Tesla to refund many Cybertruck deposits before production ends: Musk

Tesla will refund deposits to many Cybertruck customers because it cannot complete all outstanding orders before ending production of the electric pickup, CEO Elon Musk said Monday.

Musk said on his social media company X that the Cybertruck’s order rate was higher than Tesla’s current production rate.

The company would manufacture as many vehicles as possible before closing the production line in about eight months but “will have to return deposits for a lot of people,” he said.

Musk did not disclose how many Cybertrucks remained on order, how many customers would receive refunds or how the company would decide which orders to fulfill.

He rejected suggestions that Tesla was ending production because the vehicle was unprofitable. The manufacturing complexity and resources required by the Cybertruck were outweighed by the potential value of producing more Cybercabs, he said.

Musk announced Friday that Cybertruck production at Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas would wind down around mid-2027. He later said the company would add an extra production shift to complete more orders before dismantling the line.

The factory space, workers and equipment are expected to be redirected toward expanding production of the Cybercab, Tesla’s two-seat robotaxi designed to operate without a steering wheel or pedals.

Tesla began delivering the stainless-steel Cybertruck in late 2023, four years after it was unveiled.

Despite the vehicle’s high-profile launch, US sales fell 48% from 38,965 units in 2024 to 20,237 in 2025, according to Kelley Blue Book estimates. The figure was far below Musk’s earlier projection that Tesla could eventually sell about 250,000 Cybertrucks annually.

Tesla said in its latest quarterly filing that the next stage of its production growth would be driven by autonomous technology and newer products, including the Cybercab and vehicles built on its next-generation platform.