I confess: I canceled my Tesla Cybertruck order. But not for the reason you think.

A Cybertruck at Tesla's Santana Row showroom in San Jose, California, on December 9, 2023.

Alistair Barr/Business Insider

• I put a $100 reservation down for a Tesla Cybertruck in June 2022.
• Tesla came calling about 2 years later.
• Here's why I couldn't pull the trigger on a purchase.

I'm a car nut and I love the design and ambition of Tesla's Cybertruck.

I put a reservation down in June 2022, expecting to be so far back in line that Tesla wouldn't come calling for years. All the while, I devoured online reviews, photos, and videos of the Cybertruck, and even wrote about it for Business Insider.

In December, I went to a Tesla showroom to see the beast up close, and wrote this: "I came away wanting a Cybertruck more than ever."

I now have a confession to make: I canceled my Cybertruck order.

A lot earlier than expected

This June, Tesla emailed me to say it was ready for my order. The company offered me the chance to buy the top range model, which costs more than $100,000.

"As an early reservation holder, you have been invited to order your Foundation Series Cybertruck with early access to delivery," the email read.

The first thing that struck me was that this invitation came in a lot earlier than I expected. Back in the pandemic-fueled Cybertruck reservation frenzy, Elon Musk super-fans sparred over who had the earliest reservations and crowed that the earliest holders would get their trucks 3 or 4 years before most regular buyers.

Having put my $100 reservation down in June 2022, I expected to get the call from Tesla in mid-2025 or 2026. Right now, I just don't have the money to afford a new vehicle.

Twice as much as expected

The company was likely trying to entice me into buying the priciest Cybertruck because getting $100,000 for each vehicle sale helps Tesla absorb the massive cost of ramping up high-volume production.

Here again, I'm not in a position to afford this. Back in 2022, I naively expected this vehicle to cost about $50,000. In 2019, Elon Musk said the Cybertruck would start at $40,000.

So I'd put a savings plan in place assuming I'd have to come up with roughly $50,000 (probably with some sort of financing) in three to four years time.

Instead, I got the call 1-to-2 years early and the bill was twice as much as expected. Right now, the cheapest Cybertruck is almost $100,000.

The cost of college

Life tends to throw other curveballs at you, too. One of my daughters is off to college soon, and I couldn't be more excited for her.

However, the university she chose is crushingly expensive. I won't go into details. All you need to know is that this is really not the time for the Barr family to be spending a lot on a new car. That was the final nail in the Cybertruck coffin for me.

American colleges have been heavily criticized for becoming way too expensive. But I'd still rather be investing (a lot!) in my kids' education than shoveling money into a brand new vehicle, which tends to lose value pretty quickly. Even Teslas depreciate, despite what Elon says.

"I love that Cybertrucks exist"

What is remains true is that I still love Tesla Cybertrucks. I still want one badly.

Designing an electric pickup truck with very few compromises was either a bold inventive risk or the outcome of a too-powerful tech executive with no restraint.

The result is a vehicle that makes me smile every time I see it. In a sea of Honda Accords and Toyota Camrys, it's a breath of fresh air.

In the words of one of my Tesla-driving neighbors, "I'm glad the Cybertruck exists."

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