Tesla No Longer Wants You to Sell Your Cybertruck Back to Them After Used Cybertruck Prices Fall

Tesla has ended its policy of explicitly requiring Cybertruck owners to sell their vehicles back to the EV maker if they want to replace their Cybertruck before the first year of ownership. Tesla will also not accept Cybertrucks as trade-in vehicles.

Tesla made early Cybertruck buyers sign an agreement barring them from reselling their trucks within the first year of ownership. This policy made sense at the time because Cybertruck production was still limited, and demand was very high.

People who wanted to sell their Cybertruck before the first year of ownership were required by contract to return the vehicle to Tesla and offer it to the EV maker. 

Tesla’s policy targeted stopping scalpers who would otherwise buy a Cybertruck to sell it at a massive markup to people who couldn’t wait to get their Cybertruck.

However, starting today, Tesla has removed the no-resell clause from the Cybertruck purchase agreement. This means, first, you can freely sell your Cybertruck to anyone as you wish, and second, the EV maker no longer requires you to bring your Cybertruck back to Tesla before doing so.

This policy change follows a story we covered a few days ago, in which we discussed Tesla's new internal guidelines instructing sales officers not to take back any Cybertrucks as trade-in vehicles.

We learned about this policy after a Cybertruck All-Wheel-Drive owner wanted to trade in his dual-motor Cybertruck and upgrade to a tri-motor Cybertruck Cyberbeast. Even in this circumstance, Tesla informed him that, as a company policy, they would not take any Cybertrucks as trade-in vehicles.

Tesla’s policy was particularly aggravating since, by contract, all Cybertruck owners needed to bring their vehicle back to Tesla if they were thinking about selling it. However, Tesla has a guideline that automatically refuses all Cybertruck trade-ins.

This means you have to offer Tesla to buy your Cybertruck, knowing the answer is no, officially get the refusal in writing, and only then can you sell your truck.

This was silly and a waste of time for Tesla and Cybertruck owners. Before this new change, here is what Tesla’s Cybertruck purchase agreement used to state…

“For Cybertruck Only: You understand and acknowledge that the Cybertruck will first be released in limited quantities. You agree that you will not sell or otherwise attempt to sell the Vehicle within the first year following your Vehicle's delivery date. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if you must sell the Vehicle within the first year following its delivery date for any unforeseen reason, and Tesla agrees that your reason warrants an exception to its no-reseller policy, you agree to notify Tesla in writing and give Tesla reasonable time to purchase the Vehicle from you at its sole discretion and at the purchase price listed on your Final Price Sheet less $0.25/mile driven, reasonable wear and tear, and the cost to repair the Vehicle to Tesla's Used Vehicle Cosmetic and Mechanical Standards. If Tesla declines to purchase your Vehicle, you may then resell your Vehicle to a third party only after receiving written consent from Tesla. You agree that in the event you breach this provision, or Tesla has a reasonable belief that you are about to breach this provision, Tesla may seek injunctive relief to prevent the transfer of title of the Vehicle or demand liquidated damages from you in the amount of $50,000 or the value received as consideration for the sale or transfer, whichever is greater. Tesla may also refuse to sell you any future vehicles.”

However, the new purchase agreement the latest Cybertruck buyers sign completely removes this entire paragraph, and you can now sell your Cybertruck like any other vehicle.

Why did Tesla make the change?

The obvious answer is that Cybertruck prices on the secondary market have now fallen precipitously, and Tesla no longer sees the value in buying back used Cybertrucks.

Only a few months ago, Tesla Cybertrucks sold above $200,000; however, now prices have fallen below MSRP. Last week, we even reported about a Cybertruck owner who is struggling to find a buyer willing to take his perfectly working truck at an $18,000 loss.

Another point is that demand for the Foundation Series Cybertruck has come below Tesla's expectations. After nine months of Cybertruck deliveries, Tesla has opened the Cybertruck order process, and you can now buy the vehicle without any reservation.

Of the over 1 million reservation holders, it appears that Tesla was only able to attract 20,000 individuals willing to pay over $100,000 to purchase the vehicle.

Similarly, after Tesla opened up Cybertruck orders in Canada last week, the EV maker appears to have run through the entire reservation list in only six days. Tesla has yet to stop the reservation process in Canada; however, people who reserved their Cybertrucks as late as December 2023 are already receiving communication from Tesla telling them to take delivery of their trucks.

Overall, what do you think of the fact that only a small percentage of Cybertruck reservation holders have chosen to buy the vehicle? Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Share your ideas by clicking the red “Add new comment” button below. Also, visit our site, torquenews.com/Tesla, regularly for the latest updates.

Image: Courtesy of Tesla, inc.

For more information, check out: My First Cybertruck Was Dead on Arrival; Now Tesla is Pushing Me to Take Delivery of a 2nd Cybertruck With Several Defects Tesla Themselves Outlined With Chalk

Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and the evolution of the EV space daily for several years. He covers everything about Tesla, from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.