Cybertruck was the 5th bestselling EV in 2024

[CTInProcess]

I don't have to go out on a limb to say watch what happens in 2025. Most people still have no clue how good of a vehicle the Cybertruck is. It takes time for people to learn and understand, beyond all the silly misinformation put out to try to slow demand. For every 100 people I meet, only one has a reasonably good understanding of what they are looking at, what it can do, how smooth and quiet it feels to ride in, how good the stereo sounds, how responsive it handles, how convenient the motorized tonneau is, how capable it is off-road, how high the suspension goes, etc, etc, etc.

Sure, some people, early adopters, wanted it right off, just because it was unique. But if you look around you will notice most people don't aspire to be unique when they purchase a vehicle, they want to know why it will improve their lives. And people are still ignorant (or worse, misinformed) about the Cybertruck.

At it's current price point it's already a screaming deal for those who can afford it and want the convenience of an electric truck. In it's second year much of the uncertainty about pricing and reliability will be gone, and an increasing number of people will come to know and understand how good it really is. There are already almost 40K of them in the wild, that's like seeds in the ground. Watch what happens in the spring.

This is such a great point!! All those Model 3 and Y owners are unique, they are rarely seen in the road. The CT is much more unique, people don’t understand it and will never have the privilege of owning this.

From the high quality interior with minimal cheap plastic to the Stainless, Dent less perfect outer steel and not to mention the easiest accessible bed in the industry. Just reach over the bed and you get what you need. I’m not sure why there are still ICE Trucks on the road.

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[YDR37]

I know this opinion apparently isn’t shared by many here, but I love how low volume the Model X and Model S are.

According to Cox, the Cybertruck was the best-selling electric pickup in the US in 2024. That's gotten lots of attention.

But here's another point from the Cox report. The Model X has historically been the best-selling large electric SUV in the US. But Model X sales dropped by 19.8% from 2023 to 2024, while sales of the Rivian R1S grew by 23.4%. As of 2024, the R1S is the #1 large electric SUV in the US (26,934 sales), while the Model X has dropped to #2 (19,855 sales). This may be the first time that a Tesla model has been beaten by another EV manufacturer in a specific EV category.

It looks like the US sales of the S/X are being "cannibalized" by the Cybertruck. Tesla reports global sales numbers for their expensive models (S, X, and CT) combined. For the past few years, they are:

2022: 66,705 (S and X only)
2023: 68,874 (S and X, plus a handful of CTs at the end of the year)
2024: 85,133 (S and X and CT)

So the addition of the CT to Tesla's expensive vehicle lineup boosted sales by around 17,000 vehicles. Now, Tesla won't reveal the exact number of CTs sold in 2024, but everyone agrees that the number is more than 17,000 -- for example, Cox has it at 38,965. The only way to fit that many CTs into the total is to assume that S/X sales fell sharply after the CT was introduced. If Cox is right, and the CT added about 39,000 sales, then S/X sales must have fallen by about 22,000, so that the net gain was about 17,000.

And here's another point: Tesla also sells the S/X in Europe and Asia, but not the CT (at least for now). So if the CT is cannibalizing the S/X, it's only happening in North America. So that's where the S/X sales losses should be.

So yeah -- if you are in US/Canada, the number of CTs out there is definitely growing, but at the same time, the number of new S/X out there is definitely shrinking. It's just harder to see.

 

[TyPope]

they must have towed all the CT's up that hill since they are so bad in the snow... /sarcasm

I was thinking Tesla thought they were pushing them off a cliff but they got stuck in the snow.
/sarcasm but in an agreeable tone

 

[TyPope]

To kind of check the number sold, could we, as a community, figure out the highest CT VIN that was sold in 2024? Doesn't the VIN year position change Jan 1st for Tesla and all the VINs are sequential? We'd be off by a few VINs because Tesla used some for nefarious reasons (testing, etc. but nefarious, for sure) but, we'd be at least within 1,000 for the year even though not everyone is a member here.

I mean, I have VIN 7G2CEHEE7RA0280xx so I'd assume Tesla sold at least 28,000 by 27 August when I picked mine up. Yeah, sure, some CTs with lower VINs could have been enroute to Distribution Centers or not yet picked up but this would give us a good idea what sales number is right.

 

[CaseyL]

To kind of check the number sold, could we, as a community, figure out the highest CT VIN that was sold in 2024? Doesn't the VIN year position change Jan 1st for Tesla and all the VINs are sequential? We'd be off by a few VINs because Tesla used some for nefarious reasons (testing, etc. but nefarious, for sure) but, we'd be at least within 1,000 for the year even though not everyone is a member here.

I mean, I have VIN 7G2CEHEE7RA0280xx so I'd assume Tesla sold at least 28,000 by 27 August when I picked mine up. Yeah, sure, some CTs with lower VINs could have been enroute to Distribution Centers or not yet picked up but this would give us a good idea what sales number is right.

If it helps, I bought 0506xx on Dec 11th. I think it was built in November.

 

[TyPope]

If it helps, I bought 0506xx on Dec 11th. I think it was built in November.

I think it does. To me, that would indicate around 50,000 Cybertrucks sold during the year.

 

[YDR37]

To kind of check the number sold, could we, as a community, figure out the highest CT VIN that was sold in 2024? Doesn't the VIN year position change Jan 1st for Tesla and all the VINs are sequential? We'd be off by a few VINs because Tesla used some for nefarious reasons (testing, etc. but nefarious, for sure) but, we'd be at least within 1,000 for the year even though not everyone is a member here.

I mean, I have VIN 7G2CEHEE7RA0280xx so I'd assume Tesla sold at least 28,000 by 27 August when I picked mine up. Yeah, sure, some CTs with lower VINs could have been enroute to Distribution Centers or not yet picked up but this would give us a good idea what sales number is right.

Analysts like Troy Teslike track VINs in detail. The VINs are entered into government databases, like at the NHTSA. Analysts check those databases to see if the VINs have been issued. This is a good way to track production (although production is one thing and deliveries are something else).

My understanding is that large blocks (like many thousands) of Cybertruck VINs have never been issued, for whatever reason. So just looking at the highest VIN isn't accurate; it overestimates production.

 

[TyPope]

Analysts like Troy Teslike track VINs in detail. The VINs are entered into government databases, like at the NHTSA. Analysts check those databases to see if the VINs have been issued. This is a good way to track production (although production is one thing and deliveries are something else).

My understanding is that large blocks (like many thousands) of Cybertruck VINs have never been issued, for whatever reason. So just looking at the highest VIN isn't accurate; it overestimates production.

Huh. I didn't think manufacturers were allowed to skip around. I suppose these days with better databases it doesn't matter as much. You also make a good point about the VIN always being equal to or higher than actual production and almost definitely higher than actual sales.

 

[voxel]

Huh. I didn't think manufacturers were allowed to skip around. I suppose these days with better databases it doesn't matter as much. You also make a good point about the VIN always being equal to or higher than actual production and almost definitely higher than actual sales.

Tesla VINs on 3s and Ys were never sequential either. i.e a later VIN didn't mean it was produced after an early VIN.

If you were a Tesla 3/Y buyer back in 21/22 when they had 14 month waits (that how long it took for my first Y order). I've owned 4 different Ys so I've been through the process enough times.

 

[YDR37]

I don't have to go out on a limb to say watch what happens in 2025. ... Watch what happens in the spring.

We will definitely keep watching. But right now, it's hard to see a lot of momentum.

According to Cox, Cybertruck sales fell from 3Q 2024 to 4Q 2024, even though the price dropped by $20,000 with the introduction of the non-Foundation Series.

Also according to Cox, the CT was the #5 best selling EV in the US for the full 2024 calendar year, behind only the Model Y, Model 3, Ford Mustang Mach-E, and Hyundai Ioniq5. But ... the same report also shows that the CT may have already lost that title. For 4Q 2024 specifically, the CT was down to #7, behind the same four models plus the Honda Prologue and Chevy Equinox, which are both coming on strong.

And now Tesla has started offering discounts on non-Foundation models, while continuing to offer free lifetime Supercharging on Foundation Series inventory.

Is there any good news? Well, you can make a case that other EV pickups are doing worse.

 

[Cyber Man]

This is just the beginning. Once CT is out of political eclipse and polarizing looks, which will become the norm once there are thousands of trucks on the road, CT will reign supreme, especially if Tesla releases RWD this year. There is no way anybody would go back to regular trucks after tasting the power, performance, and practicality of this magnificent utility truck!

 

[YDR37]

This is just the beginning. Once CT is out of political eclipse and polarizing looks, which will become the norm once there are thousands of trucks on the road, CT will reign supreme, especially if Tesla releases RWD this year. There is no way anybody would go back to regular trucks after tasting this power, performance, and practicality of this magnificent utility truck!

$61,000 RWD + $7,500 tax credit = game changer. Of course, both are only hypothetical at this point.

 

[dalton108]

Somehow, this video from electrek makes it seem more powerful and feel like more of an achievement than just the raw data does.

https://www.instagram.com/share/BAZhB2R5yQ

 

[HaulingAss]

We will definitely keep watching. But right now, it's hard to see a lot of momentum.

Sales don't really have momentum, they react to present market conditions. There was a ton of confusion on numerous points as Cybertruck transitioned from Foundation to non-Foundation pricing and as sales started transitioning to people who didn't have long-standing reservations. I attribute the fall off in sales to this confusion and also people without reservations not being mentally prepared to buy (because it happened out of the blue). I think we will see accelerating sales through all of 2025 as the dust settles and word gets out that they are available at lower prices and without lengthy waits.

The Cybertruck has proven its utility and reliability, now the market just needs to figure it out. I bet waiting lists might even start to build again around Q1-Q2 transition. Just a guess, and it depends upon whether Tesla is prepared to increase production with demand growth, but the return to waiting lists wouldn't surprise me. There's the eligibility for the $7500 tax credit for the first time too.

It would really surprise me if the Cybertruck doesn't just walk away from the competition (even more so than they have already done).

 

[Carnut12]

Time will tell, but it’s not looking promising. The Lightning had ADM’s for much longer than the Cybertruck had backlog of demand. The Lightning went a good 12 months with $10-15K over sticker prices. Then it hit a wall. It’s selling again, but requires 0% interest and rebates. I think Cybertruck just hit the same wall a few months ago.

I’m still on the fence, I will say if I lived in the north still I wouldn’t touch it, the issue with snow is extremely concerning. Now most are saying the windshield wipers are awful. I’ll wait for these bugs to be worked out. Over the air updates I don’t mind at all, I despise going to Tesla service centers and I’ve tried 3 different ones near me. All of them have young unqualified minimum wage folks working on our $100K cars.

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