At long last, the Tesla Cybertruck is finally in sight.
The EV maker plans to start mass production of its eagerly anticipated all-electric pickup truck in late 2023, according to a report from Reuters. That’s two years later than originally planned, but we have a feeling those who’ve already reserved the vehicle are just glad to know it’s still coming.
The news doesn’t come as a complete shock. Last month, Tesla announced it was readying its Austin, Texas, Gigafactory so that it could begin “early production” of the Cybertruck by the middle of next year. The plan is to gradually ramp up production to full output before the end of 2023, two people with knowledge of the matter told the financial news wire.
“We’re in the final lap for the Cybertruck,” Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk, said in a recent conference call with financial analysts.
Tesla, which dissolved its press department in 2020, did not immediately respond for a request for comment from Robb Report on Wednesday.
Production of the EV is just a year away, but that also means that Tesla won’t be able to make any money off the model, which is viewed as vital to its future, until sometime in 2024. Most of the hundreds of thousands who have reserved the pickup for $100—assuming they want to go forward with their purchase—will likely have to wait even longer for delivery as well.
There are also several key questions about the vehicles that still need to be answered. Tesla has yet to offer up a glimpse of what the production Cybertruck will look like, so it’s unclear how closely it will resemble the angular vehicle Musk showed off in 2019. We’re also still waiting to find out if the marque can deliver on some of its more outlandish performance targets—like the ability to tow 14,000 pounds, a sub-three seconds zero-to-60 mph time and a 500-mile range.
There’s also the matter of how much it will cost. When the Cybertruck was first unveiled, Musk said the pickup would start below $40,000, with the top-of-the-line tri-motor variant going for $69,000. Car prices have soared since—the average price of a new vehicle was a record $48,301 in August—so it’s unlikely Tesla will stick with the previously mentioned prices, especially since they have been removed from the company’s website.
