At one of the firm’s signature promotional events in Los Angeles, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unwrapped the automaker’s Cybertruck all-electric pickup. The vehicle, which will start at $39,900, is designed in the form of a large metallic trapezoid, CNBC reported.
The Cybertruck is Tesla’s sixth vehicle model, and is described as the most experimental since the company’s 2003 launch. It will go up against Ford‘s F series, the top-selling U.S. pickup for over four decades, as well as the popular Chevrolet Silverado from General Motors.
The low-end Cybertruck with rear-wheel drive and a single motor should get 250 miles for each charge. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive version, which will cost $49,900, should get 300 miles of range. The trimotor with all-wheel drive, priced at $69,900, will come with 500 miles of range.
The firm is planning for production of the lower-priced Cybertrucks to start in late 2021, and the trimotor will follow in 2022. Musk had noted in the past that Tesla was looking to price its base model at less than $50,000, and the styling of the vehicle would be “cyberpunk” as opposed to traditional. The executive also suggested in the past that demand for the pickup may be less than the company’s Model X SUV and flagship Model S sedan.
In separate news, Ford and GM are at work designing new and different versions of their most profitable pickup truck models, replacing petroleum-fueled engines with batteries, per a September announcement. Ford Chairman Bill Ford said, according to reports, “This is going to be a real watershed for the whole industry.”
The automaker hasn’t revealed many details about the electric F-series, yet Bill Ford reportedly hinted that the truck could have load-carrying space under the hood in addition to a traditional bed in the back.
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