Why people love – and love to hate – Tesla’s Cybertruck

Few vehicles in modern history have generated as much consumer excitement and revulsion in their first year on the market as the Tesla Cybertruck.

Ever since Elon Musk revealed the Cybertruck in 2019 and declared: “It’s not going to be for everyone,” people have debated whether the eclectic pickup truck’s big design is ugly or stylish. This gap has only intensified since Cybertrucks started rolling off assembly lines last November.

“You ever look stupid with a cyber truck up close,” Blake Murphy wrote in a message last week sent to Blue Sky.

“I think it’s so sweet,” said Sheila Elgaard, a resident of Foster City, California San Francisco Standard. “I just think this design is futuristic. I want one.”

Buying a Cybertruck isn’t cheap – they cost around $100,000, depending on trim. Nevertheless, in the third quarter of this year they were the third most purchased electric car in the country, according to Kelley Blue Book.

“Despite a six-figure price tag — the average transaction price in September was north of $116,000, according to Kelley Blue Book estimates — more than 16,000 Cybertrucks were sold in Q3,” Kelley Blue Book said. “In fact, the Cybertruck outsold all but two other electric cars available — Tesla’s popular Model Y and Model 3.”

But there are signs that interest in Cybertrucks may be waning. The the average time it takes a dealer to sell a Cybertruck on much has increased from 27 days in May to 75 days in November, Reuters reported. And in another sign of declining sales, the number of new Cybertrucks registered in the United States fell from 5,428 in August to 4,039 in October.

The Cybertruck Ownership Policy

Cybertrucks are certainly more than just a means of transport. They are, as the New York Times described it in a headline, “A culture war on wheels.”

In August, online streamer Aidin Ross gifted Donald Trump a customized Cybertruck and a gold Rolex watch.

“I think it’s incredible,” Trump said of the Tesla.

Given Musk’s own full, deep support for Trump’s reelection bid, the angular design quickly became synonymous with MAGA values, and Musk’s role in the new administration has further strengthened that association.

Not all Cybertruck owners are comfortable with their vehicle being perceived as a tacit endorsement of the next president. In Berkeley, California, this reporter saw a Cybertruck with the words “F*ck Trump!” printed on the back door.

In June, 34 Cybertucks were stored in a public parking lot in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., was vandalized with the spray-painted message “F*ck Elon,” according to a local news.

On an online Cybertruck owners foruman anonymous poster from Pennsylvania shared their mixed feelings about their vehicle.

“I’m really tempted to sell because of all the attention, criticism, assumptions and even aggressive drivers targeting me on the highway,” the poster wrote in a thread titled “Love the truck, hate the opinions.”

Recalls

According to National Highway Transportation Safety BoardTesla has issued seven separate recalls for the Cybertruck over the past year. These have included fixes for issues such as loss of drivability, a windscreen wiper failure and a faulty reversing camera.

The NHTSB launched two investigations into the Cybertruck in 2024, including one based on reports of crashes in areas with “reduced road visibility.”

After a Cybertruck crash in November in Piedmont, Calif., that killed three young people after the vehicle crashed into a tree and then burst into flames, the NHTSB said it was collect information from Tesla and the police.

A new one design in the old world

While cybertrucks are all-electric vehicles whose use can help reduce CO2 emissions responsible for climate change, their enormous size and weight are more difficult on roads and pose a threat to other drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, according to experts.

In Europe, where regulations restrict the registration of large, angular vehicles in many cities, Cybertrucks are not a common sight.

“Cybertrucks pose acute dangers and do not meet European standards,” James Nix, of the nonprofit organization Transport & Environment, wrote in a letter this summer to the European Commission and officials in the Czech Republic. “To protect other road users, we have asked the minister to suspend the Cybertruck from public streets.”