The Tesla Cybertruck throughout a tour of the Elkhorn Battery power storage system in Moss Touchdown, California, June 6, 2022.
Nik Coury | Bloomberg | Getty Photos
Electrical car maker Tesla is ready to disclose particulars about its new and unconventional Cybertruck pickup on Thursday, someday after CEO Elon Musk appeared in a weird interview DealBook summit in New York. At that occasion, Musk boasted, “It will likely be the most important product launch of something by far on Earth this yr.”
The occasion, to be held in Austin at 2 pm native time (3pm ET) on Thursday, might be livestreamed and marks the corporate’s first deliveries of the Cybertruck to prospects.
In an October earnings name, Musk struck a extra cautious be aware saying, “There might be monumental challenges in reaching quantity manufacturing with the Cybertruck, after which in making the Cybertruck cashflow optimistic.” He additionally stated at the moment, “we dug our personal grave with Cybertruck,” declaring “distinctive challenges” in producing and bringing that truck to market.
Tesla first unveiled the Cybertruck — with its angular, and unpainted, exhausting metal physique — in November 2019. It had beforehand stated manufacturing of the car would begin in 2021, and the truck would promote on the entry-level value of $39,900 for a rear-wheel-drive model, and round $69,000 for a highest-spec, tri-motor model.
The corporate started taking $100 refundable “reservations” for Cybertruck after it was unveiled, and the corporate stated it obtained greater than 1 million reservations since its debut.
The covid pandemic and different components contributed to a two-year delay nonetheless, and Tesla solely started early Cybertruck manufacturing in July this yr.
In the meantime, rivals together with Ford, Common Motors and Rivian started to promote their extra utilitarian electrical pickups. Earlier this week, Rivian, which solely manufactures battery electrical automobiles (like Tesla) began to supply a leasing possibility for choose fashions of its all-electric R1T pickup truck.
The U.S. electrical pickup truck market has not expanded as shortly as some thought when the Cybertruck was initially revealed. A number of start-ups have both now introduced automobiles to market or did with little success similar to Lordstown Motors. Each GM and Ford have introduced plans to cut back, postpone or cancel EV merchandise and investments, together with some associated to EV vehicles.
—Mike Wayland contributed to this report.
