Key Points
- Tesla emailed Australian and New Zealand customers yesterday to say plans to produce the Cybertruck for both markets have been discontinued.
- Reservations are cancelled, and Tesla says it will refund payments in full within 30 days of customers confirming their refund details.
- Reservation holders who order a new Model 3 or Model Y get a free year of Full Self-Driving (Supervised), but the offer's end date is not confirmed.
Tesla has cancelled plans to sell the Cybertruck in Australia and New Zealand. The company emailed local reservation holders on Thursday 22 October 2026 to say it will not produce a version for either market.
Reservations will be cancelled and customers will be refunded in full. Tesla is also offering reservation holders a free year of Full Self-Driving (Supervised) if they order a new Model 3 or Model Y.
What Tesla told reservation holders
Tesla sent the email under the subject line of an important update to the customer's Cybertruck reservation. It said that after careful consideration, plans to produce the Cybertruck for Australia and New Zealand "have been discontinued".
Tesla has not publicly explained the decision beyond that statement. Tesla Australia had not published any further comment at the time of writing.
View Your Tesla Offer
Refunds and the free FSD offer
Customers paid a refundable $150 deposit to reserve a Cybertruck in Australia. Here is how Tesla says the refund will work:
- Reservations are being cancelled.
- Customers receive a full refund of any payments made.
- A separate email asks customers to confirm their refund details.
- Tesla says the money is returned within 30 days of that confirmation.
Tesla is also offering reservation holders a complimentary one-year Full Self-Driving (Supervised) subscription with an order for a new Tesla Model 3 or Tesla Model Y. Tesla says it can be combined with current limited-time offers. It is tied to the email address on the reservation and activates after delivery.
Drive and EV Central both value the subscription at $1788, based on the current price of $149 per month. That figure is their calculation, not Tesla's.
The end date and full eligibility conditions for the FSD offer were not stated in the details Zecar has seen. Some reports suggest buyers must order by the end of the year, but this is unconfirmed. The terms in the email's footnotes were not visible in the screenshots that have been shared publicly.
Reservation holders who want to take up the offer can order a Model 3 or Model Y through Zecar's Tesla referral link.
Seven years of waiting
Tesla opened Cybertruck reservations in Australia in 2019 with a refundable $150 deposit, shortly after the truck was revealed. In May 2022 it removed the local reservation page and replaced it with a "Get Updates" button, according to EV Central. Deposits were not refunded automatically at that point.
Tesla later brought a left-hand-drive Cybertruck to Australia and New Zealand for public display, including Sydney events in 2024. Tesla said at the time that Cybertruck test drives would not be available.
Tesla Australia and New Zealand country director Thom Drew advised media in 2025 that the Cybertruck was under consideration for Australia. He said Tesla was discussing right-hand-drive feasibility with its engineers. The company never formally confirmed a local launch before this announcement.
What stood in the way
Tesla has not said why it cancelled the project. Several obstacles had been raised publicly before the announcement. None of them is confirmed as Tesla's reason.
- Right-hand drive: It is not legal to sell a new left-hand-drive vehicle in Australia. Drive reported in 2023 that a right-hand-drive Cybertruck was not being engineered.
- Design rules: Elon Musk said in 2024 that Tesla designed the Cybertruck to North American requirements. He said meeting every international standard would make the truck worse, and that region-specific versions would need higher volumes first.
- US sales: Cox Automotive data cited by Drive shows US Cybertruck sales fell to 20,237 in 2025 from 38,965 in 2024.
For reference, Tesla claims the US-market Cyberbeast accelerates from 0 to 100km/h in 2.7 seconds. The dual-motor version has a claimed range of up to 523km and a claimed towing capacity of 4990kg, according to 4X4 Australia. None of these figures applies to an Australian model, because none will be built.
What it means for Australian buyers
Australians who wanted a Tesla truck now have no local path to one. Tesla's Australian range stays built around the Model 3 and Model Y. Separately, the company has been showing the Tesla Cybercab locally, with a tour that began in Sydney in September.
Buyers who want a large electric pick-up have other options. The MG U9 is listed at $78,990 in Australia, and Zecar tracks the rest of the electric utes on sale or confirmed for the local market. Reservation holders who now look at a Model 3 or Model Y can also compare a novated lease against buying outright.
About the author
Danny is a consultant and entrepreneur working at the cutting edge of the electric vehicle and energy transition. He is passionate about educating and helping consumers make better decisions through data.
