--- title: "It’s Looking Like the Cybertruck Is the Biggest Flop in Automotive History" description: "Bloomberg argues that the Cybertruck is an even bigger let down than the Ford Edsel, which is widely seen as the industry's biggest flop." date: "2026-07-24" modified: "2026-07-24" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/advanced-transport/cybertruck-biggest-flop-automotive-history" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" --- # It’s Looking Like the Cybertruck Is the Biggest Flop in Automotive History ![A stylized photo illustration featuring a Tesla Cybertruck.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Dolores M. Harvey / Shutterstock* The Cybertruck is a flop. For all of Tesla CEO Elon Musk's grandiose claims that the pickup would be an "apocalypse-proof" tank capable of winning its driver style points wherever they go, it's instead earned a reputation for being [incredibly unreliable]() and just about the opposite of "easy on the eyes" — probably because you can imagine the numerous sharp edges that define its low-poly design poking you in them as soon as you see it. Most unforgivable in the capitalist society Musk champions, it hasn't sold well. He [once estimated]() that Tesla would sell up to 500,000 Cybertrucks annually, but it hasn't even come close to that number in the nearly three years since it first started shipping, and at this point it probably won't in its entire lifetime. So, yes. It's a flop. But could it also be the greatest flop in American automotive history? A [new piece from *Bloomberg*]() makes the case, comparing the Tesla vehicle to the misfortunes of Ford's Edsel, which was first introduced in 1957 and discontinued just two years later. After spending years building up hype for the car, Ford predicted selling 200,000 units in its first year, but ended up selling less than a third of that. That's comparable to expectations versus reality of the Cybertruck. In fact, the Cybertruck is actually doing *worse* in key ways. Tesla's annual sales target was 250,000 units, but it didn't even crack 40,000 sales in its first year. And like the Edsel, it's sold less with each successive year, with barely 7,100 registered in the US in 2026 so far, according to S&P Global Mobility data — despite Musk juicing those figures [by selling Cybertrucks to his own companies](). And like the Cybertruck, the Edsel's unusual design was also widely mocked. The most notorious feature was its vertical grille, which many jokesters [compared to a toilet seat](). A [review in *Time* magazine]() sealed its fate by observing that it looked like "an Oldsmobile sucking a lemon." "For most people it was just downright ugly," Don Sherman, a journalist and auto historian, told *Bloomberg*. The exterior wasn't the only weird — and doomed — thing about the Edsel. In it, Ford debuted a new "Teletouch" push-button shift placed in the *center of the steering wheel* — yep, right where most cars have a horn button. It confused drivers and frequently malfunctioned. (And spiritually, it's hard to ignore, the Teletouch evokes Tesla's insistence on hiding features that traditionally have physical buttons in a central touch screen.) The Edsel is generally cited as the American automotive industry's biggest disaster. But the projected annual sales target compared to actual sales is actually worse for the Cybertruck. It may be time to put a new car on this ignominious throne. But will Tesla discontinue the Cybertruck the same way Ford dropped the Edsel? Maybe not. The Cybertruck is a point of pride for Musk and has become synonymous with his vision. Garrett Nelson, an equity analyst at CFRA Research, thinks it's more likely the truck will "fade away." "It's possible that they try to do some sort of redesign, or come up with a different variant to try to boost sales," Nelson told *Bloomberg*, "but we think that would really be a futile effort." **More on Tesla:** [*Tesla Stock in Freefall After Disastrous Earnings Report*]() ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()