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Tesla CEO Elon Musk claims his new Cybertruck already has 250,000 orders

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The Cybertruck has come in for heavy criticism since its launch last week
The Cybertruck has come in for heavy criticism since its launch last week

Elon Musk has suggested that his unorthodox new electric pickup truck has already received a quarter-of-a-million orders since its unveiling last week.

The so called Cybertruck, made by Tesla, has caused a stir in the automotive industry since its launch on Thursday, with its unconventional shape and hefty $39,900 price tag making it a target for widespread criticism. 

Read more: Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveils his Cybertruck, but it’s already the butt of jokes

But Tesla chief executive Musk, who is no stranger to controversy, has been promoting the truck on Twitter, cryptically releasing updates to the number of orders the company has received.

After more than 50 interactions on Twitter since the launch, he tweeted “250k” on Tuesday night in an apparent reference to the number of orders.

The electric carmaker received 325,000 orders for the Model 3 in the first week of bookings three years ago, and the Cybertruck could rival that figure with two days still to go for its first week of pre-orders.

However, Tesla is only taking pre-orders for the truck at the moment, which cost $100 to apply for. These are not considered deposits for the vehicle.

Musk has found himself in hot water over his tweeting in the past, with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) fining both he and Tesla $20m each last year over a tweet claiming he was mulling taking the elctric car company private for $420 a share. Then, he tweeted: “Funding secured.”

Tesla unveiled the truck last week, but it was marred when the vehicle’s window broke when an executive threw a metal ball at it.

Read more: Tesla CEO Elon Musk to testify at his ‘paedo guy’ defamation trial

The car’s trapezoid shape has also been the subject of mockery via internet memes. However, Tesla fans have also praised Musk for bringing a new shape in automotive design to the market.

Musk also took a pot shot at Ford with the new vehicle, sharing a video of the Cybertruck dragging a Ford F-150 pickup truck up a hill in a tug-of-war. Ford vice president Sundeep Madra has since called for an “apples to apples” tug-of-war between the two cars, to which Musk said: “Bring it on.”