The Tesla Pickup Truck, described by CEO Elon Musk as the project “that I am personally most fired up about,” could be a bigger project than expected. Musk revealed on his Twitter page Monday that the company has a general priority list, and the as-yet-unrevealed Pickup Truck ranks higher than two projects set to hit the roads in the coming years.
Musk made the comments in response to a question about a Tesla electric van. The CEO noted that while a van would be cool, the company is working on a number of other projects right now. This includes, “in order of resource priority but not necessarily production ramp,” the Model Y sports utility vehicle, then the solar roof tiles still set to enter mass shipping, then the Tesla Pickup Truck. The Tesla Semi electric truck, scheduled to hit the road in 2019, and the Tesla Roadster, set for release in 2020, come in fourth and fifth place respectively.
See more: Tesla Pickup Truck: Price, Release Date, and Autopilot for ‘Cyberpunk’ EV
Musk first revealed the truck back in July 2016 as part of the company’s second master plan, alongside the Model 3 sedan and Model Y sports utility vehicle as the three products that will bring Tesla to a mass market. The Model 3 launched in July 2017 at a price of $49,000 with a backlog of nearly 500,000 pre-orders. The Model Y is set to launch in March 2019. Tesla’s Shanghai Gigafactory is set to produce 500,000 cars per year with a mix of both Model 3 and Y.
While Musk listed the Pickup Truck before as a mass market vehicle, subsequent comments suggested that it had shifted to become a more niche product. This month he said it would have a “cyberpunk” and “Blade Runner” design, stating that “I actually don’t know if a lot of people will buy this pickup truck or not, but I don’t care.” Musk’s new comments help to clarify that Tesla is focusing a lot of resources on the truck, moreso than the industry-focused $150,000 Semi with basic range of 300 miles, or the $200,000 Roadster supercar with 620 miles range and 0 to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds.
Tesla is expected to launch the truck after the Model Y, which Musk previously suggested could launch on March 15 — the Ides of March.
