Tesla Cybertruck is already boosting sales, keeping momentum without tax credit

Tesla Cybertruck is not coming to market until next year, but sources at Tesla are telling Electrek that the electric pickup is already boosting sales and helping Tesla keeps its momentum in the US without the tax credit.

For the first time, Tesla buyers don’t have access to any federal tax credit for buying a vehicle in the US.

It is raising questions about the automaker’s ability to maintain demand in the US after losing access to the incentive while other automakers can still take advantage of it.

Furthermore, the end of the incentive has pushed many buyers to place orders last year, which boosted sales last quarter and contributed to an anticipated slow down in deliveries in Q1 2020.

However, sources familiar with Tesla’s US sales told Electrek that the automaker’s management has given its North American sales team roughly the same delivery goal as the previous quarter.

They are reporting strong demand in the first quarter and sources attribute it, at least partly, to the Cybertruck unveiling in November of last year.

People with interest in the electric pickup truck are going in to talk about the vehicle and instead leaving thinking with the possibility of getting a Tesla model that they can get sooner.

When Tesla unveiled the Cybertruck, it created a lot of talk, mostly about how it looked. Some people focused more on the insane specs and price, but many were also talking about the unveiling itself.

Videos of the window breaking mishap have been seen by millions and Tesla embraced the mistake – even going as far as selling t-shirts featuring it.

Tesla is believed to have received around 500,000 reservations for the electric pickup truck and sources told Electrek that many people are visiting Tesla stores because of it.

One source told Electrek that some Cybertruck reservation holders are opting to lease a Model 3 until they can take delivery of their electric pickup truck – resulting in a boost of demand.

Tesla said that it plans to launch the two higher-end versions of the Cybertruck in late 2021.

Those two electric trucks will have between 300 and 500 miles of range and be equipped with dual- and tri-motor powertrains and start at $49,000.

Electrek’s Take

I’m not gonna lie, that’s a bit surprising to me. I was confident in Tesla’s demand in the US starting later this year as Tesla starts volume deliveries of the Model Y, but I was expecting a significant drop in Q1.

Though now that they have pointed it out, the Cybertruck effect makes sense to me.

The good and the bad from the launch has resulted in many more people being introduced to electric vehicles and Tesla. Some of these people are now realizing that an electric vehicle might be an option for them and even though their main interest might be the Cybertruck, it’s not that surprising that they would now be more open to another EV, like the Model 3.

Now this Cybertruck effect might help Tesla’s US demand until they can start volume deliveries of the Model Y, which would be an almost perfect situation for the automaker.

What do you think? Let us know in the comment section below.