It’s probably a good thing Tesla refuses to publish detailed sales figures, otherwise everyone could see just how badly Elon Musk’s Cybertruck seems to have flopped.
Only in its second full year on the market, the full-size electric pickup saw a staggering 51% year-on-year decline in demand during the past three months, according to new data published by market researcher Cox Automotive.
The extimated 4,300 sold in Q2 were even eclipsed by rivals from legacy brands, including the Ford F-150 Lightning and GMC Hummer EV truck.
“Suffice it to say, the hyper-competitive EV market is providing the troubled automaker no relief,” Cox Automotive reported, referring to Tesla.
The company, which reported only aggregated quarterly global sales at the start of this month, did not respond to a request from Fortune for comment.
Tesla said at launch it had deposits to fill 2 million orders
Launched at the end of 2023, the Cybertruck had collected deposits for 2 million vehicles, design chief Franz von Holzhausen confirmed at the time.
With Tesla officially installing capacity to build north of 125,000 vehicles annually, that was the equivalent of 16 years of demand before the company would have to find more customers. No wonder Tesla had initially hoped to double assembly line output by mid-2025 in order to meet this tidal wave.
Yet those orders either keep getting pushed back or reservation holders have simply refunded their deposits. With 10,700 Cybertrucks sold through the first half, it’s looking increasingly doubtful the model will crack the 39,000 units sold in 2024.
The chief complaint about the vehicle has been just how far short it came to matching the original price promised in during its reveal, despite having two extra years’ time in development.
The most popular Cybertruck, the all-wheel-drive version with one motor each for powering the two axles, clocks in at $80,000 without extras instead of the $50,000 promised at its reveal in November 2019, when reservation owners could make a deposit.
Multiple recalls and build quality problems dogged the Cybertruck
Then there were the build problems: two official investigations by U.S. federal traffic safety officials and eight recalls in all just for the 2024 model year.
The most recent was perhaps also the most damaging for its image, as customers shared videos online in which they complained the glue holding parts of the truck’s stainless steel exterior sheet metal in place failed, causing the panels to dangle precariously.
The questionable quality of its underlying engineering was furthermore shown in numerous videos. Most notably, critics criticized Tesla’s decision to substitute a conventional steel frame for less durable aluminum castings that can break when towing enough weight.
On Tesla fan forums, opinions are now divided as to what if anything should be done about Musk’s expensive flop. Some argue the vehicle should be scrapped for a more conventional look while others feel its iconoclastic take on the otherwise timeless pickup ought to be kept as Musk intended.
Some relief should come in the current quarter as buyers previously on the fence could opt in favor of a purchase before the $7,500 federal tax credit expires at the end of September.
“The second half of the year will be a critical test of EV demand. Q3 will likely be a record, followed by a collapse in Q4,” argued Stephanie Valdez Streaty, senior analyst for Cox Automotive.
