Tesla Cybertruck not a “real truck?” What Musk’s “Blade Runner” pickup must do to get truckers’ acceptance

Late last month, a study conducted by AmericanTrucks revealed that about 6 out of 10 truck owners did not consider the Tesla Cybertruck a “real truck.” This was unfortunate, but it is also not surprising. The Cybertruck, after all, is so different compared to other pickups in the market, and much of its real-world capabilities are yet to be proven. 

While electric sedans and SUVs have become a common sight on American roads thanks to the popularity of vehicles like the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y, the electric pickup truck market is still pretty much in its infancy. Today, there are only a few electric trucks available, such as the Rivian R1T, the Ford F-150 Lightning, and the GMC Hummer EV. The Cybertruck, provided that Tesla’s initial production plans are followed, is likely next in line. 

Perhaps one of the reasons behind the results of the survey is the fact that the Cybertruck has not been released just yet. The truck has attracted a lot of attention over the years, but most of it has been online, where Tesla already has a strong presence. In real-world roads and among those who really use pickup trucks for their utility, the Cybertruck is still a big question mark. 

Once Tesla actually ramps the Cybertruck’s production and American streets are populated by the vehicle, the situation would likely change. This was why Paul Knoll, Marketing Director at Turn5, the operating firm behind AmericanTrucks, told Teslarati that the Cybertruck could eventually be accepted by truckers as a legitimate truck. It just needs to prove that it could stand toe-to-toe, or perhaps even exceed, comparable trucks that are in the market today. 

“We all have style preferences when looking for a new vehicle, and the Cybertruck has an interesting aesthetic. With the unconventional shape and interesting truck bed, some drivers may not feel like it looks like a traditional truck. Truck drivers are used to the traditional truck body, and now that Tesla is making something completely different from what they are used to, it might just take some time to adjust. What will really matter to truck owners is how it performs.”

“With truck drivers used to a certain body type for their trucks, Tesla may have to just let the product speak for itself. If the Cybertruck blows away expectations during testing, that will help convince those who are unsure about it. But the Cybertruck isn’t just for truck drivers. It’s also for people who care about the environment and want to help protect it,” Knoll said. 

At least on paper, the Cybertruck will definitely have what it takes to make an impact in the United States’ pickup truck market. Tesla just has to ensure that the vehicle is compelling enough that it could persuade enough people to try it out. This way, even those who are on the fence would be willing to give it a chance. That was pretty much what happened with Tesla’s breakthrough vehicles like the Model S and Model 3. Both vehicles were made to be the best in their segment, electric or otherwise, and it paid off in spades.  

Tesla has not released the final specs of the Cybertruck, but during its unveiling, it was listed with a number of impressive stats. These include a 500-mile range, 14,000 pounds of towing capacity, and the capability to carry 3,500 pounds of payload. It would be fitted with notable features such as a “vault” storage at the rear and a generous frunk as well. Rear wheel steering will also be standard on the Cybertruck, as per reports following the company’s Investor Day event. 

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

Tesla Cybertruck not a “real truck?” What Musk’s “Blade Runner” pickup must do to get truckers’ acceptance

Source

Tesla Giga Berlin ramps production to 5,000 vehicles per week

Tesla Giga Berlin has reached an annual run rate of 260,000 vehicles, the company confirmed.

Tesla officially announced that its factory outside of Berlin built 5,000 vehicles in a week this past week, just one year after starting deliveries to European customers.

The growth of Tesla’s Giga Berlin factory is remarkable, considering less than a month ago, the automaker announced that it reached a run rate of 4,000 vehicles per week, well ahead of schedule.

Considering Tesla just celebrated the factory’s one-year anniversary earlier this week, the growth and ramp-up of Tesla’s first vehicle production facility in Europe have been imperative to the company’s success in the region.

Europe is one of the most competitive markets for electric vehicles, and it was long dominated by companies that have long called the region home. Volkswagen was the company that had the most sales by manufacturer before Tesla came into the region with Giga Berlin.

Prior to Tesla’s construction and kick-off of production and deliveries from the factory, it exported vehicles from Giga Shanghai, its Chinese production facility, and brought them into the continent to support demand.

Tesla is likely ramping production at an accelerated rate in Berlin as it continues its end-of-quarter push, which is somewhat traditional for the automaker as it attempts to push as many deliveries as it can to establish quarter-over-quarter growth.

Pictures from @wolfpackberlin (via @Berlinergy) show that Tesla lots around Giga Berlin are full of vehicles that are being prepared for customer deliveries.

These vehicles will be delivered to German customers, and others in surrounding areas as the automaker continues to pad its Q1 2023 delivery statistics.

Registration data tracked by EU-EVs shows Tesla has dominated 2023 thus far. Tesla has sold 36,036 vehicles thus far, owning 19.5 percent of the European market thus far. Volkswagen is in second, and its 21,552 sales account for 11.7 percent of the total market.

Tesla is also planning to expand production at Giga Berlin to reach one million vehicles per year, and it submitted its application for the expansion earlier in March.

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Tesla Giga Berlin ramps production to 5,000 vehicles per week

Source

Tesla stock sale at ARK continues with another 130,000 shares sold

The Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) at ARK Invest has continued as the firm sold more than 130,000 shares on Friday, just one day after 139,000 shares were offloaded by the automaker’s biggest bull.

ARK’s Daily Trading Desk updates revealed the ARKK fund eliminated 119,151 shares of Tesla stock, while the ARKW ETF sold 11,547 shares. The sale saw 130,698 shares leave the two ARK ETFs.

On Thursday, ARK made similar moves by selling more than 139,000 shares, including over 119,000 shares from ARKK and more than 20,000 shares from 20,000.

The sale marks the second time in the past few days that ARK has offloaded so many shares of what the firm has held such a high regard for. It is important to note that the sale on Friday only accounted for 0.3 percent of the ARKK ETF’s Tesla holdings, while the ARKW sale was 0.18 percent of its holdings.

Tesla still remains the largest holding in the ARKK ETF, while the automaker’s shares are the fourth-largest in ARKW.

Many wonder what the reasoning for ARK’s offloading of Tesla shares this week might have been caused by. On both days that ARK has sold this many shares, it has also bought hundreds of thousands of shares of Block, Inc., Coinbase, and on Thursday only, Teladoc Inc.

It is not necessarily an indication that ARK is not interested in holding as much Tesla as it did previously or that the firm’s thesis on the automaker has changed.

In January, ARK reiterated its support for Tesla and highlighted the company’s potential moving forward as an automaker, energy company, and through the development of autonomous vehicles. These comments were made after the firm loaded up on Tesla shares in the ARKK and ARKW ETFs.

Disclosure: Joey Klender is a TSLA Shareholder.

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Tesla stock sale at ARK continues with another 130,000 shares sold

Source