Tesla Cybertruck Tri-Motor's Rumored $98,990 Price Causes People To Cancel Reservations

With the Tesla Cybertruck delivery event around the corner, people are talking more about the electric pickup truck's features and pricing. The latter is of utmost importance, as it can make or break the Cybertruck. Electric pickups are no longer revolutionary, and existing models are considered relatively affordable.

Tesla announced very aggressive prices when it unveiled the Cybertruck in November 2019. The most affordable Cybertruck, the single-motor variant, would start at $39,990. In the meantime, the single-motor variant is not on the table anymore, and the dual-motor Cybertruck, originally priced at $49,990, is now the base version. The most expensive option was supposed to be the tri-motor Plaid version, at $69,990. These prices sound unrealistic nowadays, considering a base Model 3 is $39,000.

And yet, when Ford cut the prices of the F-150 Lightning in July, Elon Musk mocked the pickup as being "somewhat expensive." This made some people optimistic that the Cybertruck, or at least the lesser trims, would be affordable. Since then, Musk has never stopped complaining about the high production costs and the difficulties of launching the pickup into series production. That's like going in the opposite direction, as if he was trying to set the narrative for a very expensive Cybertruck.

If the latest rumors on the internet are true, the Cybertruck might be a lot more expensive than initially announced, even considering the inflation. An anonymous user in the Tesla CyberTruck Facebook group claimed they received a call from Tesla to move on with the purchase. There were reportedly two options, dual- and tri-motor, with the latter (which they chose) at $98,990 plus taxes. They were asked to complete the purchase within a week, or their Cybertruck would be allocated to another reservation holder.

The message shared on Facebook says that they had an RN112745XXX reservation number, being among the first 500 people who placed a reservation. Some disputed the claim, saying there was no way this was possible, considering the large number of reservations made on the first day. The post was later deleted, so make of it what you will. Still, there might be some truth in the posting, and that includes the pricing.

The Cybertruck is undoubtedly more expensive to produce than the Model X Plaid, which is $94,990. It offers a similar tri-motor setup but with a bigger battery. Add to that the complicated manufacturing process and the new technologies, and the price doesn't seem exaggerated, even if it's higher than the one announced in 2019. But that doesn't matter for many people who still consider the price hike outrageous. In the case of one Redditor, this was too much, so they decided to cancel their reservation.

Besides the higher-than-expected prices, their reasoning was based on the assumption that the insurance and operating costs would be expensive. Many argued that canceling the pre-order is a foolish thing to do, especially when the original pricing message could well be fake. That's as shortsighted as selling the reservation on eBay. No matter how bad or expensive the Cybertruck is, countless people would pay a high markup to be among the first to drive one.