While revealing the Cybertruck, Tesla announced a battery extension accessory for it that you are supposed to place in the cargo bed. InsideEVs has now found out that it will take special machinery to install and remove, and may cost as much as $16,000.
Earlier this month, Tesla VP Andrew Baglino said the range-extender pack would deliver roughly 200 km (125 miles) of extra range depending on the particular modification of the Cybertruck. InsideEVs did some math based on the available Tesla power cell data and concluded that the whole pack would consist of roughly 575 cells. Give or take a few, it won’t change the fact that the whole thing would weigh a cool 250 kilos (550 pounds) when assembled in a weatherproof casing.
In practical terms, it means owners will have to install it using a lifting crane or similar machinery. More crucially, it means they probably won’t be able to remove the pack as heavy as that with their hands – not even if they ask several friends for assistance. Considering that the pack eats up at least a third of the bed space, that’s sad news for those few of us who had actually hoped for the truck to be practical.
Tesla has never mentioned the price of the upgrade, and it is still missing from the official Cybertruck accessory page. However, delving into the source code of the web page reveals a hidden battery pack accessory listed for U.S. $16,000.