Last November, Tesla announced the range-extending battery alongside the start of Cybertruck deliveries. However, additional details about the battery were scarce. Today, it was discovered that the add-on battery pack will go into production at the beginning of next year.
The Tesla Cybertruck add-on battery pack provides a maximum driving range of over 470 miles on a full charge. Cybertruck owners must pay a nonrefundable deposit of $500 to reserve the add-on accessory, which includes priority installation. Once the battery extender is produced, Cybertruck owners will receive notifications when their extender is ready to be installed.
Can you install the range extender yourself? Well, no, you can’t. a Tesla service center will handle the installation of the roughly 500-pound box. This also means you can’t just take the range extender out as you see fit. It’s important to note that when this range extender is installed, it takes up roughly one-third of the Cybertruck’s bed. At the same time, it will add around 120 miles of range, bringing the total to around 470-plus miles for the dual-motor all-wheel drive version and 440-plus miles for the tri-motor Cyberbeast.
The range extender, however, may not be for everyone. For instance, the extra range comes at a hefty cost of $16,000. That is a lot of money to spend on just an additional 120-plus miles of range. With the Tesla Cybertruck range extender installed in your truck bed, you also won’t be able to use a third of your bed, which is easily taken over by the added cells.
Will it be worth it? We don’t know just yet. The fact that this added weight of 500-600 pounds will also eat into your total payload capacity isn’t an upside, either. Only time will tell.
