According to a crowdsourced reservation tracker, the Tesla Cybertruck has amassed an incredible 1.5 million pre-orders. That's an astonishing amount and highlights just how much interest the buying public has in Musk's controversially-styled pickup truck.
After countless delays and endless excuses, the infamous EV is finally heading in the right direction. The highly anticipated electric truck is expected to enter production at the end of 2023 - two years later than the original production date.
Musk has already promised the Cybertruck will be a massively capable pickup truck that can also be used as a boat. While we wouldn't recommend you traverse a river or lake, this kind of talk is placing plenty of expectation on the Cybertruck's shoulders, and it's forcing the government to intervene to keep people from harming themselves.
Despite the love-or-hate-it styling, interest in the Cybertruck remains strong. As a matter of fact, it's growing.
In August, the reservation tracker recorded pre-orders totaling 1.2 million. In the space of three months, an additional 300,000 pre-orders were placed. At $100 a pop, Tesla holds $1.5 billion worth of pre-order funds. This figure is, however, fully refundable.
It's unlikely that all these pre-orders will translate into actual sales for the brand, but we wonder whether Tesla would be able to fulfill all of them should there be no cancellations. There's evidence to suggest the company wouldn't be able to do so.
Tesla's oldest factory in Fremont only built its two-millionth car this year, and it's been spewing out vehicles for twelve years. Earlier this year, the automaker also started refunding Australian reservation holders, which, at the time, represented the third biggest Cybertruck market.
Earlier this year, Elon Musk admitted that the starting price of the Cybertruck would no longer come in under $40,000.
"I hate to give sort of a little bit of bad news, but I think there's no way to sort of anticipate the inflation that we've seen and the various issues," said Musk.
The Cybertruck's close rival, the F-150 Lightning, has received two price hikes since it was launched this year. The base Pro derivative is now priced from $51,974 - a far cry from the original $39,974 MSRP.
A lot of expectation has been placed on the company's first-ever pickup truck, but, knowing Tesla, the Cybertruck will be a true show-stopper. Yes, Tesla vehicles are not without their faults, but each model (thus far) has introduced industry-leading technology to their respective segments.
The Cybertruck is destined to make a splash when it eventually arrives. Hopefully, Tesla can maintain high quality control standards and get examples out to customers as soon as possible.
