Elon Musk Claims There Have Been 200,000 Cybertruck Preorders Since Its Unveiling

Bryan Hood

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The Tesla Cybertruck’s bold design may have made it the internet’s punching bag on Friday morning, but it doesn’t seem to be putting off potential drivers. Over the weekend, Elon Musk revealed that his EV company had already received 200,000 preorders for the vehicle since its live-streamed debut at a special event in Los Angeles.

On Saturday evening, Musk tweeted: “146k Cybertruck orders so far, with 42% choosing dual, 41% tri & 17% single motor.” He would go on to update his followers on Sunday, first suggesting that preorders had reached 187,000 by Sunday afternoon and then 200,000 by the evening. A Tesla rep did not respond to Robb Report’s request for comment about the tweets.

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While analysts and journalists seem skeptical about the self-described “futuristic-like cyberpunk, Blade Runner pickup truck,” it would appear that Tesla loyalists and Musk’s legion of fans are lapping it up. However, the numbers Musk tweeted do not represent actual sales or committed orders. The Cybertruck preorders only cost $100 to reserve, and they are fully refundable.

Notably, the affordable preorder fee is also less than it has cost to “reserve” other Teslas in the past, according to CNBC. Indeed, you’ll need to put down $2,500 to reserve the upcoming Model Y crossover. And preorders for the Model 3 required a $1,000 deposit in 2016.

Whether the preorder numbers are accurate or not, Musk’s tweets appear to have arrested the free-fall of Tesla’s stock since the Cybertruck was announced. The company’s stock fell by 6.1 percent during trading on Friday, with analysts wondering if consumers would be willing to buy a vehicle that looks so “weird.” But by Monday the company’s stock price was up 4 percent to $345.50, according to Reuters.

Unsurprisingly, preorders weren’t the only Cybertruck-related tweets from Musk this weekend. He also explained why the pickup’s supposedly bulletproof windows shattered when a metal ball was tossed at them during the unveiling. The tech titan blamed the fact that the windows were hit by a sledge hammer before the metal ball was tossed at them. At least they didn’t claim the windows were metal ball-poof. So there’s that.

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