Tesla Inc.’s fans and investors are currently celebrating Cybertruck delivery numbers for the second quarter, which they believe outdid other electric trucks in America, including Ford’s F-150 Lightning. However, there is no public data to back this claim.
What Happened: Tesla’s Cybertruck handle on X also shared the news, seemingly confirming the prediction while not providing data to back it.
Why Cybertruck Couldn’t Have Sold More Than Lightning: Tesla’s Cybertruck is up against Ford’s F-150 Lightning, Rivian’s R1T, and GM’s Silverado EV and Hummer EV pickup in the EV truck segment. While Ford reported earlier this week that it sold 7,902 units of its Lightning in the second quarter in the U.S., GM said that it delivered 2,196 units of its Silverado EV and 2,929 units of its Hummer EV SUV and pickup trucks combined.
However, neither Tesla nor Rivian gave model-wise sales numbers.
Tesla on Tuesday reported that it delivered 21,551 units of its more premium models globally in the second quarter. Tesla’s premium lineup includes not just the Cybertruck but also its Model S sedan and its Model X SUV, making it unclear as to how many Cybertrucks were sold in particular. However, while the Model S and X are sold in markets outside the U.S., the Cybertruck is sold only within the country.
As for Rivian, the company said that it delivered 13,790 vehicles in the quarter, including not just its R1T electric trucks but also R1S SUVs.
Tesla started delivering the Cybertruck to customers only in the fourth quarter of 2023. In the second quarter of 2023, Tesla delivered 19,225 Model S and X vehicles, implying that if indeed Cybertruck were to trump the Lightning’s sales numbers for the second quarter of 2024, its Model S and Model X deliveries should have fallen by at least 29% year-on-year.
Furthermore, according to data from automotive research company Kelley Blue Book, Tesla sold just 2,803 Cybertrucks in the first quarter, implying that Tesla must have increased its production capacity by at least 182% if it were to have sold more Cybertruck units.
Thus far, it’s likely that either Ford or Rivian sold more EV pickup trucks than Tesla in the quarter. Tesla, however, did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.
Why Cybertruck Could Have Sold More Than Lightning: Tesla recalled 11,688 Cybertrucks over concerns that its front windshield wiper may stop working owing to a failure of the wiper motors in late June, implying that the company has at least so many of the trucks in the market.
If one were to assume that Tesla only sold 900 Cybertrucks in November and December last year, and 2,803 Cybertrucks in the first quarter of 2024, it would leave the number of Cybertrucks delivered in the second quarter at around 8000 units, higher than the Lightning.
Furthermore, for Rivian, the R1S is more profitable than the R1T, leaving us to assume the company sold more SUVs than pickups in the last three months as it gears towards reporting its first-ever quarterly gross profit in the fourth quarter of 2024. Based on this assumption, the R1T sales would have been below the Lightning in the quarter.
While this seems probable, one cannot be sure unless Tesla reveals its Cybertruck sales numbers for the period.
Why It Matters: Tesla is currently scaling the production of the Cybertruck and aims to make 250,000 annually by 2025. For now, the company has touched a weekly production rate of 1,300 Cybertrucks, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said at Tesla's annual shareholder meeting in the first half of June. The EV maker is looking to increase it further this year to touch 2,500 units by year-end, he added.
The stainless steel truck has been a celebrity favorite over the past few months likely due to the vehicle’s unconventional design, high price point, and the few units available on the road. The vehicle pricing starts at $79,990 for the all-wheel drive version and $99,990 for the more premium Cyberbeast version. A lower-priced rear-wheel drive version of the truck will be available in 2025, as per the company website, starting at $60,990.
Musk has previously said that production, and not demand, is the biggest hurdle in ramping up Cybertruck deliveries. The company eventually intends to make the truck a common sight on American roads.
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