After years of mounting expectations and missed deadlines, Tesla TSLA is set to make its first Cybertruck deliveries at the end of the month, with its Cybertruck Event on Nov. 30.
In the lead-up to the event, Tesla published its latest motor-vehicle-agreement form, and it includes a clause specific to soon-to-be Cybertruck owners.
Buying a Cybertruck, according to the document, comes with an agreement not to sell the vehicle within the first year of ownership, starting with the day a customer takes delivery.
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For those consumers who decide that they really need to sell their Cybertruck within that time frame, they must plead their case to Tesla.
If the company thinks the reason is good enough, Tesla will then purchase the car back from the consumer, less 25 cents per mile driven and any reasonable wear-and-tear costs necessary to refurbish the vehicle.
If Tesla declines to repurchase the Cybertruck, the consumer will be allowed to sell to a third party but only after receiving written consent from Tesla.
If potential owners breach the contract, they face blacklisting and lawsuits.
"You agree that in the event you breach this provision, or Tesla has reasonable belief that you are about to breach this provision, Tesla may seek injunctive relief to prevent the transfer of title of the Vehicle or demand liquidated damages from you in the amount of $50,000 or the value received as consideration for the sale or transfer, whichever is greater," the clause reads. "Tesla may also refuse to sell you any future vehicles."
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Similar restrictions at other carmakers
Such terms are not entirely unheard of in the automotive world, but few are as aggressive as Tesla's.
Aston Martin in 2017 started offering slots for its limited edition Valkyrie, a hypercar with a price tag that starts above $3 million. Aston Martin Chief Executive Andy Palmer said at the time that flipping of the Valkyrie will not be allowed.
"If they do and we identify who flipped, they lose the car," he tweeted. "If they flip, then they never get another special."
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Ford in 2017 said that the handpicked buyers of its $500,000 Ford GT had to wait two years to sell it; the company sued wrestler John Cena for breaching this contract. The suit was settled out of court.
Other supercar makers, like Ferrari, employ a similar blacklist: Buyers who violate their strict terms will not be allowed to purchase a second Ferrari. But threats of lawsuits over such violations are few and far between, even among luxury supercar giants.
While investors and consumers alike seem excited at the prospect of the Cybertruck delivery event, many remain concerned about ongoing production difficulties with the pickup truck. CEO Elon Musk said in October that it could take up to 18 months for the Cybertruck to become profitable.
Cathie Wood cautious but confident on Tesla
This lack of profitability, which is tied to Tesla's apparent inability to quickly ramp up to full production, has uber-bull asset manager Cathie Wood cautious, though still confident.
"We are going to have to navigate through a volatile period. Whenever Tesla is setting up to do anything, there's usually a lot of controversy around it," Wood said last week. "So controversy around the Cybertruck, how well it will sell, or how complicated it will be to scale."
At last check in premarket trading Monday Tesla shares were 0.8% higher. They'd closed Friday's session up more than 2%.
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