Latest news with #Cybetrucks
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
With Sales Plummeting, Tesla Cancels Key Cybertruck Component
Tesla has officially abandoned its plan to sell a $16,000 range extender for the Cybertruck, Electrek reports — the latest in the automaker's struggles with the incredibly controversial vehicle. This week, customers who paid a $2,000 reservation fee for the extender received emails from Tesla stating it was no longer selling the add-on, but that it would fully refund their deposits. Electrek reached out to the automaker and confirmed the decision. Per the reporting, the cancellation comes a month after Tesla quietly pulled the range extender as an add-on on its website's vehicle configurator. No official reason for the cancellation has been given. With a base range of 320 to 350 miles on a single charge, depending on the configuration, the Cybertruck launched with a far shorter range than the 500-plus miles that CEO Elon Musk once promised. The range extender, a battery pack designed to be installed in the pickup bed, was supposed to make up for that failure. However, since the accessory was announced around the time the Cybertruck started being delivered in late 2023, Tesla has waffled on how much of a boost the add-on would give. It first said that it would extend the Cybertruck's range to 470 miles, but it later walked back that figure to 445 miles, when the automaker delayed its release date to mid-2025. Symbolically, by canning the add-on entirely, Tesla has admitted defeat on ever fulfilling its original pledge. In any case, the extender was always a questionable option. On top of costing as much as a used car, it was going to weigh a whopping 600 pounds and take up an entire third of the rear bed's room once installed. But the dumped add-on is only the tip of Tesla's troubles with the Cybertruck, which has sold less than 50,000 units since it launched — a far cry from Musk's boast that it would easily move 250,000 per year. In reality, Cybertruck sales have continued to plummet, with only 6,400 of the electric pickups selling in the first quarter of this year. Its inventory of unsold Cybetrucks, meanwhile, has reportedly piled up to a record high of over 10,000 units. Buyers have plenty of reasons to stay away. Fraught with quality concerns, the Cybertruck has faced eight separate recalls, with the latest one — issued because its glued-on body panels could fly off — affecting nearly all of the vehicles it had ever sold. The Cybertruck's image has also been irreversibly tarnished by its close association with Musk, who has become deeply reviled for his far-right politics and his role in the Trump administration. While Tesla recently announced a cheaper version of the Cybertruck with a slightly longer range and far fewer features, it seems unlikely that the bid will excite sales. Clearly, it didn't have much faith in the range extender doing well, and with reports that it's slowing down production of the Cybertruck, maybe the automaker is finally seeing the writing on the wall. More on Tesla: Tesla's Sales Are Somehow Continuing to Fall
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Latest Tesla Cybertruck Recall Involves Body Part That Could Fly Off
Tesla is recalling 46,096 Cybertrucks due to a stainless-steel body panel that could potentially fly off the electric pickup. An exterior trim piece called the cant rail is secured with adhesive, which Tesla says is "susceptible to environmental embrittlement." To fix the issue, Tesla will use a different adhesive and clamp the part to the body, which will be covered under warranty. The Tesla Cybertruck is an unmistakable stainless-steel-bodied electric pickup truck, but one of those stainless-steel body parts is susceptible to flying off, based on a recent recall. As a result, Tesla is recalling roughly 46K—or virtually all—Cybetrucks from the 2024 and 2025 model years. The recall involves an exterior trim piece called the cant rail, which is joined together with the truck's steel structure with an adhesive that's prone to "environmental embrittlement," according to a recall report that Tesla submitted to NHTSA earlier this week. The report goes on to say that the Cybertruck's stainless-steel body panel can delaminate and separate from the rest of the vehicle, possibly landing on the road and creating a hazard for other drivers. The affected Cybertrucks were built between November 13, 2023, and February 27, 2025. Owners should be able to notice a delaminated cant rail because it'll either be obviously coming loose from the truck's body or it can create a noise while inside the truck. According to the NHTSA report, Tesla first learned about the issue back in January, which led to inspections and pull tests that the company said revealed no signs of separation. However, in February, NHTSA notified Tesla that owners had made claims about detached cant rails, which were further identified through service records and posts on social media. So what's the fix? Tesla says it will replace the cant rails for free under warranty. The new body part will not only use a different adhesive that Tesla says isn't susceptible to the same embrittlement issues, but it will also be secured with a stud welded to the structure and a nut to clamp the stainless-steel trim piece. The company says the procedure will also apply to Cybertrucks built around March 21, 2025, as well as retrofitted to models still in its possession before they're delivered to customers. This marks the Cybertruck's eighth recall since it went on sale over a year ago, and they've varied in severity, from rearview cameras that don't work to a faulty drive inverter that may cause a loss of power to another exterior trim piece that could come loose and fly off the truck to unintended acceleration from a trapped pedal. You Might Also Like Car and Driver's 10 Best Cars through the Decades How to Buy or Lease a New Car Lightning Lap Legends: Chevrolet Camaro vs. Ford Mustang!
