Cybertruck range falls 20% short of the official EPA estimate in a drive-to-empty battery test

Tesla's Lars Moravy, noted that the Cybertruck's range could be cut by 50% to 160 miles on a charge if towing a heavy and boxy load like a horse trailer. What the Head of Vehicle Engineering didn't mention, however, is that a significant range reduction may happen even at highway speeds and at temperatures above freezing.

Cybertruck range test

In one of the first real-world Cybertruck range tests, the folks over at Out of Spec Motoring rented a few of Tesla's electric pickups off of Turo, and set off on their merry way to explore and examine them for the viewing pleasure of future owners.

While one of the Cybertrucks they rented had its central console display freeze and had to be taken to a Tesla Service Center, another was subjected to a test drive. Long story short, the Cybertruck managed to cover 254 miles of mostly highway driving in a fairly comfortable temperature of 46 degrees Fahrenheit (about 8 degrees Celsius).

That's about 20% shorter than the Cybertruck's official 320-mile EPA range estimate and a bit over the normal range drop that electric vehicles would be expected to experience in such conditions. While cold temps and highway speeds would indeed draw on the 123 kWh Cybertruck battery faster than during the balanced EPA range test routine, falling 20% short of the official numbers seems a bit excessive.

More so for an electric pickup that was first announced with an "up to 500-mile range" on a charge. Even going by the official numbers, the Cybertruck can only get close to that promise with an optional 50 kWh Range Extender battery pack that will cost about $16,000 if and when it materializes in the Tesla store some time towards the tail end of 2024.

Tesla is still gathering real-life usage data and driving patterns for the freshly released Cybertruck, though, so with time it may address any inefficiencies it identifies. In fact, Tesla's Head of Powertrain and Energy, Drew Baglino, said that the "long-term" goal is for the Cybertruck to hit the coveted 500-mile range with the extender accessory.

This means that by the time the range extender hits the market Tesla may be planning to cut drivetrain inefficiencies by 10%, increase the 4680 battery's energy density in the same footprint, or some combination of those two. Until then, however, Cybertruck owners may be in for a bit of disappointment when it comes to range expectations.

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