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The Tesla Cybertruck is gaining respect among real pickup truck owners
The Tesla Cybertruck is arguably one of the most controversial vehicles to come out of the auto industry in recent years. Designed unlike any other pickup in the market, the Cybertruck was so polarizing that it resulted in both acclaim and outright hate when it was unveiled. Yet if the results of a recent analysis from Loup Ventures are any indication, it appears that the Cybertruck may be more welcome in the mainstream market than previously thought.
Following the Cybertruck’s unveiling last November, Loup Ventures Managing Partner Gene Munster remarked that the all-electric truck’s radically-different design would likely end up discouraging conventional pickup owners from buying the vehicle. More recent observations from real truck owners in the midwest have proven this thesis wrong.
In a recent update on Loup Ventures’ official website, Munster noted that after speaking with several construction professionals who use pickup trucks for their work, it is now evident that Tesla actually hit the mark with the Cybertruck pretty well. Among the 22 truck owners who were part of the firm’s analysis, 2/3 were positive or at least neutral when it comes to all-electric pickups. Ten even noted that their next vehicle would be electric.
Five of the pickup truck veterans actually stated that they plan to purchase a Tesla Cybertruck within the next five years, higher than the firm’s expectations. The Cybertruck’s brutalist design also seemed to be a complete non-issue for the vast majority of the construction professionals in Loup Ventures’ analysis. When asked if they will be embarrassed to show up to work site in a Cybertruck, for example, only 3 of the 22 said that they would have reservations about the vehicle’s design.
These results crush some of the bearish points against the Cybertruck that emerged since the vehicle’s unveiling. The idea that the pickup will be considered embarrassing by professionals due to its design, for one, was pushed by TSLA bears ardently due to the vehicle’s brutalist, sci-fi theme. Yet if Loup’s findings are any indication, it appears that the Cybertruck’s polarizing looks will not turn off the vast majority of buyers at all.
This is not to say that Tesla has no area of improvement with the Cybertruck’s marketing. If any, it appears that the electric car maker needs a better strategy when it comes to informing potential customers of the all-electric truck’s price. When Loup Ventures asked the construction professionals about their estimates on the Cybertruck’s compared to a base, $29,000 Ford F-150, the average quote from the longtime pickup buyers was $84,000. The median of the truck owners’ estimates about the Cybertruck’s cost was $80,000, and it ranged from $45,000 to $220,000. This is very far from the actual price of the Cybertruck, which starts below $40,000 with basic Autopilot.
If there’s anything that can be determined from Loup Ventures’ recent analysis, it is that the Cybertruck may actually end up tapping into a much larger market than initially expected. While the vehicle seems to be designed for a niche segment, its price and features might be enough to make it a compelling alternative for petrol-powered pickups like the Ford F-150. With these results in mind, Munster has adjusted Loup’s estimates for the vehicle, with the finance veteran stating that the truck will likely account for 15% of Tesla’s units in its fully ramped year, far more than the firm’s initial 5% estimate.
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Elon Musk continues to tease the unveiling event for the Tesla Roadster, a continuing trend that has grown into a bigger game of “When” for fans who have been waiting years for the car to finally enter production.
A video shared on X of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast that Musk appeared on last year, teasing the Roadster unveiling, was shared once again on the social media platform. The poster said the Roadster event will be “unforgettable.”
Musk agreed:
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2026
The timing is interesting because just yesterday, Musk said that we will be getting flying cars, and for years, Tesla has hinted that it could develop a SpaceX cold gas thruster package that would help the car float or fly for a short period of time.
It would be reasonable to assume Tesla’s major delays with this unveiling event are likely caused by the company’s need to break the rules and push the envelope on nearly everything. Last July, Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, said:
“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind blowing. We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on and he got a little excited.”
The latest updates that Tesla has given us are that the Roadster is in design development, and it did have several potential dates for an unveiling event this year, including April. It was then pushed to August.
However, there are no clues as to when Tesla will be ready, and fans are certainly getting frustrated with the delays.
For what it is worth, Franz von Holzhausen told Jay Leno this week that the event would be “very soon.”
We sure hope.
Lifestyle
Tesla’s driverless Cybercab just passed a big test with State Governor
Florida’s governor rode Tesla’s Cybercab at a closed test track and called the experience impressive.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rode in a Tesla Cybercab on a closed test track this week and came away impressed, posting on X that the vehicle “successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.” He called the ride “impressive.”
The stop was part of a broader event Monday at SunTrax, a 775 acre state owned proving ground in Auburndale that Florida built specifically to test autonomous and connected vehicles before they reach public roads. Standing next to a gold Cybercab, DeSantis described the car in plain terms: “You go in there and you just sit. You have a screen. There’s no steering wheel, no pedals. Clearly these things could be very beneficial.”
We took a ride on a robotaxi on the Suntrax course and it successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.
Impressive! https://t.co/FVAkzFLz3r
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) August 11, 2026
DeSantis paired the praise with a caveat that has followed autonomous vehicles since the category existed. “You don’t want to be in an autonomous vehicle and it drives you into a ditch. That would not be good,” he said, framing safety validation as the gate before wider deployment.
SunTrax, the 2.25 mile oval which the state calls the only high speed autonomous vehicle test track in the Southeast, can simulate rain, pedestrian crossings, hills and crowded urban conditions at highway speeds, letting companies push a car past what an early public rollout would risk. Tesla, Waymo and Beep all use the facility, and Florida’s regulatory approach, among the most permissive for autonomous vehicles in the country, doesn’t require a human operator inside a fully autonomous car.
Tesla has reason to want the blessing of Florida and states beyond, as the Cybercab entered volume production at Gigafactory Texas this spring and has since self certified as SAE Level 4 under Texas law. Public road testing so far has kept a safety monitor in the passenger seat, and Florida is where Tesla has been expanding its existing Model Y based Robotaxi service instead, adding Miami in July and then Orlando and Tampa two weeks later. A closed track endorsement from a sitting governor doesn’t change any of that, but it does put Tesla’s newest hardware in front of a state that has already shown it will move fast on rules.
Sweden’s IF Metall union has announced that it is ending all protests against Tesla, effective immediately.
The union said in a statement this morning:
“There seems to be no limits to the length Tesla would go to keep unions out of their operations. Unfortunately, they have managed to pay their way out in Sweden. At least that has given the former IF Metall members more money in their pocket, but the insecurity of not having a union or a collective agreement still remains.”
IF Metall has been after Tesla in Sweden for the past three years, attempting to push unionized operations into its factories. Tesla, on the other hand, has given its employees the chance to unionize in various markets. However, the organization says that Tesla has “bought out all of its striking members.”
🚨 NEW: IF Metall has decided to end all industrial action against Tesla in Sweden, effective immediately.
“IF Metall has decided to end all industrial action against Tesla’s Swedish operations, after the company bought out all of its striking members. With no members remaining… pic.twitter.com/blne8iC6hV
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 13, 2026
“Today, we end our industrial action against Tesla. We do so because it can no longer have an effect – not because our principles have changed,” a written statement said.
Over the past three years, IF Metall has definitely been a thorn in the side of Tesla and its operations in Sweden. The primary strike started in October 2023, when IF Metall members at Tesla’s Swedish Service Centers refused to work.
IF Metall chair to Elon Musk: “Give us a chance” as Tesla Sweden strike hits 2 years
Strikes extended to blockades and work stoppages at non-Tesla-owned repair shops that service Teslas. This limited and stopped anything related to warranties, transport damage, and other work on Teslas ending, eliminating work arounds for customers.
Sympathy strikes followed, as postal workers, dock workers, electricians, and other tradesmen stopped working. Add in lawsuits and other pressures, and you get the full scope of what strategies the union has used against Tesla over the past several years.
But now, it’s all over.
“We will continue to defend the right of workers to organize. We will continue to fight for collective bargaining. And we will continue to stand in solidarity with workers and trade unions facing similar challenges elsewhere – just as you have stood with us,” IF Metall said.
Elon Musk teases Tesla Roadster unveiling once again
Tesla’s driverless Cybercab just passed a big test with State Governor
