After two years of delays and production snags, Tesla Inc. is finally ready to hand its Blade Runner-esque Cybertrucks over to customers.
Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk will deliver the first vehicles Thursday at Tesla’s Austin headquarters as part of a live-streamed launch event starting at 2 p.m. local time. The company is also expected to provide key details about the Cybertruck, including its price, configurations and battery range.
The Cybertruck marks Tesla’s first entry into the highly competitive pickup truck market in the US, and the move has been met with excitement, but also heavy criticism and doubt. One analyst suggested last week the automaker should cancel the Cybertruck altogether because it’s unlikely to be profitable, while Musk himself has lamented how “insanely difficult” the vehicle is to produce. It’s also not clear whether the vehicle, with its unusual design, will appeal to work truck owners and commercial fleet purchasers who value function over flash.
“Pickup truck buyers don’t mess around. If it doesn’t work for them, they won’t buy it,” said Stephanie Brinley, an associate director of S&P Global Mobility in Detroit.
Cybertruck will compete in a segment long dominated by a handful of companies that iterate on tried-and-true designs. Ford Motor Co.’s F-Series, Stellantis NV’s Ram, and General Motors Co.’s Chevrolet Silverado have been the top full-size pickups for years and are consistently best-sellers among all vehicles in the US. Ford and GM have started to roll out plug-in trucks, and Rivian Automotive Inc. began selling its electric R1T pickup in 2021.
Those trucks are all made to handle a variety of tasks, from hauling hay, lumber and other cargo, to towing horses, RVs and boats. Clearance, towing capacity and the size of the bed — as well as ease of access to it — are key issues for consumers, who tend to be brand-loyal and see their truck as tools for getting jobs done.
When Musk introduced the Cybertruck in 2019, he said it would improve on traditional truck design. He touted several unique features, including bullet-proof glass and a body clad in stainless steel — a material not used for car exteriors since the ill-fated DMC DeLorean in the 1980s. Tesla set the starting price at $39,900 and promised it would come in three variants.
Then came the pandemic, supply chain shortages, inflation and engineering challenges associated with making what Musk called “one of those special products that comes along only once in a long while.”
Read More: Musk’s Cybertruck Is Already a Production Nightmare for Tesla
Kelley Blue Book expects the Cybertruck to start at around $50,000 for the single-motor model, roughly in line with the electric Ford F-150 Lightning. Tesla, which has since removed Cybertruck pricing and specifications from its website, may offer a more expensive, tri-motor variant first.
Though the first Cybertruck deliveries are imminent, it’s unlikely to go into volume production for at least a year. Musk said last month Tesla could ramp up to a rate of 250,000 vehicles a year by sometime in 2025.