Cybertruck range extender battery to be priced at $123 per extra mile of towing 'heavy things up mountains'

The US government's $80,000 new EV tax credit limit for electric trucks and SUVs must have put Tesla in a bind when deciding what battery capacity to install in its newly launched Cybertruck. The tip that Tesla may have placed a 123 kWh battery in the Cybertruck raised some eyebrows, as the power consumption of other electric trucks in the category, such as the Rivian R1T or Ford F-150 Lightning, is north of 40 kWh/100mi.

Granted, Tesla's powertrains are often a tad more efficient than the rest, but that capacity still pegs the Cybertruck's announced range at a bit over 300 miles for the tri-motor Cyberbeast trim, a far cry from those 500 miles that Tesla has been promising for the past four years.

In order to both fulfil the "up to 500 mile" range promise for the tri-motor Cybertruck version, and still keep the dual-motor AWD model under the government's tax credit cutoff, Tesla evidently took a Solomonic decision.

Cybertruck range extender price

• $16,000 (est.)

In the Cybertruck's accessory section writeups, Tesla tips that its first electric truck can "go even further with a range extender installed into the Cybertruck's bed."

In the Cybertruck's specs list, the dual-motor AWD version range is listed as 340 miles without, and 470+ miles with the optional 130-mile range extender, which is awfully close to the 500-mile range promised.

Elon Musk took to X to dispel any speculation about the Cybertruck range extender, confirming that it is indeed an optional battery pack that is placed behind the cabin and takes approximately a third of the truck bed, still leaving room for "plenty of cargo." Tesla warns that the Cybertruck range extender is to be "installed separately," meaning that it won't be a simple plug and play affair, despite that it looks like a big tool box behind the cabin at the front of the truck bed.

Unfortunately, an optional Cybertruck battery pack means that the owner will have to pay for it as an accessory whenever they need it for "very long trips or towing heavy things up mountains," as per Musk. The possible Cybertruck range extender price is estimated at $16,000 in Tesla's accessory shop website code, putting the cost per extra mile of Cybertruck range it adds at the $123 mark.

Cybertruck range extender battery capacity

• 50 kWh

At the projected 41 kWh/100mi consumption, the Cybertruck's range extender battery capacity of 50 kWh accounts for the possibility of a less efficient energy transfer than with the built-in structural 4680 pack.

The Cybertruck's range extender battery price per kWh would be $320 which is about triple the estimated cost per kWh of Tesla's 4680 battery in the Model Y, but then again there is the research, design, and wrapping of the optional battery pack to consider. Moreover, 3.6 kWh portable power stations like the EF ECOFLOW on Amazon go for a grand per kWh, so the Cybertruck's range extender may be priced reasonably, even though it'd bring the total price of the dual-motor trim with 470+ miles of range to the level of the tri-motor Cyberbeast. 

In any case, the decision to keep the AWD Cybertruck price below the $80,000 tax credit threshold with a smaller installed battery, but add miles via an optional range extender, means that the government will essentially be paying half of its price, not to mention the made-in-US battery subsidies that Tesla's Gigafactory in Texas could also net.