Tesla boasted that it had received over a million reservations for the Cybertruck, but now it is abandoning the reservation system in the United States for the Foundation Series. Anyone who wants to buy one will get one almost immediately, which paints a bleak picture of the Cybertruck’s resale value.
Much later than expected, Tesla finally began delivering Cybertruck in November 2023 to an enthusiastic crowd of fans and pre-order holders. However, the excitement was significantly tempered when Tesla announced revised specifications, particularly maximum range. Then, less than a month after purchase, early adopters were hit with teething problems.
Software issues, a lack of functioning differentials, and poor charging performance were just a few of the issues that made people reconsider buying a Cybertruck. Later, some Cybertruck owners faced failures in the rear-wheel drive inverter and rear-steer motor, not to mention build quality issues, including falling body parts.
These issues, along with a healthy ramp-up in production at Giga Texas, caused the supply of Cybertrucks to increase on the market. Initially, Tesla would buy back a Cybertruck from its owners with a very small depreciation penalty if someone no longer wanted to keep it. Soon, it would no longer want to do this, as it had difficulty finding buyers for new builds.
Likewise, the Cybertruck’s resale value went from double the list price in early 2024 to more reasonable values just a few months later. Everyone wanted a Cybertruck in January, and people were willing to do anything to get one. This proved that Tesla’s strategy of focusing on the Foundation Series was a genius move, effectively improving the Cybertruck’s margins by $20,000. However, as demand dropped and production increased, things changed abruptly.
As more people opt out of configuring a Foundation Series Cybertruck and wait for regular variants to start shipping, Tesla is trying new tricks to sell more units. That includes opening order books in Mexico and Canada, a last-ditch effort before finally abandoning the Foundation Series, and starting sales of regular Cybertruck variants for $20,000 less.
However, when that happens, it will cause a massive drop in resale value, on top of what the Cybertruck has already seen in recent months. If you check out Tesla’s US website, you can place an order and have your new Cybertruck Foundation Series delivered in just a few weeks, if not sooner. This just goes to show the futility of trying to sell a used Cybertruck.
There are currently hundreds of them for sale across the country, most of them just above the $100,000 mark. However, why anyone would pay $100,000 for a used Cybertruck when they can get a new one with immediate delivery is a mystery to me. This shows that prices are about to drop once sellers realize what is already clear to everyone.
Imagine what would happen if we removed the Foundation Series markup from the Cybertruck’s resale value. That would be an immediate $20,000 write-off. Anyone buying a Foundation Series Cybertruck now would be in for a rude awakening in a matter of months. Unless they can immediately cash in on that loss.
Next year, Tesla will launch the RWD variant, with a list price of $61,000. While it's not as attractive as the All-wheel drive trim or the Cyberbeast, will put more pressure on used prices. If you are patient enough, the Cybertruck used market will become really exciting in a few months.