r/electricvehicles • u/SpriteZeroY2k • 1d ago
News Tesla quietly removes range extender battery option on Cybertruck
https://electrek.co/2025/04/05/tesla-removes-range-extender-battery-option-cybertruck/221
u/RabbitHots504 Silverado EV 1d ago
lol Silverado remains the range king of Ev Trucks
For cheaper than the CT
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u/bradeena 1d ago
And a better truck.
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u/SomeGuyNamedPaul HI5, MYLR, PacHy #2 1d ago
The fact that it's actually a truck almost seems like cheating.
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u/Heidenreich12 1d ago
I agree the range is better value, but we gotta stop acting like a 6’ x 4’ bed isn’t a truck. Hate Elon all you want, but it’s a fucking truck.
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u/i7-4790Que 1d ago
An actual truck doesn't use an aluminum frame
Try again
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u/Erlend05 3h ago
Aluminium can be plenty strong if you make it so thick and heavy there is no more any benefit over steel
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u/blackinthmiddle 18h ago
You can't be serious.
It's a unibody car - already this limits its off-road capabilities. That's fine, most people aren't taking trucks off road, so I'll ignore this.
The tailgate is a joke. Go watch the million YouTube videos demonstrating this if you need proof. JerryRigEverything has a very good example.
Panels that are glued on and are literally ripping off while people are driving?
You have to dry it off and polish it after it rains or it'll rust??? Come on!!!
No rear view cavers? Imagine spending $120k on a truck, closing to cover to get better efficiency and all your rear view mirror can show you is how great your cover looks!
It's a really expensive toy for those who have deep pockets. You want to get a big potted plant from Ikea? Sure, go for it. Want to load up 1/2 cord of firewood? Get a real truck.
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u/Heidenreich12 17h ago
Haha, even with all those points, it’s still a fucking truck. Is it a good truck? Maybe not, but in a trucks almost basic definition, the cybertruck passes.
Sorry this thread wants to redefine what truck means.
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u/WizeAdz 2022 Tesla Model Y (MYLR7) & 2010 GMC Sierra 1500 Hybrid 2h ago
The Cybertruck doesnt have the numbers to do the towing I keep my GMC Sierra 1500 around for.
I’d once hoped to trade in both my Model Y and my GMC Sierra in on a Cybertruck so that I only need to maintain a single vehicle. But the Cybertruck is a downgrade from my Model Y (my Y has the same range, turn signal stalks, the 3rd row, and a more reasonable price tag), and the Cybertruck can't do the truck-stuff that I do.
The nomenclature isn't the main thing… Since the Cybertruck can't functionally replace my truck, its functionally an SUV to me.
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u/SomeGuyNamedPaul HI5, MYLR, PacHy #2 1d ago
My favorite truck feature is when the rear gate bends and won't ever close right again if you load a stack of drywall in it.
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u/stilhere 1d ago
The cybertruck pretends to be a truck but can’t actually do any truck things. But it’s “edgy”, so there’s that.
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u/GrynaiTaip 1d ago
You're right, it is a proper, serious, workhorse truck.
Uh oh, it started raining, your truck is now a brick and warranty is void.
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u/SharkBaitDLS 2023 EV6 GT-Line RWD | 2024 Charger Daytona Track Pack 1d ago
The midgate means that for most practical purposes like hauling some lumber or plywood, it's perfectly fine. Yes, there's the small number of people that actually load a full bed all the way to the roofline but let's be real that's a fraction of a percent of truck users.
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u/AmpEater 1d ago
I canceled my day 1 CT reservation and bought a Silverado instead. I love it.
Probably gonna ditch my Y too, it’s rare I’m not hauling something somewhere so I guess I’m gonna live that truck life now that someone delivered on range to make big vehicles work.
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u/Timeisacommodity 14h ago
I had the Cybertruck on preorder but am about to pull trigger on the Sierra EV max range. It has the main two things Elon promised I desired. Midgate and almost 500 mile range.
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u/Relevant-Doctor187 22h ago
Think then Denali can have an even bigger battery if you cough up the money.
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u/MamboFloof 18h ago
Certainly not the efficiency king, Jesus. It's so bad it will never see that range the second it touches a highway. Just get a max pack Rivian.
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u/RabbitHots504 Silverado EV 18h ago
No on highway it easily gets over 400 unless you doing 80 entire way then it’s like 380….
It has beaten every truck in range towing and not towing.
70 mph test has gotten the 440’
I get about 500 just driving around town
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u/Anonym0oO Model Y LR, 2x BMW i3S, BMW i3 1d ago
I mean, of course, when the battery is almost twice the size of the Cybertruck’s battery.
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u/caj_account R1S + eGolf (MY + Leaf before) 1d ago
r/RealTesla called it on the day of announcement.
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u/TheKingOfSwing777 Kia EV6 GT-Line AWD 1d ago
Proud to say I was part of that. Anyone who thought that would see the light of day was delusional.
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u/t0ny7 2020 Tesla Model 3 LR 10h ago
To be fair they claim every single thing related to Tesla or Musk is going to fail.
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u/caj_account R1S + eGolf (MY + Leaf before) 10h ago
No they provide a reason such as stock pump, save face etc.
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u/brucecaboose EV6 8h ago
Uhh, everyone with more than 3 brain cells knew it was never going to happen.
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u/Every_Tap8117 1d ago
Vaporware
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u/Derpymcderrp 1d ago
But boat mode is definitely gonna happen, right?
Elon said so 🤡
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u/IcyHowl4540 1d ago
I saw some dingus already tried it out at a pier.
It functioned exactly as promised. Elon never said the boat wasn't a submarine.
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u/Chaz_wazzers 1d ago
What happened to the ATV they showed with the prototype?
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u/Mental_Medium3988 1d ago
something that happened to the ramp in the tailgate.
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u/Car-face 1d ago
Hey, at least they made the Cybertent.
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u/AustrianMichael 1d ago
And it’s awful compared to just a regular tent you can but on the bed or top of any truck. This one by heimplanet is specifically just for the Cybertruck. If you buy one for a Rivian, it’s poped up in 1-2 minutes and you can re-use it for your next truck or even mount it on the roof of a normal SUV
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u/Regaltiger_Nicewings 1d ago
In before the fanboys come in and complain about who wrote the article while failing to address any of the points made.
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u/blazesquall BMW i4 M50 1d ago
And to think they used to love him too.
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u/luisbg 1d ago
Fellow i4 M50 owner! Man of taste.
What made you go for the M50 option? For me it was the awesome acceleration gain.
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u/blazesquall BMW i4 M50 1d ago
AWD and was coming from an m340i.. if it was going to be heavier, it needed to be faster.
This was also a day 1 preorder.. so not really an option to test drive the e40 either.
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u/stacecom 2016 Tesla Model S 75D 1d ago
Man, I remember in the old days that site had precisely the opposite complaints.
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u/archetype-am 2020 Tesla Model 3 Performance, 2024 Audi RS 5 1d ago edited 1d ago
I still cringe thinking about that audience of mouth breathers barfing up applause the moment he put those bullshit price/range figures on screen in 2019. As if anything had actually been built other than a PowerPoint slide.
500 miles, lol. Grow the fuck up.
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u/paulwesterberg 2023 Model S, Elon Musk is the fraud in our government! 1d ago
The Tesla Roadster 2.0 goes 620 miles. /s
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u/Late_To_Parties 1d ago edited 1d ago
Also consider the 5 year delay between announcement and delivery of the cybertruck. That means they had all that extra time to make good on their battery promises, so it was probably bollocks to begin with.
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u/dbcooper4 1d ago
Not to mention the Tesla bulls who were predicting that Tesla would sell 100k+ Cybertrucks per year.
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u/djgoodhousekeeping 1d ago
Didn’t Tesla say they were expecting to sell 250k units a year lol
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u/glmory 1d ago
And they would have if Elon just kept out of politics.
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u/Fauxreigner_ 1d ago
Yeah, no. It’s expensive and poorly made. They’d have sold MORE than they are now that it’s an endorsement of his politics, but 250k/yr was never going to happen with this production vehicle.
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u/Late_To_Parties 1d ago edited 1d ago
They would have if the price was right. Instead they doubled the price. And people are surprised the reservations cancelled? 🤦♂️
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u/HighHokie 1d ago
Price and elons antics.
Apparently it was still outselling other EV trucks which just shows how much Tesla choked and how weak the EV truck market is in general.
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u/Ok-Anteater_6635x 1d ago
It is still outselling other EV trucks.
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u/likewut 23h ago
We don't know that since Tesla doesn't release detailed sales numbers like every other vehicle manufacturer, probably so they can push a misleading narrative.
In 2024, Cybertruck sales beat other manufacturers due to the pent-up demand, catching up on preorders. And it didn't beat them by much.
Q1 of 2025, Ford sold 7178 F-150 Lightnings. in the US. Tesla sold between 5000 and 8000 Cybertrucks. So we don't know who sold more, but it certainly isn't safe to say the Cybertruck beat the Lightning since there is no evidence of that. And even GM sold about 7000 EV trucks between their 3 models. So for the Cybertruck being the only new product from Tesla since the Model 3, coming from the by-far most valuable automaker in the world, not selling more EV trucks than Ford or Chevy, (who don't have EVs as their primary business), is absolutely abysmal performance.
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u/UsernameAvaylable 1d ago
I remember the battery day video where everybody was wacking themselves about how tesla is a decade ahead of everybody... which is easy if you just throw all the ideas you have on powerpoint as if it was already in production and do not care about feasibility.
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u/ComoEstanBitches 1d ago
Elon undoubtedly duped us but it wasn’t far fetched at the time given Tesla engineers’ track record and the lack of noise from others in the car industry.
As smug it was for Elon to pull 500 mi out of his ass on stage, you have hindsight to say what you’re saying so I suggest you repeat your own words to a mirror. Tesla delivered on the 3, S, and X. The Y was looking like a slam dunk after the success of the 3 as another long range vehicle in a desirable class, solving public perception’s biggest gripe against EV adoption. Most of us are disappointed but Tesla’s engineers were delivering on long range EVs. Acting like another barebones EV wouldn’t have long range was in line with what Tesla was delivering on, especially since they boasted a new battery tech that was cited as limiting factor from others in the industry; Toyota’s “just wait until the solid state battery!!!!!”
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u/green__1 1d ago
yes, it was far fetched, and everyone with a brain realized that the truck would never hit either the range, or the price, that was quoted, and sure enough, we were proven right.
Just because there were a lot of very gullible people willing to put down deposits doesn't mean that the promises were reasonable. if they had been reasonable, maybe they would have been met!
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u/ComoEstanBitches 1d ago
The same way no one believed a mainstream EV could get over 100+, 200+, or 300+ mi range when the most popular EV at the time, the Nissan Leaf, was getting 70ish mi range. Yall got some mad recency bias firing off
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u/Lordofthereef 1d ago
You're absolutely right. We were expecting batteries to come down in price orders of magnitude over where they were in 2019. We also weren't expecting a historic inflationary event that nobody alive had ever experienced.
Both Ford and Chevy also promised a $40k entry price on their trucks. Ford delivered (a very small percentage and then greatly raised the base price) and Chevy is unlikely to hit those numbers at all. Chevy did deliver on their range promises, but at a hefty price tag.
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u/green__1 1d ago
nobody ever questioned whether an EV could get that range. that was never in question. The only question was whether people would buy it. it was never an engineering problem, it was a marketing one. and again everyone at the time already knew this.
the flat out lies that were used to sell the cyberyruck were not about a marketing issue, they were about an engineering issue, and everyone at the time knew they were lies. and we were proven right. just because you were stupid enough to buy the BS doesn't mean that it had any validity to it.
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u/Recoil42 1996 Tyco R/C 1d ago edited 1d ago
Elon undoubtedly duped us but it wasn’t far fetched at the time
It was far-fetched at the time, which is exactly why the sentiment is that you were duped. A bunch of the rest of us called it out as suspicious the moment it happened and the hardcore fans puffed up their chests, threw tantrums, called it denial, and paraded around like they'd found a new religion. 🤷♂️
The word 'cult' was thrown a bunch for a reason.
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u/stilhere 1d ago
He didn’t dupe US. He duped you. Plenty of people saw right through his bullshit years ago.
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u/likewut 23h ago
EVs were always limited by the battery tech at the time. The Leaf came before the Model S. The Model S just cost 2-3 times more and with that were able to give a much longer range and faster charging. The Bolt came out before the Model 3, with similar range. The Tesla cost more and with that were able to do faster charging. So most of what Tesla delivered on was producing higher end EVs than what others were producing. One of the places they repeatedly failed was promising EVs at a dramatically lower price point than the competition, such as the $40,000 Cybertruck. Because they have never actually had that large of a lead in that area, the narrative that other manufacturers are way behind in automation is just fully wrong.
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u/MudaThumpa Model 3 Driver; R2 Reservation 1d ago
There's no market for the range extenders because nobody wants the trucks.
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u/blazesquall BMW i4 M50 1d ago
But it had a 25% take rate! /s
https://insideevs.com/news/706702/tesla-cybertruck-range-extender-battery-order-take-rate/
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u/MudaThumpa Model 3 Driver; R2 Reservation 1d ago
The truck had a 3% conversation rate, so 25% of 3% is...
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u/Alexandratta 2019 Nissan LEAF SL Plus 1d ago
Unshocked.
They were talking tech that couldn't exist effectively with the charge speeds and cooling required.
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u/HMWT 1d ago
How much energy would people have wasted driving this thing around every day when the extended range wasn't needed?
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u/Anonym0oO Model Y LR, 2x BMW i3S, BMW i3 1d ago
Not that much, to be honest. Weight isn’t that big of an issue on EVs. You accelerate it and keep it at speed. When braking, the extra weight additionally increases the regenerable energy. That’s why heavy EVs are sometimes (if aerodynamics and so on are good) also very efficient.
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u/Directorjustin 2013 Chevrolet Volt 1d ago
Even from when they first announced it, I thought this was such a clunky solution.
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u/PriveCo 17h ago
Did they ever explain how it plugged in to the truck? As in, how did the power get from this lump to the truck?
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u/Directorjustin 2013 Chevrolet Volt 13h ago
Not that I recall... Or even how it plumbed into the liquid cooling system, assuming it had it.
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u/comoestasmiyamo Tesla Fanboy 1d ago
Shame if they have dropped it.
Would have made a good option for anyone wanting to tow a long distance but with the current sentiment towards these vehicles I would have concerns about taking my family and a caravan around; the JerryRigEverything video raised reasonable concerns about it's towing ability anyway.
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u/FlexFanatic 1d ago
Legit question but why would anyone buy a cyber truck as a towing rig when the SilveradoEV has better range, higher payload, a functions bed, and cost less?
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u/Lordofthereef 1d ago edited 1d ago
The cybertruck has higher payload. The Silverado has higher towing capacity (edit: and range)
As far as why anyone would buy it as a towing rig, I don't know. What I do know is that if people only spent their money on the best at XYZ for their purpose, we definitely wouldn't have all of these brands of trucks in the market. Between ford, Chevy, Ram, and Toyota, I'm sure one of them is the better fit for purpose at towing and yet someone uses every one for towing.
Anyway, I landed on the Silverado ev myself largely for what you said. That, and the numbers (cost) made more sense. But I'm also not brand loyal, and I know a lot of people very much are.
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u/blazesquall BMW i4 M50 1d ago
The cybertruck has higher payload. The Silverado has higher towing capacity.
Isn't that only 100lbs more after being fit with the 600lbs (est) extended battery?
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u/Lordofthereef 1d ago
Are you referring to this range extender thing that Tesla canceled or something else?
The highest payload capacity of any current Silverado EV is 1500 pounds. The highest payload capacity of the cybertruck is
22002500 pounds. That's a7001000 pound difference. I was just politely correcting the person citing (higher) payload.The Silverado reaches 1250 towing while the CT teaches 1100 pound towing.
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u/blazesquall BMW i4 M50 1d ago
Ah, just mentioning that to get the comparable range to the Silverado, you'll significantly eat into the payload capacity (and bed) when fitting the battery extender in the CT.
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u/Lordofthereef 1d ago
Understood. Because this is a thread about how they "quietly canceled it", I was a little confused what you were asking.
The Silverado EV destroys the cybertruck on range, especially now that the range extender is officially vaporware.
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u/Silver_Slicer 1d ago
Yeah, if you overload the hitch, instead of just getting a bent hitch point, you get a chunk of the gigacasting snapped off along with the whole bumper for a catastrophic failure, possibly killing people behind your trailer that goes wildly drifting into traffic. So glad I didn’t buy a CyberTruck when I got an early invitation Jan 2024. I had already made up my mind after hearing early reports of problems.
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u/BranTheUnboiled 1d ago
How would you even make it to traffic if you're applying 10k lbs of downward force on the hitch? Pretty sure the car just wouldn't drive with that kind of insane load on it, there's a reason tongue weight is only rated for 10% of tow weight.
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u/i7-4790Que 1d ago edited 1d ago
None of this changes the fact that aluminum is an absolutely terrible material to use on a frame.
There's a ton of dynamic forces at play when you tow that will brutalize aluminum over time. And you could be pulling stuff with virtually 0 tongue weight. pull 13k+ with a running gear style trailer and get back to me on how much those can still beat up on an actual truck and push it around even when it's rated for it....those have maybe 50 lbs tongue weight at best. Tons of dynamic forces constantly in play at the drawbar pushing and pulling on the frame.
Fatigue, cracks, failure. And so much harder to properly repair. Steel takes the sort of beating that aluminum simply doesn't.
Know what they use for the hitch tongue/gooseneck and axles on an aluminum body/decked trailer? Steel.
Gee, I wonder why......
If you can't grasp static vs dynamic forces you'll never understand how bad aluminum is in certain applications. And why you won't typically see it in those applications ...
Aluminum on a pickup truck box. Great, especially a flatbed box.
Aluminum, and cast aluminum at that, on a pickup truck frame- Fucking idiotic. Nobody else will be stupid enough to try this on any 1/2 ton+ equivalent pickup truck
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u/Silver_Slicer 1d ago
The gigacasting is made from aluminum. It fatigues over time and eventually can just fail if you tow a lot. Show me after 10-20 years how it does. Steel doesn’t fatigue the same. That’s why you can see even 30-40 year old trucks still towing with no problems.
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u/comoestasmiyamo Tesla Fanboy 1d ago
I sat in one yesterday and I did quite like it, the design is interesting and bold, it has some fun features.
But... every reason to like it is cancelled out by an equal reason not too. Massive battery but not efficient, huge bed but can't reach over the sides, rugged but not really..
It just makes me want a Jimny.
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u/Dragunspecter 1d ago
Massive battery ? It's 123kwh, the Silverado is 213.
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u/comoestasmiyamo Tesla Fanboy 1d ago
Volvo FH Aero Electric has 540kWh if we are playing top trumps. Compared to say a 3 or an S 123kWh is pretty big.
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u/caj_account R1S + eGolf (MY + Leaf before) 1d ago
S has had 100kWh since forever right? 75kWh doesn’t cut it anymore in the 3/Y category.
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u/comoestasmiyamo Tesla Fanboy 1d ago
EV database says raven was about 103 total 98 useable and palladium was 100 and 95kWh but yeah, a bees dick away from 100kWh.
Weird that the newer cars actually had less capacity. I looked at the 3 and yep, still a tiny pack. I thought they embiggened that a few years ago.
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u/caj_account R1S + eGolf (MY + Leaf before) 1d ago
Sadly Tesla has abandoned 3/y technologically. Sure they change the clothes but it’s utterly shocking that nothing else changes.
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u/comoestasmiyamo Tesla Fanboy 1d ago
Maybe. Not sure on abandoned but the rate of innovation has slowed significantly and they are not as exciting as they once were.
Time will tell I guess.
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u/caj_account R1S + eGolf (MY + Leaf before) 1d ago
To think that a 800V Porsche Taycan came out in what 2018?
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u/Captain_Alaska 1d ago
It wouldn't really work for towing though because trucks are only capable of towing their weight limits without any payload because of the intimate relationship tongue weight has on the rear axle weight limits.
There's absolutely no way they could put several hundred pounds in the back of it and not significantly reduce the towing capacity in the progress.
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u/comoestasmiyamo Tesla Fanboy 1d ago
Oh right, we rate things differently here in NZ. Sort of if someone dies we say "that's the limit" and carry on doing it anyway.
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u/myke2241 22h ago
I don't think this was ever going to be a good idea with an aluminum casted frame.
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u/RLewis8888 Bolt EUV 1d ago
The problem was, no one could see it - and therefore it had no intrinsic value. Those who buy the CT want to be seen and noticed. If it was a big red box bolted to the top of the cab it would have sold like hotcakes.
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u/xamboozi 1d ago
Because Trump caused China to tariff rare earth imports. The cybertruck would have been like $300,000.
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u/Quiet_Government2222 1d ago
In my opinion, wasn't the fact that it was a truck a scam in the first place? It's a 4-wheel drive, but I've seen videos of it not being able to go over hills properly and breaking down, but it floats well on water. On top of that, it can't tow properly and the truck's cargo area is very flimsy.
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u/NotFromMilkyWay 1d ago
And it gets split in half if a G wagon looks at it the wrong way.
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u/stilhere 1d ago
That’s hilariously bad engineering. I’m sure a tesla-stan will be along soon with the same, tired excuses.
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u/tbonechiggins 18h ago
Now if TSLA would loudly just remove the entire cybertruck and the fella that dreamed it up and make stuff consumers want instead, the world would be happier.
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u/KewlGuyRox 18h ago
Have been saying all along.. Tesla is the new Enron. LIES, LIES, LIES and just LIES!!!
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u/silverelan 2021 Mustang Mach-E GT, 2019 Bolt EV Premier 17h ago
I’m still waiting for Tesla fanboys to acknowledge that the Cybertruck is a sales flop.
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u/bgarza18 1d ago
“Quietly”
This needs to die in headlines. Like there’s supposed to be a blimp announcing it or something.
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u/MudaThumpa Model 3 Driver; R2 Reservation 1d ago
The range extender was a major feature of the cybertruck when it was shown off. So I would expect some kind of announcement when it's no longer an available feature. That's what a normal company would do.
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u/caj_account R1S + eGolf (MY + Leaf before) 1d ago
So was battery swapping and solar shingles. Tesla announces, stonks go up and then moves on. Same with battery day. Semi also. I’m still waiting for semi to be cancelled for all these years
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u/bgarza18 1d ago
That expectation is your fault because Tesla almost never announces changes to vehicles. Not for a decade.
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u/MudaThumpa Model 3 Driver; R2 Reservation 1d ago
That's still a Tesla corporate failure. Just another sign of a poorly run company.
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u/bgarza18 1d ago
That’s fine, but doesn’t track that one would expect a company to suddenly do something different after ten years.
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u/MudaThumpa Model 3 Driver; R2 Reservation 1d ago
True, but I guess the original point being that it's silly to use the word quietly in headlines, but we shouldn't change the way we write headlines because one company is non-compliant with normality.
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u/dbcooper4 1d ago
It’s accurate because they’re removing the range extender battery from the website rather than putting out a press release to announce its cancellation.
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u/bgarza18 1d ago
It’s not standard for Tesla to announce changes to vehicles.
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u/dbcooper4 1d ago
Really, so there were no announcements about the refreshed Model Y just released?
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u/Silver_Slicer 1d ago
For $16K for a Tesla only installed box that takes up 30% of the bed, it was just a gimmick.