Cybertruck Auction Fail Suggests Tesla's Truck Isn't As Appealing As Elon Musk Thinks
Did everyone — including Tesla — overestimate the demand for the Tesla Cybertruck in the second-hand market? That largely appears to be the case after a much-publicized auction for Musk's odd-looking electric truck failed to meet the reserve price. The much-discussed auction — hosted on automotive journalist Doug DeMuro's Cars&Bids platform — fizzled out without seeing much action.
While the auction page received thousands of views, over 500 comments, and even made tech headlines, the listing only received 19 actual bids. Of those, only a handful were made with serious intent. Interestingly, these serious bids were placed in the last week of the auction. Hours before the auction was to end, two bidders attempted to get the price to around $160,000.
The highest bid received by this Cybertruck was $158,000. This is still a substantial premium over the vehicle's MSRP for the 600 horsepower, dual motor, Limited Edition Model in question. However, the owner had set a higher reserve price (the lowest price they're willing to sell), which clearly is well above the $158,000 mark.
While the auction fizzling out under $160,000 did surprise many, this seems to be yet another indication of the fact that the demand for resale Tesla Cybertrucks isn't as high as once thought.
Were potential buyers concerned about Tesla's no-flipping policy?
For those who have analyzed previous Cybertruck auctions and how people went about it, the rather muted response towards the most recent auction bid may not be entirely unexpected. As of March 22, 2024, there have been five known instances of someone flipping the Tesla Cybertruck. A common theme with all five instances was that the winning bid amount fell with each subsequent auction.
On February 24, 2024, the first ever Tesla Cybertruck went under the hammer for a staggering $244,500. This was the only Cybertruck to breach the $200K mark. In the four subsequent auctions, the top bid fell drastically from a high of $195,500 — to a low of $171,100.
It is quite evident already that the most recent auction bids for the Cybertruck indicated a downward trend for the amount of money people are willing to pay to get hold of the truck. The continuous fall in the prices of resale Cybertruck may also affect the reserve price expectations for future bids.
That being said, one of the reasons for the tepid response to this auction was the owners' claim about him being exempt from Tesla's "no-resale in the first year” policy, without actually presenting any proof. Could a possible legal move from Tesla — against the new buyers of the truck — be scaring potential bidders away?