Cybertruck’s price tag draws mixed reviews

Reactions are rolling in since Tesla’s release of its Cybertruck pricing.

The electric vehicle and clean energy company unveiled Thursday how much the three versions of the Cybertruck would cost after a delivery event led by CEO Elon Musk showcased the vehicle and its features. It has rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive and “Cyberbeast” versions.

They have $60,990, $79,990 and $99,990 estimated price tags, respectively, posted on Tesla’s website.

For Daniel Ives, Wedbush Securities senior equity research analyst, the announced Cybertruck cost was “in line” with what he had projected, according to a research note Thursday. 

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“Launching Cybertruck is important for the broader Tesla growth story over the coming years and also will prove to the doubters that Musk can successfully expand the Tesla halo effect as more consumers head down the EV path over the coming years,” the Wedbush note said. 

“While Cybertruck does not significantly move the financial needle for Tesla in FY24, it further shows the innovation and mind share lead that Tesla has built with many OEM competitors around the world still on the treadmill stuck in neutral.”

Some 2,000 to 3,000 Cybertrucks could be produced during the current quarter, Ives projected. The Wedbush senior analyst also suggested Tesla could manufacture 10,000 in a quarter for the first time in the initial six months of the year. 

In a video posted on social media platform X, Deepwater Asset Management Managing Partner Gene Munster said the Cybertruck was “across the board 20 to 25% higher than I expected” in terms of price. 

“I think Tesla’s doing the right thing by pricing this high, and the reason is that they know they can’t produce a lot of these vehicles,” he added. “I suspect in 2024 they’ll be able to produce 35,000, which is enough that if they’ve got pre-orders of a million-plus … they can price it higher to kind of capture the margin on the few vehicles they’ll be able to deliver.”

Munster said Tesla will have to lower the price in the future, something he suggested could happen “in a couple years” once the company boosts production and efficiencies. 

“I think that Cybertruck still has the ability long-term to be an important part of Tesla’s lineup and be probably one of the top three vehicles in terms of units,” he added. 

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The first deliveries of the Cybertruck came about four years after Tesla’s initial reveal of the electric pickup truck. 

Musk said a couple months ago “there will be enormous challenges in reaching volume production with the Cybertruck and then in making a Cybertruck cash flow position.”

“This is simply normal when you’ve got a product with a lot of new technology or for any new vehicle program, but especially for one that is as different and advanced as the Cybertruck. You will have some problems proportionate to how many new things you’re trying to solve at scale. So, I just want to emphasize that one,” he said. “I think this is potentially our best product ever.”

Tesla wants to manufacture 200,000 Cybertrucks annually, according to past comments from Musk. 

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The Tesla CEO said in October the company’s expectations for total deliveries of its various vehicle types remained around 1.8 million for the year. 

In the third quarter, Tesla produced nearly 430,500 of its Model S, X, 3 and Y vehicles. Deliveries of those models totaled about 435,000. 

The electric vehicle and clean energy company reported overall vehicle production of 1.37 million and deliveries of 1.31 million last year, both of which represented double-digit-percentage growth compared to 2021.

Eric Revell contributed to this report.