Tesla Cybertruck sales continue to fall far short of early forecasts

[Four Tesla Cybertrucks]
baileystock/iStock Editorial via Getty Images

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/TSLA]) only sold around 5,400 Cybertruck pickup trucks during the third quarter, according to data from Cox Automotive. That tally was down 63% from the same quarter last year, even though Tesla's (NASDAQ:TSLA [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/TSLA]) overall Q3 deliveries were strong ahead of the expiration of the electric vehicle tax credit.

Elon Musk forecast in 2023 that Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/TSLA]) could end up producing 250,000 Cybertrucks per year based on his assessment of demand amid a high number of early reservations. However, the Cybertruck has continued to be outsold by Ford's (F [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/F]) F-150 Lightning, which had 10,005 sales in Q3. By comparison, the total number of sales for the F-Series (gas and electric) in Q3 was over 207K.

In terms of reliability, some Cybertruck owners have stated they encountered significant problems, including vibrations at high speeds and touchscreen malfunctions, which has led to a mixed batch of owner reviews. _Car and Driver _recently reported that a cheaper long-range Cybertruck did not match the driving range of the dual-motor Rivian (RIVN [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/RIVN]) R1T and dual-motor Chevrolet (GM [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/GM]) Silverado LT.

Looking ahead, analysts forecast that Tesla (TSLA [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/TSLA]) will sell fewer Cybertrucks in 2025 than the company did in 2024.

Shares of Tesla (TSLA [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/TSLA]) moved up 3.4% in Monday afternoon trading to cut into the Friday decline, tied to concerns about an extended U.S.-China trade war.

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