Tesla has announced that it is raffling off one of its first Cybertrucks to one lucky customer. However, some question whether that announcement is believable based on the electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer's failure to deliver on previous promises.
The free Cybertruck — if it does end up existing — will come as a result of changes that Tesla just made to its Loyalty Program, also known as the Loot Box. Through the program, customers can earn points by buying a new Tesla with a referral code or referring a new customer.
Those points can then be used on free Supercharger miles or, apparently, to enter the raffle for the Cybertruck, the release of which Tesla fans are still eagerly awaiting.
The problem is that Tesla has promised free cars in exchange for referrals in the past and failed to deliver, according to Electrek. A previous iteration of the referral program allowed customers to claim a free Tesla Roadster by accumulating a certain number of referral points.
However, according to Electrek, Tesla ended that program in 2019 without delivering on the 80 Roadsters it ended up owing. As of this May, the company had yet to make good on its promise, Electrek noted.
As with many of the promises made by Elon Musk, it sounds like this one should be taken with a grain of salt — though delivering on a single Cybertruck will presumably be a lot easier for the company than 80 Roadsters.
Still, Electrek's commenters were not impressed by the revamped referral program.
"Help us make money today, and we'll give you a chance to win a product we hope to release at some nebulous time in the future ..." one commenter wrote. "An incredibly [strange] strategy, really relying on people trusting a system that still hasn't paid out the rewards for the last referral program."
"[F]ool you once, shame on Elon. Fool you twice … I have a Full Self Driving car to sell you," another wrote.
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