What we know about Tesla's pickup

As if electric car manufacturer Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) was not already pulling enough levers to get investors excited about its business, on Thursday it sent invitations to unveil the long-awaited pickup. This news comes on the heels of Tesla, which turns in profits in the third quarter, gaining a production license to start production of its made-in-China Model 3 for Chinese customers, and announces that it is building a new car factory in Berlin.

Before the incident, here's a look at what CEO Elon Musk has said about the truck.

Model X. Image source: Tesla.

CYBRTRK?

a November 6 tweet from Musk noting that Tesla would unveil its new pickup on November 21[ads1]. Tesla has now sent out invitations to the truck's unveiling event. It starts at 8pm. PST on Thursday, November 21 at the company's Design Center in Hawthorne, California. According to the invitation, the event "will be held both indoors and outdoors."

The invitation was sent only moments after a Twitter user discovered Tesla had applied for a trademark of the logo called "CYBRTRK" – a probable name on the truck since Musk has referred to the vehicle as Cybertruck. Tesla has also registered the domain cybrtrk.com, as the site is currently redirecting to Tesla.com.

Design & Performance

Little is known about the truck, but Musk said in the company's third-quarter revenue that he thinks it is Tesla's "best product ever." The design is expected to be bold, with Musk saying in a tweet on October 13 that the vehicle looks like "an armored personnel carrier of the future."

Tesla also commented on the truck's performance in a podcast interview this spring.

It's going to be a truck that is more capable than other trucks. The goal is to be a better truck than a [ Ford ] F-150 when it comes to truck-like functionality and to be a better sports car than a standard [Porsche] 911. That's the ambition.

Availability and prices

Investors must wait for the event to find out when the electric car manufacturer expects to bring the truck to market. The company has not yet provided a specific timeframe for truck production. But with production of Model Y expected to be the company's current priority when it comes to new cars, the truck is likely to come after Model Y. Tesla's website currently predicts that Model Y production will start in "the end of 2020."

Regarding pricing, Musk has stated that the goal is for vehicle prices to start at $ 49,000 or less.

Of course, some of these details may have changed now. Furthermore, the vehicle can develop even more as it goes into production. Nevertheless, investors will finally get at least some answers about the much-awaited truck during Tesla's unveiling event next week.