Tesla is now inviting “select customers” to buy a Cybercab for personal use. The order page lists $29,990, which sounds like the cheapest Tesla ever sold. Then the fine print arrives, and the math changes fast.
Every buyer must also pay a mandatory $299 monthly “Autonomy Subscription.” The offer went out through Tesla’s Robotaxi account on X, complete with order screenshots and an invitation email. That email warns that “initial availability is limited.”
Geography is the first filter. Tesla says the car is “only available in supported service areas.” In practice, you need to live in a city where the company already runs its Robotaxi service.
That service started in Austin in September using Model Y vehicles. Tesla now operates 278 Cybercabs, roughly 40 percent of its fleet, according to the crowd-sourced Robotaxi Tracker.
The real price
Add five years of that subscription and the picture sours. The $299 fee contributes $17,940, pushing the baseline to about $47,600 before taxes, charging, and insurance. A new Model 3 or Model Y costs less and can drive anywhere.
Cancelling creates a stranger problem. A normal Tesla reverts to manual driving when Full Self-Driving ends. A Cybercab has no steering wheel or pedals, so cancelling the subscription leaves the car unusable on public roads.
Buyers also hand over a $1,000 non-refundable deposit. In return they get a December delivery window that Tesla does not guarantee.
The passive income promise is gone
Elon Musk sold the Cybercab in 2024 as an income machine. Owners would add their cars to Tesla’s robotaxi network and earn money while they slept. The order terms now prohibit commercial use entirely. No Uber, no DoorDash, and no Tesla network.
Tesla AI chief Ashok Elluswamy has floated Q2 2027 for letting customer cars join the network. Early buyers pay full price with no way to earn anything back.
Tesla can also raise the price with 30 days’ notice. Keep using the service and you accept the new terms. Cancel mid-month and no partial refund follows.
Musk himself called the $299 fee “too high” on X. He suggested $115, or something closer to the $99 Full Self-Driving plan.
Regulators have not signed off. NHTSA opened a formal audit into how Tesla self-certified a vehicle without a steering wheel, pedals, or side mirrors. Tesla sent its justification in October and asked for the whole response to stay confidential. The agency has not ruled, yet deposits are already being collected.
Insurance raises another gap. The subscription covers driving, maintenance, and towing, but explicitly excludes auto insurance. Tesla has not explained how insurers will underwrite a car with no human driver. Nor has it said who pays when an autonomous Cybercab causes a crash.
Read the original report at The Verge. Related: our story on Tesla setting a Q2 2027 deadline to add owner cars to its Robotaxi fleet.
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