Tesla provided an update on plans for its Cybertruck pickup truck during an earnings call on Wednesday.
CEO Elon Musk said the first Cybertruck recently built at the company's plant in Austin, Texas, a photo of which was posted to Twitter on July 15, was only a pre-production example to be used for final testing and certification. However, he also said he anticipates customer deliveries starting later in 2023.
Musk hinted that production volumes may be low initially but will increase in 2024. He emphasized that a lot of new technologies and unique parts and processes are going into the Cybertruck.
“We’ll be making them in high volume next year, and we will be delivering the car this year,” he said.
Cybertruck production was originally planned to start in late 2021. Multiple delays put production behind schedule.
Tesla Cybertruck final testing
One of the new technologies destined for the electric truck is a battery cell that's more energy dense than what the company currently uses. Drew Baglino, Tesla's senior VP for powertrain and energy engineering, said during the call the new cell has a 10% higher energy density than what Tesla is currently using in its vehicles.
It isn't clear whether the new cell will allow Tesla to deliver more range than what the company has already announced. At the Cybertruck's reveal in 2019, Tesla said the truck would offer battery options for more than 250 miles, 300 miles, and 500 miles.
Tesla also announced a starting price of $39,900 during the 2019 reveal but this information was pulled from Tesla's website in 2021, suggesting that the Cybertruck may have a different starting price once it is actually on sale.
After Ford cut the starting price of its rival F-150 Lightning to $51,990 earlier this week, Musk commented on Twitter that the Ford is a “good vehicle” but “somewhat expensive.”
During Wednesday's earnings call, Tesla said the full-size Cybertruck will be 19 feet long, enabling it to fit in more private garages than comparable rivals that are typically longer than 20 feet. Tesla claimed that as far as it knows, the Cybertruck will be the first truck that’s less than 19 feet long with four doors and a bed more than six feet long.
