You can no longer order Tesla Semi - get ready for price hikes

Max McDee, 22 August 2022

Quick look at Tesla’s website uncovered changes to the soon-to-be released Semi, the truck that will revolutionize the industry once it eventually hits the road. The pricing information is no longer available, which suggests painful news is on the way or, in other words, get ready for price hikes.

The order or reserve button is gone from the website and it has been replaced with “Get updates”. It could mean that Tesla has sold out its production for possibly as many as the next 12 months and rather than repeating the mistake with Cybertruck, it wants to play safe this time - deliver some orders first.

Driver's experience like nothing else on the market

There are no changes to battery specification - we still have two options, either 300-mile or 500-mile range. Tesla did not disclose battery capacity yet but the quoted range is with the Semi pulling a fully loaded trailer bringing the total weight to 82,000 lbs (37.2 metric tons).

There is a change though, Semi will no longer have 4 electric motors. The updated specification quotes 3 electric motors instead. Acceleration with the fully loaded trailer is quoted at 20 seconds from 0 to 60 mph with the ability to maintain highway speed at 5% incline.

Tesla Semi trucking happily on the highway

There is updated info about charging speeds as well, the Semi can charge up to 70% of its battery capacity in 30 minutes at the dedicated Semi Charger. Tesla claims less than 2 kWh per mile efficiency so quick calculator action suggests that the smaller battery has 600 kWh capacity and the larger one is about 1,000 kWh.

Those capacities would suggest the charging is happening at anything between 840kW and 1,400kW depending on the battery size. Now we know why Tesla calls its Semi Chargers the Megachargers.

Up to 1.4 MW charging for the 500 mile Semi at Megachargers

The 500-mile Tesla Semi is coming this year, it has been confirmed so many times that we have no choice, but take Tesla’s word for it. The initial price for this model was $180,000 with a $20,000 reservation fee. The 300-mile model was $150,000 with the same reservation cost. We will know soon enough new prices, Tesla can’t hide them forever.

The Semi has been testing on the roads for nearly 2 years now, the truck is production ready and the company is ready to start selling it to the very patient customers. Those who were brave enough and put the deposit down early, will enjoy the first electric truck from Tesla at a price, that almost feels like a bargain now.