Tesla CEO, Elon Musk said on Wednesday that Tesla will unveil the Cybertruck – its electric pickup truck – on Nov 21st in Los Angeles. Musk also tweeted that it is the location and month in the opening credits of the movie “Blade Runner”. " It is supposed to look like something straight out of Blade Runner movie", the CEO added.
The idea of a Tesla pickup truck has been kicked around since 2013 when Musk mentioned his desire to take on the Ford F-150s of the world onstage at an event. The billionaire entrepreneur has spent the last six years teasing the truck without offering too many concrete specifics.
Musk has teased the pickup truck before. In summer 2018, he said the truck would include “power outlets allowing the use of heavy-duty 240V high power tools in the field all day, no generator needed.” In January, he said that Tesla might be ready to unveil it by the summer. “It will be something quite unique, unlike anything,” Musk said at the time.
Then, in June, Musk said on the podcast “Ride the Lightning” that the Tesla pickup truck “will be better than an F-150 in terms of truck-like functionality, and be a better sports car than a standard 911.”
Elon Musk said the truck will seat six people, the price starts at around $50,000 (£38,860 roughly) and it will offer 400 to 500 miles of range in the highest price variant. Musk has also suggested that the top-end version will be powered by a dual-motor setup, with a ludicrous towing capacity of 300,000 pounds.
As for what the truck will look like, Musk has not offered much beyond a bunch of references to its “cyberpunk” aesthetic, and he has only released one very dark and indiscernible teaser image (as above). This has resulted in a constant flood of fan renders, many of which border on the ridiculous.
Tesla currently sells three vehicles: the Model S and Model 3 sedans and the Model X sport utility vehicle. It is also planning to sell a Model Y crossover by the end of 2020, has already unveiled a new version of the Tesla Roadster and a Semi truck.
In Q3, Tesla delivered a surprise profit and told shareholders it is ahead of schedule on a new factory in Shanghai where it has started trial production runs. Musk said that Tesla is ahead of schedule on the Model Y crossover, due next summer. Tesla also said it’s planning to begin building cars at its European Gigafactory in 2021.
Tesla has a long history of skipping traditional auto shows in favour of putting on its own events, the date announced on Wednesday means the Tesla pickup truck will be revealed at the same time as — but separate from — the Los Angeles Auto Show where Ford is expected to unveil a Mustang-inspired SUV, its first mass-market electric vehicle.