Benzinga - by Chris Katje, Benzinga Staff Writer. One of the most anticipated vehicle launches of all time is nearing its launch date: the Cybertruck electric pickup truck from Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA).
The launch and subsequent production and deliveries of the Cybertruck are expected to be a major catalyst for Tesla going forward.
What Happened: The Cybertruck was unveiled by Tesla CEO Elon Musk at a public event on Nov. 22, 2019.
Since then, the electric pickup truck, which was inspired by “Blade Runner” and a vehicle in “The Spy Who Loved Me,” has seen a ton of attention thanks to its design and it being the first truck from Tesla.
The truck is set for a production launch in 2023 and fans have been sharing images of the vehicle on roads and at Tesla facilities for months.
While the exact figure is not known for reservations of the Cybertruck, Musk previously said it got 250,000 reservations within a week of unveiling the truck.
The reservations come with a $100 refundable fee.
A fan-made reservation tracker that has seen over 46,000 reservations reported to them comes up with an estimate of how many Cybertrucks have actually been reserved.
As shared by Tesla influencer Sawyer Merritt, the document shows 1,962,941 reservations for the Cybertruck.
“Reminder that the reservation was a $100 refundable fee and that many people were told that reserving then would lock in their FSD price. This is partly what makes guessing the conversion rate so difficult!” Merritt tweeted.
The shared document shows that estimates split as 8.1% single-motor, 44.0% dual-motor, 39.1% tri-motor and 8.8% quad-motor for the specs on the Cybertruck. The listed prices, which are estimates, range from $49,900 to $99,900.
Based on the percentage breakdowns and the estimated costs, the nearly two million in reservations would represent a value of $148.56 billion for Tesla, including FSD revenue estimates.
Related Link: Tesla Q2 Earnings Highlights: Revenue Beat, EPS Beat, Cybertruck Update And More
Why It’s Important: The reservation tallies in the fan-sourced document continue to rise. Estimates showed a total of one million reservations in 2021 and 1.5 million reservations in November 2022, before hitting nearly two million today.
“I also think once this thing is on the streets more orders will pour in, helping offset some cancellations. It’ll be an incredible rolling advertisement for Tesla,” Merritt added.
Tesla confirmed production on the Cybertruck will launch later this year, with initial production coming from Gigafactory Texas.
While expectations are high for the Cybertruck, Musk has attempted to downplay the initial financial impact for the launch.
“We do expect production to start, I don’t know, maybe sometime this summer. But I always like to try to downplay the start of production because the start of production is always very slow. It increases exponentially, but it’s always very slow at first. So I wouldn’t put too much thought into start of production. It’s kind of when volume production actually happens, and that’s next year,” Musk said in January 2023.
As the first pickup truck from Tesla, expectations will likely continue to be high for the Cybertruck.
The F-Series pickup truck from Ford Motor Co (NYSE: F) was the top-selling vehicle in the U.S. in 2022 with 650,000 units. The popular pickup truck has topped the list for 41 straight years.
Truck models from General Motors Co (NYSE: GM) and Stellantis NV (NYSE: STLA) ranked second and third for U.S. vehicles, respectively in 2022. Five of the top 10 bestselling vehicles were pickup trucks in the U.S. in 2022.
TSLA Price Action: Tesla shares were up 1% to $233.19 on Tuesday versus a 52-week trading range of $101.81 to $313.80. Shares of Tesla are up 121% year-to-date in 2023.
Read Next: Here's How Many Vehicles Tesla Has Delivered And Produced In Each Quarter Since 2019
Photo: Courtesy Tesla Inc
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