The Tesla Semi Will Cost Double a Standard Truck—but the Math Shows It Could Kill Off Diesels |
The Tesla Semi Will Cost Double a Standard Truck—but the Math Shows It Could Kill Off Diesels
After years of limited production, Tesla is ramping up its Semi rollout while making a compelling economic case that could reshape America’s freight.
BY AMAYA NICHOLE, NEWS WRITER
Photo: Courtesy Tesla
Nearly a decade after its unveiling, the Tesla semi appears to be ready for a high-volume rollout from its Nevada Gigafactory.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the company is expected to deliver between 5,000 and 15,000 semis in 2026 before ramping up to 50,000 trucks a year. The truck will be offered as a standard 325-mile-range model and a long-range, 500-mile model.
The electric vehicle company hasn’t publicly stated how much the semi will cost, but in a YouTube video for Jay Leno’s channel, Tesla’s director of semi truck engineering, Dan Priestly, said that the “payback is in the first few years of operation compared to running a diesel.”
However, the WSJ also reported that people familiar with the orders say they come in at under $300,000, or about double the cost of a diesel truck.
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“The economics are right. The product is ready, we have the factory standing up, but we have ample demand on a per-mile basis. This truck is 50 percent cheaper to run here in California,” Priestly said.
Leno and Priestly were joined by senior design executive Franz von Holzhausen to discuss the updates to the model since Leno last tested it in 2023, when he drove a pre-production version of the standard 325-mile Tesla semi truck.
Since then, the Tesla team has cut off 1,000 pounds of weight, bringing the 500-mile version to payload parity with diesel-powered Class 8 trucks—a parity that’s achieved after a 2,000-pound federal weight exemption is factored in.