The automaker removed the rear-wheel drive option from its website without warning as Cybertruck sales continue to slide
People hoping to get a deal on a Tesla $TSLA Cybertruck are in for disappointment. The automaker has removed the rear-wheel drive (RWD) trim model from its website just five months after it debuted. The move comes as Cybertruck sales continue to slide.
That model carried a price tag of $69,990, but potential buyers who go to the Tesla site now will see the $72,490 all-wheel drive model as the base option. That price deducts the $7,500 federal tax credit, which will disappear on Sept. 30. The base vehicle price is $79,990.
The RWD Cybertruck, introduced in April, carried a lower price tag, but also lacked some features of higher-priced models, such as adaptive suspension, reduced towing power and payload capacity, and a backseat screen. However, it had an impressive 350 miles of range between charges.
Tesla did not respond to questions about why the model was removed from the website.
Excitement about the Cybertruck line has cooled considerably since the vehicle was launched. A report issued in July from Cox Automotive said Tesla sold just 4,306 Cybertrucks in the second quarter of 2025, a 50% drop from one year ago. Year to date, the company has sold just 10,712, which is 7% off of last year's pace. The looming end of tax credits is likely to further dampen sales, not only for Cybertrucks but for EVs as a whole.
“Lower EV sales last quarter underscore the market’s ongoing challenges, as growth in the auto business ebbs and flows on consumer demand,” said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, senior analyst at Cox Automotive in a statement.
This comes as Tesla's board has offered Elon Musk a pay package worth up to $1 trillion, in part to keep him focused on the company, rather than other matters such as his announced alternative political party.
"We … believe the recent Musk new pay package was a relief for investors as this will confirm Musk stays CEO of Tesla at least until 2030 in our view as Musk remains the most important asset to Tesla," wrote Wedbush analyst Dan Ives in a note to investors Monday.
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