Marketed as a durable, rugged vehicle, Tesla’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) Cybertruck has faced persistent criticism over performance issues, including breakdowns under basic conditions like rain, ever since its release.
Considering the growing reputation, it may come as no surprise that Finbold’s research found Tesla might have been forced to recall up to 57,332 Cybertrucks since the start of 2024 – an average of 172 units per day since January 1.
In total, there have been five recalls affecting the Cybertruck specifically in 2024, and one that was listed as potentially affecting more than 2 million Tesla vehicles across multiple models dating as far back as 2012.
Most Tesla Cybertruck issues were 30-minute fixes
The first of the Cybertruck-specific issues was announced on April 17, 2024. The recall was due to the danger of the accelerator pedal getting ‘trapped’ if ‘high force’ was applied to it, per Tesla’s official announcement.
The EV maker offered free corrections for the pickup and estimated the fix would take approximately 15 minutes. In total, 3,878 may have been affected, per the data available on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website.
On June 19, Elon Musk’s EV maker issued two recalls due to potential issues with Cybertruck’s front wiper, and a trim piece called the sail applique. The first of these could have led to the front wiper motor malfunctioning. It was described as a free, 30-minute fix, affecting 11,688 vehicles at most.
The second was a problem with how the trim piece was attached, which could lead to it falling off. It potentially affected a slightly greater number – 12,150 – Cybertrucks, but again, it was described as a fix that would take 30 minutes at most.
Lastly, the most recent recall – and the last one to require physical intervention – occurred on November 5. It sought to resolve a problem in the drive inverter that could lead to a loss of power.
It was another fix administered free of charge but also the lengthiest intervention, as Tesla estimated it would take approximately three hours. Data retrieved from NHTSA also revealed that as many as 2,431 Cybertrucks may be suffering from the issue.
Did Tesla’s OTA Cybertruck recall reveal how many pickups were sold?
In September, Tesla issued its first over-the-air (OTA) firmware update correction for Cybertrucks in 2024. This update, announced on the 26th day of the month, was designed to resolve a problem with the rearview camera that could have led to a display delay once the truck was set in reverse.
The September 26 recall is particularly interesting both because it is an OTA fix and because of the large number of vehicles affected – 27,185. Indeed, there is a possibility the update inadvertently revealed the total number of Cybertrucks shipped between November 13, 2023, and September 14, 2024.
Due to Tesla Motors staying tight-lipped about the actual number of Cybertrucks sold, the recalls have been used throughout the year to estimate the likely total number of these pickups sold.
The June recalls in particular, were at the time seen as an admission of the sales figures to their size relative to other such announcements. Still, there are some problems with using the NHTSA safety data to gauge how many units were shipped to customers.
For example, nearly all of the recalls affected Cybertrucks manufactured after November 13, but the latest announcement – November 5, 2024 – demonstrated that at least some of the models were made as early as November 6, 2023.
Tesla Cybertruck may be suffering from a 200% recall rate
Whatever the specific figure for 2024 may be, it appears that the Cybertruck is significantly underselling compared to the original plans of 150,000 vehicles per year, and that a minority of individuals who made a reservation for the pickup actually went through with the purchase.
Additionally, the total delivery estimate for the Cybertruck for the first three quarters of 2024 provided in the Kelly Blue Book hints that the pickup had a recall rate of 194.34% at the end of the third quarter.
Specifically, the publication estimated that 28,250 vehicles of the model were shipped by the end of September. As the maximum possible number of Cybertrucks recalled stood at 54,901 by that date, this would indicate that almost every pickup would have been slated for repairs at least twice in 2024.
Why the recall figures may not be indicative of the Cybertruck’s quality
Finally, it is worth pointing out that the figures provided on the NHTSA website represent the potential maximum number of affected vehicles, and the actual number of Cybertrucks suffering from the described issues could be significantly lower.
Despite the recall rate potentially approaching 200%, the situation might prove similar to the broader reputation of Tesla cars as spontaneous combustion engines. The actual number of instances in which Tesla vehicles caught fire for no apparent reason is minuscule compared to what the public perception and online representation suggest.
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