In a desperate effort to boost diminishing Cybertruck sales, Tesla is pulling out all the stops and revamping its strategy. The automaker is now offering leases on the Cybertruck in the U.S. and is providing free wraps, valued at $6,000, for the Foundation Series model.
During Tesla’s fourth-quarter earnings call, CEO Elon Musk notably did not mention the Cybertruck despite it being the only new vehicle Tesla has released in the past five years. This omission suggests that the electric pickup truck has failed to live up to Tesla’s high expectations.
While the Cybertruck has become the best-selling electric pickup truck in the U.S., the sales results paint a different picture. Initially, Tesla received over 1 million reservations for the vehicle. Musk projected annual sales of roughly 500,000, and the automaker designed its Texas Gigafactory to accommodate the production of 250,000 vehicles per year. However, according to estimates from Cox Automotive, fewer than 40,000 Cybertrucks have been sold, and Tesla is now struggling to move the inventory it has.
Once demand began to grind to a halt, Tesla introduced a plethora of incentives, including discounts, a $1,000 referral incentive, and free lifetime Supercharging. In its latest move, Tesla is now offering leasing on its Cybertrucks, with prices starting as low as $749 per month. Although leasing is considerably less profitable than outright purchases, it’s a last-ditch effort to offload Cybertruck inventory.
In addition to leasing, Tesla will offer free wraps on the Foundation Series model. The Foundation Series is the limited-edition initial batch of Cybertrucks produced and sold to reservation holders. Tesla has had difficulty moving these trucks due to the higher ticket price and hopes that the free wraps–a $6,000 value–will spark consumer interest and clear out stock.
