Tesla's Cybertruck Wind-Down Leaves Some Buyers With Refunds

By Amara Osei

By mid-2027, Tesla will end Cybertruck production, and Elon Musk said many waiting buyers will receive deposit refunds rather than trucks.

In an early Monday post on X, Musk said Cybertruck orders far exceed Tesla's production rate. Tesla announced the wind-down on Friday, targeting the middle of next year. He said the company would try to build as many trucks as possible before closing the line in about eight months, but would have to return deposits for many people.

Why is Tesla stopping the Cybertruck?

Tesla will not close the line because the truck lacks profitability. Musk said: "The opportunity cost of the complexity of Cybertruck is vastly outweighed by the value of incremental Cybercab production." In practical terms, Tesla plans to trade Cybertruck output for additional Cybercab capacity.

The decision follows a long slide in sales. Tesla's own forecasts and Musk's original ambition tell a different story from the truck's recent performance:

• 2019 and 2023: Musk announced the Cybertruck in 2019 and called it his best product ever; the vehicle reached customers in 2023. He later forecast 250,000 to 500,000 units per year.
• 2024 to 2025: Sales fell 48%, from 38,965 to 20,237.
• Through the third quarter of 2026: Estimated Cybertruck sales reached 11,586, according to Kelley Blue Book. Model Y sales totaled 262,491, and Model 3 sales reached 106,962 over the same period.

Since its 2023 release, the Cybertruck has struggled to reach and maintain high sales, unlike the Model Y. Tesla's original volume forecast has not matched the market.

Takeaway: Tesla is choosing Cybercab capacity over a truck line that sold 20,237 vehicles in 2025.

Who will get a truck, and who will get a refund?

Orders far exceed Tesla's production rate, so Musk said many buyers would receive deposit refunds rather than vehicles. As of Monday, Tesla's website still appeared to accept new orders, and some fans said on social media that they were adding orders or upgrading existing ones before production ends.

One X user wrote: "Watching the decisions Tesla is making recently has just left me puzzled as a consumer. We went from having lots of choices in vehicles. To those being whittled down."

Others accused Tesla of neglecting existing customers as Musk pursued a future in which consumers do not own vehicles. Some said the company should expand vehicle production rather than cut it.

Takeaway: New orders remain possible, but order volume already exceeds the production rate.

What changes in Tesla's vehicle lineup?

Tesla discontinued the Model S luxury sedan and Model X SUV in recent years, narrowing its consumer vehicle lineup. Musk has increasingly focused the company on autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots, and Tesla is exploring a merger with SpaceXAI, Musk's other public company. The merger could pull Tesla even further from selling cars to individual consumers.

The Cybertruck still has a cult following for its unique, boxy design, despite, or sometimes because of, Musk's association with it. His rightward shift once made him a close adviser to President Trump and the leader of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

After a brief falling-out with Trump, he returned to the fold and reportedly spent as much as $474 million in the midterm election cycle to support Republican candidates. Many of his preferred candidates lost after a strong Democratic showing last week.

Takeaway: The Cybertruck will disappear while Musk's political following remains part of its appeal.

What must work for Cybercab to replace the truck?

When Tesla unveiled the Cybercab concept in 2024, Musk described it as a lounge rather than a traditional car and pitched individualized mass transit. People would not need to own a car, though they could buy one, he said.

The costs of ownership include the vehicle, insurance and storage; he estimated Cybercab rides at about 30 to 40 cents per mile.

His economic argument rested on utilization. Musk said the average passenger car runs only about 10 hours a week out of 168, so it sits idle most of the time, and suggested autonomous cars might see five times more use.

X users challenged that case after Musk's Monday post. One asked whether anyone would give up a personal car for a ride-share service, predicted Tesla would displace Uber, and doubted robotaxis could provide daily transport across America in the near future.

Other users said Tesla was cutting out customers whose needs other vehicles in its lineup do not meet. Another asked why the company made the Cybertruck in the first place.

Takeaway: Tesla's shift now rests on higher vehicle utilization and Cybercab output, not stronger Cybertruck sales.