The seller says that they’ve had to increase the test drive fee because too many people were willing to drop hundreds to drive the truck
1 hour ago
- A Tesla Cybertruck owner is charging $1,000 to interested parties who want to test drive it.
- The move evidently comes after he initially charged $100, then $200, then $300, and even $500.
- He says some people are willing to pay the $1,000 despite not intending to actually buy the pickup.
The Tesla Cybertruck market is rich and several sellers are still asking over MSRP. If one seller’s experience is any indication, that extra cash might be for the hassle of getting rid of the truck. He’s now charging prospective buyers a $1,000 deposit on Facebook’s Marketplace simply to test drive his electric truck, after so many tire kickers inquired about it.
That seller is Mr. Roberts and he has driven his Cybertruck roughly 600 miles (965 km) since delivery. Evidently, it took almost no time for it to become a big hit in his household. “Only took [the] wife like a day to fall in love with it,” he tells Carscoops. “[The] kids drive it more than me and all their friends come over to enjoy.”
Read: There Are Over 220 Tesla Cybertrucks For Sale In The Used Car Market
That type of popularity makes it easy for him to hold onto while he awaits the right buyer. His asking price is a stout $129,900, or almost $30,000 over MSRP. At that price, a deposit before a test drive isn’t totally out of the question. In this case, though, it’s proven necessary to keep the tire kickers away.
“I still have people that want to pay the 1k without any intent of buying,” he says. Still, the tactic appears to be helping. He tells us that before the price bump, he had too many to count. Now, only a handful are willing to fork over cash just to drive the slab-sided Tesla. And at least one person has asked to drive it with an offer of $2,000.
Still, he’s holding fast and doing what he can to show it to those he deems sincerely interested parties. The $1,000 asking price for a test drive goes toward the purchase in case a deal is reached. This is a wild requirement, but also a good indication of just how much buzz the Cybertruck creates.
