Tesla will begin winding down Cybertruck production around the middle of 2027, CEO Elon Musk announced on X on Friday, freeing capacity at the company’s Texas facilities for the Cybercab robotaxi programme. The two-seater autonomous vehicle needs the space, Musk said, to scale up output.
The scheduling decision closes a production programme that never delivered on its original targets. Tesla built its Texas facilities to manufacture hundreds of thousands of Cybertrucks annually. Output never came close. Production was delayed several times after the vehicle’s unveiling in November 2019, and the first customer deliveries only began in late 2023.
Meanwhile, the sales data makes the shortfall plain. According to Kelley Blue Book estimates cited by the Associated Press, US Cybertruck sales fell 48% in 2025 year on year, to 20,237 vehicles. Tesla does not publish separate figures for the model; its third-quarter 2026 delivery report showed 8,295 vehicles in the “Other Models” category, which also covers the Semi and the remaining Model S and Model X vehicles.
Several execution questions remain open. Musk did not say whether production would shift to another facility or whether the vehicle would be discontinued altogether, and he did not address what happens to outstanding orders. He later reassured owners that the existing Cybertruck fleet would stay on the roads for a long time, calling the wind-down “the end of an era”.
Cybertruck lead engineer Wes Morrill framed the legacy in engineering terms, describing the pickup as an “incredible technology development platform” that would live on through the Cybercab. In practice, that is what the decision amounts to: the development work moves into the autonomous programme that now occupies the factory space.
The Cybercab itself is the centre of Tesla’s delivery plans for a driverless taxi network. Unveiled in 2024, the two-seater is designed to run without a steering wheel or pedals. The company has already begun limited robotaxi rides in the United States, though the technology remains under regulatory scrutiny. Musk has argued that autonomous driving and robotics will matter more to the business over time, and Tesla has said the Cybercab will anchor its future transport network.
The pickup’s delivery problems extended beyond the factory floor. Despite the high-profile launch, the Cybertruck never entered the European market. Its heavy construction and angular design raised questions over compliance with European vehicle safety rules, particularly those protecting pedestrians and other vulnerable road users, and its sharp-edged stainless-steel body fuelled debate over whether such a vehicle could meet European road-safety standards. The model stayed largely a North American phenomenon, capping its potential customer base.
It also faced several recalls and quality-control issues, and the unconventional design divided consumers. The truck’s public image became tied to Musk’s political activities: his close association with US President Donald Trump and his role in the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency turned the vehicle into a political symbol for supporters and critics alike, and some owners reported vandalism and harassment.
By contrast with the vehicle’s early momentum, roughly 250,000 pre-orders arrived within days of the unveiling, according to Musk’s initial statements. Whether the Cybertruck disappears from the product line altogether is still unclear. What is settled, for now, is the schedule: production runs through mid-2027, after which the Texas facilities are expected to be building the Cybercab.