Tesla's Cybertruck is already selling big, according to Elon Musk
Yes, Tesla's newly announced Cybertruck looks more like an old Apple mouse than it does an automobile. But that apparently hasn't put people off from lining up to buy one.
Elon Musk took to Twitter on Saturday to share some stats on Cybertruck orders. And while I don't personally have any insight into what qualifies as "good" for order numbers, I'm pretty sure 146,000 people stepping up to buy a vehicle that starts selling at almost $40,000 reaches the "good" bar.
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And yes, all of it apparently happened in a grassroots sort of fashion, with online buzz and word-of-mouth following the Cybertruck reveal propelling all the orders received so far.
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The single-motor option that apparently has the smallest percentage of orders so far is actually the cheap option, with the rear-wheel drive model starting at $39,900. The dual-motor all-wheel drive Cybertruck tacks on an additional $10,000, which gets you more towing capacity and an extra 50 miles of range (300 instead of 250).
The priciest Cybertruck sports three electric motors that up the range to 500 miles and the towing capacity to 14,000 pounds, which is 6,500 pounds more than the single-motor option.
Note that orders aren't the same as purchases, but some money still changes hands. Reserving a Cybertruck requires a $100 refundable deposit. The vehicles won't be available until late 2021, so who can really say how many of those deposits will convert to purchases when all is said and done? With the Cybertruck's release so far out at this point, people likely just want to reserve their place in line.
Still, 146,000 worth of $100 deposits means Tesla raked in $14.6 million in less than 24 hours. Those deposits are refundable, sure, but if all you want to know at this point is if people are interested in the weird-looking vehicle, it's safe to say they are.
Back in 2016, Tesla took in 134,000 pre-orders for the then-newly-revealed Model 3. But that was a similarly long-in-advance reveal, with customers waiting until late 2017 before they could actually purchase the vehicle. By Aug. 2017, 63,000 of those pre-orders – which, it's worth noting, carried a higher $1,000 deposit – had been canceled.
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
