Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk said that he has “bad news” for customers who reserved the oft-delayed Cybertruck. Prior to reaching owners’ driveways, the upcoming truck’s price will rise and specifications will differ from what was originally quoted.
Musk made the announcement during Tesla’s annual shareholders meeting at the company’s new plant in Texas. Despite being announced in 2019, the Cybertruck has been delayed numerous times, but this is the first time a performance update has been announced for the vehicle.
Cybertruck’s specifications and pricing will be different. I hate to sort of give a little bit of bad news,” said Musk. “I think there’s no way to have sort of anticipated quite the inflation that we’ve seen.”
According to the CEO, no figures were provided, so it’s difficult to say exactly what this will mean for customers. When it was first introduced, the company promised that the base model (with a single motor powering the rear wheels) would start at $39,900, putting it in close competition with the Ford F-150 Lightning, which has now been delivered to customers in all 50 U.S. states.
Inflation, however, has affected startup prices throughout the industry as Musk said. Rivian was the subject of a controversy earlier this year when it announced that it would be raising the prices of its electric pickup tuck, the R1T, even for customers who had already ordered their vehicle. That decision sent the automaker’s share prices falling and forced its CEO to apologize and walk the decision back.
As to its specifications, Tesla said in 2019 that the Cybertruck would be capable of up to 500 miles (805 km) of range, 3,500 lbs (1,588 kg) of payload, up to 14,000 lbs (6,350 kg) of towing, would have a 35 degree approach angle, a 28 degree departure angle, 16-inches (41 cm) of ground clearance, and would be powered by up to three motors.
At the time, the company accepted $99 deposits for the truck and, in May (when it stopped taking orders for the truck in Europe), had reportedly received close to $1.5 million pre-orders for it. In that time, the truck’s production was also delayed several times.
The CEO did, however, have some good news on that score, announcing that the company would start “installing the production equipment, the tooling, and all starting in the next couple of months.” Production, he said, will start in mid-2023.