Tesla withdraws range extender for Cybertruck: Range promise remains unfulfilled
Photo: Tesla
Tesla will not equip the Cybertruck with a range extender, and the Cybertruck will fall far short of the originally promised range. This is according to an email a customer has now received from Tesla and has been obtained by electrek . Tesla had announced in October 2024 that the Cybertruck would be equipped with an additional battery called a "range extender" – to give the electric pickup the range that Elon Musk promised at its launch.
When Tesla unveiled the production version of the Cybertruck at the end of 2023, two figures deviated significantly from the original announcements made in 2019: the range for the three-motor variant and its price. Of the originally announced 500 miles (805 kilometers), only 320 miles (515 kilometers) remained in reality, and the announced price of $70,000 (currently equivalent to approximately €62,222) skyrocketed to $100,000 (€88,888).
The dual-motor version, at least, has the right mileage: The advertised range was more than 300 miles (483 kilometers), and the actual range was 325 miles (523 kilometers). But here, too, Tesla executives significantly increased the price – the promised $50,000 (€44,444) exploded to $80,000 (€71,111).
To mitigate the range disappointment, Tesla then announced a solution: Energy from an additional battery pack called a range extender would supplement the missing range miles. But this so-called range extender had two drawbacks: First, it would be housed in the pickup's bed, taking up a third of the space there, and second, it would cost $16,000 (€14,222). Anyone wanting the range extender had to make an upfront payment of $2,000 (€1,778) – Tesla is now refunding these prepayments.
Tesla originally planned to begin delivering its range extender package in early 2025, but then postponed the delivery start to mid-2025. In this context, Tesla also reduced the range that was supposed to be achievable using the range extender. Instead of the promised 470 miles (756 kilometers), only 445 miles (716 kilometers) were possible. In April, the range extender quietly disappeared from Tesla's online configurator – along with a request for a "...non-refundable deposit of $2,000."
Tesla now clearly informs its inquiring customer via email: "We no longer plan to sell the range extender for Cybertruck."
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