6 ms·

Tesla Cybertruck sales are disastrous

44 points by mfiguiere 2y ago

on_the_train 2y ago
[flagged]
infecto 2y ago
Not that surprising. The design you either love or hate, its one of those designs that will forever be remembered. Along with that, the price tag was pretty steep for what I saw as little to no innovation. If they had delivered on the promised range it would have been different.
- dzhiurgis 2y ago
  * Steel body * Steer by wire * FSD > little to no innovation Amazing! How does it compare to another innovators like Rivian?
  - bloody-crow 2y ago
    I think in general the term innovation is perceived as something new that results in a meaningful improvement. Change for the sake of change that brings no real benefits fails to pass this bar. For example, if someone released a new car model with exterior made of wood, it'd generate a lot of buzz, but unlikely to be considered an innovation. A lot of Cybertruck features fall into this category of being novel, but not necessarily innovative.
    - dzhiurgis 2y ago
      Ok then. Context matters. What are top 5 auto innovations in last year?
  - infecto 2y ago
    FSD exists across models. People are not buying it for the steer by wire or steel body and I would hardly call those real innovations that make it worth purchasing. I say this as someone who daily drives a Y and had a preorder for the truck.
seventytwo 2y ago
How could anyone have seen this coming?!
the_mitsuhiko 2y ago
I thought there was a submission here not long ago that it was the best selling electric truck in the US.
- bigmattystyles 2y ago
  Isn't that like being the second tallest guy in Japan?
- infecto 2y ago
  Two reasons, there are very few electric trucks on the market and the ones that exist are not great or had terrible marketing around them.
- modeless 2y ago
  "The world's tallest dwarf. The weakest strong man at the circus."
UncleOxidant 2y ago
It seems doubtful that the tax credit will help. I think these things just have a really bad reputation and people don't want to be laughed at for spending $80K on one. (not to mention the CEO's bad reputation)
bloopernova 2y ago
I wonder if we'll ever get the truth behind its reason for being and its design choices? Maybe that will be the domain of historians.
- potato3732842 2y ago
  Maybe details will come out in future years my and many other people's best guess is that they never really expected to sell all that money and sales are basically the public subsidizing R&D So some of the design features you get are optimization for low volume sales (e.g. the body shapes and heavy re-use of Model 3 assemblies/components). Some of it is trying new things so they can learn how to not suck at them (think Plymouth Prowler but for a different set of skills). I assume the eccentricities like the light bar, the actual shape of the vehicle and other stuff are a result of designers leaning into or embracing constraints imposed by the above. Of course none of this is gonna win you buyers hence the tight lips even before Elon's politics became a subject of scrutiny.
dwood_dev 2y ago
It's certainly an unconventional design. I have mixed feelings about it from that aspect. I think the main thing is they launched a $100k truck when the initial hype was for a $40k truck. It also doesn't help that electric vehicle sales seem to be in the gutter for all US automakers.
- bb88 2y ago
  I think it was interesting 5 years ago when it was announced for $40k and I kinda wanted one. 5 years later, I hear it's fun to drive. But at $100k, I'm not really interested. The style isn't holding up, and it needs a refresh. I would be much more interested in a hybrid with 200 mile battery capacity and a 18 gallon gas tank.
- r00fus 2y ago
  No, many other brands are showing massive increases in EV sales. It's only Tesla, and there are numerous reasons for that.
modeless 2y ago
This was predictable. It's just too ostentatious to be a big seller. Elon himself predicted it; even before launch he was saying: "To be frank, there is always some chance that Cybertruck will flop, because it is so unlike anything else. I don’t care. I love it so much even if others don’t." He never said anything similar about Tesla's other products. https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1415733231589097472 https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1415733231589097472 At every earnings call including the most recent one Tesla keeps saying "Plans for new vehicles, including more affordable models, remain on track for start of production in the first half of 2025." Note the plural on "affordable models". So that is what will make or break their sales growth for the next few years. Progress on FSD may also contribute if it continues to accelerate the way it did in the last 6 months with v12 and v13. Cybertruck will not be material.
- akmarinov 2y ago
  Tesla usually announces models and ships them years later, so there’s no history to back the start of production of new models in the first half of 2025, regardless of what they say
  - bryanlarsen 2y ago
    That's not true. The Model 3 refresh was not announced until after it shipped. Tesla announces non-competitive new models way in advance. The cybercab and cybervan announcements do not compete with existing models and thus could be announced years in advance. However, Tesla is well aware of the Osbourne phenomenon. Announcing a $25,000 car would destroy sales of 3, so they haven't done so.
    - akmarinov 2y ago
      The Model 3 refresh isn’t a new car though And they announced the Cybercab at $25k, potentially eating into the Model 3 They’re not just dropping a $25k Model 2 this year The Model 3 refresh and the upcoming Model Y refresh got leaked a year out, there’s just no leaks for a Model 2 whatsoever.
  - 2y ago
ethagknight 2y ago
I ordered one, but it's dramatically more expensive (50% more?) than what I signed up for. Either Tesla cant make them for less, or they are milking their pricing cascade strategy a little further. Until we see parking lots full of unsold inventory, we can reasonably assume it's still production constrained.
- FeistySkink 2y ago
  Well https://www.theautopian.com/cybertrucks-are-piling-up-as-tesla-struggles-to-move-thousands-of-expensive-trucks/ https://www.theautopian.com/cybertrucks-are-piling-up-as-tes...
  - ethagknight 2y ago
    There were some recalls I believe that prevented them from handing over to customers at a few points in the last year. Currently the only inventory available in the markets I just checked only have 5-10 of the $100k Foundation series as available. Also curious to know if those lots are still storing trucks. A dozen trucks stored in a lot doesnt really mean much, look at any ford or chevy dealership.
- registeredcorn 2y ago
  Interested to know: Was there any specific reason you were interested in getting one? I know it's kind of either love or hate with Tesla/Cybertruck online - I try and stay out of it. I just never quite understood the appeal; I saw it kind of as a "luxury pickup truck" that's electric, but I figured that if I had wanted to go that route (I didn't end up getting anything), I would get a better bang-for-the-buck with a established pickup truck like Ford or Ram or whatever. Did it just come down to looks, or was there something else to it?
  - jsbisviewtiful 2y ago
    If it was “luxury” pickup truck it should have been an entirely different design. Barely usable as a pickup truck, interior looks and feels like trash and it rusts in under a year without an additional exterior coating for thousands of more dollars - the coating should have been included. Big grift.
r0ckarong 2y ago
Edgelord-mobile doesn't sell, boohoo. Totally shocked.
legitster 2y ago
It was always clear that the car's cost and divisive looks were always going to hold it back to a niche item. But I think the problem is bigger than that. You could always forgive Tesla's shortcomings when they owned the market. When the Tesla Model S dropped, it invented the product category. When the Model 3 dropped, it was it's category leader. The Cybertruck was so late to the game that it's not even a competitive option in the electric pickup truck market. Theoretically they could mess with their tooling to create a model with a more traditional/less expensive body and try to compete with the much cheaper Rivian.
londons_explore 2y ago
Musk fairly recently "switched sides" to be republican, presumably trying to pick up a new truck-centric user base in the US south. Unfortunately, these figures show it backfired badly. He has alienated his mostly left-leaning fanbase, whilst seemingly failing to drum up any new buyers from the new crowd.
- tommiegannert 2y ago
  Car buyers in the US buy cars based on their knowledge of the business owner's political leanings? That seems like the wrong metric.
  - potato3732842 2y ago
    Once you get high up in the market signaling starts to matter a lot. A lot of people have a Toyota Tacoma and a commuter sedan in their driveway because they didn't like the image of daily driving an F150 despite the latter yielding comparable results for less hassle (and probably less money).
    - ojhughes 2y ago
      > Once you get high up in the market signaling starts to matter a lot. This just sounds so alien to me, does anybody really care that much?
      - potato3732842 2y ago
        Not if you phrase it like that they don't but the ways people justify their purchases make it obvious.
  - yongjik 2y ago
    When was the last time you heard news about political opinions of the owner of Ford, BMW, or Honda? Musk is an exception.
devit 2y ago
The major issue seems to be that Musk somehow wants people to pay him to drive it, as opposed to him paying people to drive it.

44 points by mfiguiere 2y ago

[flagged]

Not that surprising. The design you either love or hate, its one of those designs that will forever be remembered. Along with that, the price tag was pretty steep for what I saw as little to no innovation. If they had delivered on the promised range it would have been different.

dzhiurgis 2y ago
* Steel body * Steer by wire * FSD > little to no innovation Amazing! How does it compare to another innovators like Rivian?
- bloody-crow 2y ago
  I think in general the term innovation is perceived as something new that results in a meaningful improvement. Change for the sake of change that brings no real benefits fails to pass this bar. For example, if someone released a new car model with exterior made of wood, it'd generate a lot of buzz, but unlikely to be considered an innovation. A lot of Cybertruck features fall into this category of being novel, but not necessarily innovative.
  - dzhiurgis 2y ago
    Ok then. Context matters. What are top 5 auto innovations in last year?
- infecto 2y ago
  FSD exists across models. People are not buying it for the steer by wire or steel body and I would hardly call those real innovations that make it worth purchasing. I say this as someone who daily drives a Y and had a preorder for the truck.

seventytwo 2y ago

How could anyone have seen this coming?!

the_mitsuhiko 2y ago

I thought there was a submission here not long ago that it was the best selling electric truck in the US.

bigmattystyles 2y ago
Isn't that like being the second tallest guy in Japan?
infecto 2y ago
Two reasons, there are very few electric trucks on the market and the ones that exist are not great or had terrible marketing around them.
modeless 2y ago
"The world's tallest dwarf. The weakest strong man at the circus."

UncleOxidant 2y ago

It seems doubtful that the tax credit will help. I think these things just have a really bad reputation and people don't want to be laughed at for spending $80K on one. (not to mention the CEO's bad reputation)

bloopernova 2y ago

I wonder if we'll ever get the truth behind its reason for being and its design choices? Maybe that will be the domain of historians.

potato3732842 2y ago
Maybe details will come out in future years my and many other people's best guess is that they never really expected to sell all that money and sales are basically the public subsidizing R&D So some of the design features you get are optimization for low volume sales (e.g. the body shapes and heavy re-use of Model 3 assemblies/components). Some of it is trying new things so they can learn how to not suck at them (think Plymouth Prowler but for a different set of skills). I assume the eccentricities like the light bar, the actual shape of the vehicle and other stuff are a result of designers leaning into or embracing constraints imposed by the above. Of course none of this is gonna win you buyers hence the tight lips even before Elon's politics became a subject of scrutiny.

dwood_dev 2y ago

It's certainly an unconventional design. I have mixed feelings about it from that aspect. I think the main thing is they launched a $100k truck when the initial hype was for a $40k truck. It also doesn't help that electric vehicle sales seem to be in the gutter for all US automakers.

bb88 2y ago
I think it was interesting 5 years ago when it was announced for $40k and I kinda wanted one. 5 years later, I hear it's fun to drive. But at $100k, I'm not really interested. The style isn't holding up, and it needs a refresh. I would be much more interested in a hybrid with 200 mile battery capacity and a 18 gallon gas tank.
r00fus 2y ago
No, many other brands are showing massive increases in EV sales. It's only Tesla, and there are numerous reasons for that.

modeless 2y ago

This was predictable. It's just too ostentatious to be a big seller. Elon himself predicted it; even before launch he was saying: "To be frank, there is always some chance that Cybertruck will flop, because it is so unlike anything else. I don’t care. I love it so much even if others don’t." He never said anything similar about Tesla's other products. https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1415733231589097472 https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1415733231589097472 At every earnings call including the most recent one Tesla keeps saying "Plans for new vehicles, including more affordable models, remain on track for start of production in the first half of 2025." Note the plural on "affordable models". So that is what will make or break their sales growth for the next few years. Progress on FSD may also contribute if it continues to accelerate the way it did in the last 6 months with v12 and v13. Cybertruck will not be material.

akmarinov 2y ago
Tesla usually announces models and ships them years later, so there’s no history to back the start of production of new models in the first half of 2025, regardless of what they say
- bryanlarsen 2y ago
  That's not true. The Model 3 refresh was not announced until after it shipped. Tesla announces non-competitive new models way in advance. The cybercab and cybervan announcements do not compete with existing models and thus could be announced years in advance. However, Tesla is well aware of the Osbourne phenomenon. Announcing a $25,000 car would destroy sales of 3, so they haven't done so.
  - akmarinov 2y ago
    The Model 3 refresh isn’t a new car though And they announced the Cybercab at $25k, potentially eating into the Model 3 They’re not just dropping a $25k Model 2 this year The Model 3 refresh and the upcoming Model Y refresh got leaked a year out, there’s just no leaks for a Model 2 whatsoever.
- 2y ago

ethagknight 2y ago

I ordered one, but it's dramatically more expensive (50% more?) than what I signed up for. Either Tesla cant make them for less, or they are milking their pricing cascade strategy a little further. Until we see parking lots full of unsold inventory, we can reasonably assume it's still production constrained.

FeistySkink 2y ago
Well https://www.theautopian.com/cybertrucks-are-piling-up-as-tesla-struggles-to-move-thousands-of-expensive-trucks/ https://www.theautopian.com/cybertrucks-are-piling-up-as-tes...
- ethagknight 2y ago
  There were some recalls I believe that prevented them from handing over to customers at a few points in the last year. Currently the only inventory available in the markets I just checked only have 5-10 of the $100k Foundation series as available. Also curious to know if those lots are still storing trucks. A dozen trucks stored in a lot doesnt really mean much, look at any ford or chevy dealership.
registeredcorn 2y ago
Interested to know: Was there any specific reason you were interested in getting one? I know it's kind of either love or hate with Tesla/Cybertruck online - I try and stay out of it. I just never quite understood the appeal; I saw it kind of as a "luxury pickup truck" that's electric, but I figured that if I had wanted to go that route (I didn't end up getting anything), I would get a better bang-for-the-buck with a established pickup truck like Ford or Ram or whatever. Did it just come down to looks, or was there something else to it?
- jsbisviewtiful 2y ago
  If it was “luxury” pickup truck it should have been an entirely different design. Barely usable as a pickup truck, interior looks and feels like trash and it rusts in under a year without an additional exterior coating for thousands of more dollars - the coating should have been included. Big grift.

r0ckarong 2y ago

Edgelord-mobile doesn't sell, boohoo. Totally shocked.

legitster 2y ago

It was always clear that the car's cost and divisive looks were always going to hold it back to a niche item. But I think the problem is bigger than that. You could always forgive Tesla's shortcomings when they owned the market. When the Tesla Model S dropped, it invented the product category. When the Model 3 dropped, it was it's category leader. The Cybertruck was so late to the game that it's not even a competitive option in the electric pickup truck market. Theoretically they could mess with their tooling to create a model with a more traditional/less expensive body and try to compete with the much cheaper Rivian.

londons_explore 2y ago

Musk fairly recently "switched sides" to be republican, presumably trying to pick up a new truck-centric user base in the US south. Unfortunately, these figures show it backfired badly. He has alienated his mostly left-leaning fanbase, whilst seemingly failing to drum up any new buyers from the new crowd.

tommiegannert 2y ago
Car buyers in the US buy cars based on their knowledge of the business owner's political leanings? That seems like the wrong metric.
- potato3732842 2y ago
  Once you get high up in the market signaling starts to matter a lot. A lot of people have a Toyota Tacoma and a commuter sedan in their driveway because they didn't like the image of daily driving an F150 despite the latter yielding comparable results for less hassle (and probably less money).
  - ojhughes 2y ago
    > Once you get high up in the market signaling starts to matter a lot. This just sounds so alien to me, does anybody really care that much?
    - potato3732842 2y ago
      Not if you phrase it like that they don't but the ways people justify their purchases make it obvious.
- yongjik 2y ago
  When was the last time you heard news about political opinions of the owner of Ford, BMW, or Honda? Musk is an exception.

devit 2y ago

The major issue seems to be that Musk somehow wants people to pay him to drive it, as opposed to him paying people to drive it.