Flipping highly sought-after cars is a long-held practice in the industry. While some automakers seem to not care about it, others make customers sign contracts with stiff penalties if they sell a new ride too soon. Tesla seems to be taking the latter route after waffling on the position before the Cybertruck’s launch.
The Cybertruck may be bullet proof but it isn’t Corolla proof.
When it initially came out that Tesla was going to penalize Cybertruck flippers, a backlash seemingly made the company back off. But it’s been coming out that Tesla in fact is still looking to penalize violators, as some owners have claimed on different forums and social media groups.
One user on the Cybertruck Owners Club forum went so far as to claim Tesla might blacklist flippers for life. We know Ferrari will do such things, but the Italian automaker makes some of the most desirable rides in the world in limited quantities.
Tesla is in fact no Ferrari, not even close. It’s becoming increasingly a high-volume car company, so these claims are either complete bunk or a sign that Tesla might be shooting itself in the foot. After all, Ford didn’t ban anyone flipping the GT supercar from buying another Ford for life, it just imposed hefty financial penalties.
Previously, Tesla had the lifetime ban in the purchase contract for the Cybertruck. A new owner had to agree to keep the vehicle for at least a year before selling it. After the backlash, that part was removed from the contract, then it was quietly put back in. So the forum member’s claim might be legitimate.
Volume production for the Cybertruck has started yet, so only the lucky few have been able to get one. Many of them are celebrities, influencers, or other people of import. Apparently some of them have decided to make a tidy profit by turning around and selling the geometric-shaped pickup to anyone eager enough to shell out big bucks to get one now.
We’ve seen several media outlets dig into this issue. None we’re aware of have been able to get an official statement from Tesla about the accusations. Before you think that silence is damning, just know Tesla doesn’t have the warmest relationship with the media, so it’s common for the company to not respond to requests for statements.
Image via Tesla
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