The long-delayed reveal of Tesla’s Cybertruck left many critics fuming concerning the “disappointing range” and “abusive pricing” of Elon Musk’s strange-looking, electric-powered pickup.
Tesla finally provided Cybertrucks to a handful of homeowners – including Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian – during a flashy event at the corporate’s Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, on Thursday.
The roughly 30-minute presentation was live-streamed on X and hosted by Elon Musk, who described the stealth bomber-esque vehicle as Tesla’s “best product” and the “finest in apocalypse technology.”
Tesla fans, nonetheless, were left with sticker shock and one other yr of delays before the stainless steel trucks rumbled off assembly lines.
The entry-level, rear-wheel drive version of the Cybertruck costs $60,990 and will not be expected to ship until 2025. The mid-tier Cybertruck with all-wheel drive costs $79,990 and the top-tier “Cyberbeast” costs $99,990.
The premium Cyberbeast purportedly maxes out at roughly 320 miles. When the Cybertruck was initially announced in 2019, Musk said the highest-end model would cost $77,000 and have a spread of some 500 miles.
Tesla shares sank nearly 2% in early trading Friday.
Reddit users decried the vehicle’s “disappointing range (and) almost abusive pricing considering what was promised.”
Others said they were “totally let down” by the much-hyped delivery event, grumbling about “the lighting. The presentation. Just the whole lot sucked.”
Tesla investors had anxiously awaited firm details concerning the Cybertruck amid a slew of reports – and warnings from Musk himself – about how difficult the pickup is to fabricate. The vehicle includes a costly stainless-steel frame that’s difficult to shape and vulnerable to defects without careful oversight.
Industry analysts also appeared skeptical of what that they had seen. Needham analyst Chris Pierce told The Post that “the feedback appears to be underwhelming” and noted that Tesla’s truck “doesn’t have any significant range benefits” in comparison with its chief rival in the electrical vehicle market, Rivian.
“To me that’s probably the most surprising, TSLA made a truck that’s similar in specs (but not design) to Rivian, versus with the ability to deliver something with technology benefits from their lessons learned because the EV standard,” Pierce said.
Outstanding tech Youtuber Marques Brownlee, who is understood for his in-depth product reviews, described the Cybertruck as “notably the primary time that Tesla is straight up not delivering on a number of the key specs they promised.”
Brownlee identified that the highest-end model, the Cyberbeast, has less driving range and a better price point than Tesla initially stated.
Meanwhile, Gene Munster, a Tesla investor and managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, told Bloomberg that the Cybertruck was “lots dearer than I assumed.”
“They should get production as much as get the value down, they usually know they’ll’t produce numerous them next yr,” Munster said. “The truth is that the Cybertruck isn’t really out yet.”
Earlier this fall, experts told The Post that the Cybertruck was more more likely to be a distinct segment entry into Tesla’s product lineup.
The delivery event included several demonstrations of the Cybertruck’s supposed prowess, including footage of its bulletproof doors withstanding gunfire and its highest-end model winning a drag race against a Porsche 911.
“If Al Capone showed up with a Tommy gun and emptied your complete magazine within the automobile door, you’ll survive,” Musk quipped at one point throughout the presentation.
At one point, Tesla design chief Franz von Holzhausen soft-tossed a baseball into the Cybertruck’s window – a callback to the disastrous incident on the 2019 launch event, when he shattered considered one of the truck’s windows with a metal ball.
Musk also touted a number of the more impressive specs, similar to the Cyberbeast’s 11,000-pound towing capability that outstrips Ford’s electric F-150 Lightning and its ability to go 0-60 mph in 2.6 seconds.
“We’ve got a automobile here that experts said was not possible, that experts said would never be made,” Musk added. “I feel it’s our greatest product. It’s probably the most unique thing on the road and eventually the long run will seem like the long run.”
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, a distinguished Tesla bull, also gave an optimistic view of the launch, arguing that the Cybertruck is a critical display of the technological prowess that has allowed the corporate to construct a dominant hold over the electrical vehicle sector.
“While Cybertruck doesn’t significantly move the financial needle for Tesla in [2024] it further shows the innovation and mind share lead that Tesla has built with many OEM competitors around the globe still on the treadmill stuck in neutral,” Ives said in a note to clients.