The software for tuning for different terrains will also help. This is likely why he is keeping the cybertruck in production.

So, you're saying the Cybertruck was Elons concept for the first Mars Mobile?

While I do think that making earthlings a multi planet species is one of his high priorities, I'm not sure how the 7000 lb Cybertruck would fit into his first principles thinking. Despite it's Mars Mobile good looks, it does seem better suited to use back here on earth. IMHO.

 

[CyberGus]

Some people complain if the sky is blue

 

[hemiarch]

Man…you have the best Simpsons references.
add that to the list of “things we know about Gus”

 

[CyberGus]

Still haven’t forgiven Elon for what??

...for grabbing the first rail of politics with his left hand, the second rail of politics with his right hand, and then licking the third rail with his tongue

 

[SCTesla]

I agree with you.

I'm replying to add some data-- I don't know what makes a market "small", but the average price for a full size pickup is over $70k. And there are about 180k full sized pickups sold every month. So cybertruck pricing is not out-of-wack compared to what people are spending on full sized pickups, and there are a lot of those sold every month.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-rel...hicle-prices-hold-near-50-000--302637526.html

I agree with other posters in this thread too.

The CT is a good product. It is priced similarly to other full sized pickups, particularly given its features.

It is also true that there are a whole bunch of reasons why someone might not want to buy a CT, like other people have already said.
- price (appropriate or not, it's a lot of money)
- unusual design (niche appeal)
- bare stainless steel (even a lot of CT buyers immediately wrapped them)
- BEV pickup (range anxiety-- even if it isn't rational given their real world use cases)
- musk/politics
- misconceptions (about quality, safety, performance, etc. -- social media stuff for clicks)
- just prefer other pickups (favorite brand, etc.)

So it's a good product, but buyers have a lot of options, and a lot of reasons to pick something else.

You understand how averages work, right?

There are a ton of trucks that cost over $100k, even over $120k, but Ford and Chevy mostly sell trucks between $40k-55k.

According to Grok (I know, not super reliable) these are "between 70-80% of new trucks sold"

• Base full-size pickup models often start around $38,000–$45,000 MSRP.
• Well-equipped mid-range trucks typically cost $45,000–$55,000.

As all sales data that is released show the $80k+ ICE trucks sit on lots longer than the lower end models. Ford sells more XLT than any other trim, this starts out at $44k and goes up to $60k.

So the EV pickups from Tesla, Rivian, the loaded Silverado, and Hummer are priced to the Platinum/TRX/Raptor market, which is MUCH smaller than the overall truck market. Then you factor in the BEV truck market is smaller than that. Elon even acknowledged when he launched the CT to take Ford's F150 numbers the CT would need to be cheaper than equivalent options. Obviously that wasn't possible.

 

[BKCYBerwonkanobee]

Nothing in the Cybertruck interior feels cheap to me.

Spartan, yes, but that is a common design aesthetic for all Teslas, and one I've really grown to appreciate, especially as FSD has improved to the point that it's 94% of my miles driven. The minimalistic physical controls contribute to the feeling of a truly autonomous vehicle.

As most seem to agree, price is the big limiting factor for Cybertruck sales, followed by range, aesthetics, and politics. The doubling of the price from when I reserved in November 2019 to when I ordered in December 2023 made me almost reconsider, and I *LOVE* the vehicle (very glad I followed through).

Range anxiety isn't unique to the CT, it's one of the most common factors people cite when buying any BEV, mostly if they've never owned one before. But for people buying what is also a utility vehicle that can tow, it's a genuine concern. A lot of traditional "truck people" never even considered the CT for this reason. (Canceling the range extender didn't help)

Aesthetics are what they are - you love it or hate it, it's a personal preference.

Elon getting deeply involved in politics during the year of the Cybertruck launch hurt all of Tesla and made the CT symbolic of a world view. The truck already stands out as something unique in the auto world, the politics made it a highly visible target of hate and turned off a significant amount of the potential market. Personally, I think the hate is stupid and I've never experienced it in person with my CT, but it is what it is.

I totally agree with everything you said, I do wish the bumpers weren't plastic thou!
Here in Md we had a once in ten year snow and ice event, and I had to back into a S charger where of course the the plows had to push the snow in front of the chargers. After it froze over night its just like backing into concrete. You don't think that was on purpose do ya!

 

[hemiarch]

I totally agree with everything you said.

I do too @Loudness

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