Update: After This Story Broke at the Close of Business, the State Department Removed the Reference to Tesla in the Middle of the Night
Update: And who said the federal government can’t turn on a dime? Seems like someone in the government got mad that the State Department’s Procurement Office said the quiet part out loud by specifying that their contract for armored EVs wasn’t for just any Kroger brand EV or other any competitive bid, but specifically for a Tesla brand order of “Armored Tesla (Production Units)”. The news broke on 2/12/25 at about 16:45. That line was the sole edit after business hours on 2/12/25 at 21:12 in the State Department’s 2025 Procurement Forecast, the government document now lists the line item as being for “Armored Electric Vehicles” in what I am certain will be a competitive and unbiased bidding process. – Kay
Another update: As of 2:15PM CST on 2/13/25, denials are rolling in. Elon Musk tweeted a semi-denial, that he hasn’t been told of any $400 million dollar State Department deal. State Department officials report that the deal is on hold, although they offer no explanation of why it is still included in their Procurement Forecast. These two developments are strange given that publicly available government databases report that the State Department has a years-old contractual relationship with Tesla Inc, including several individual awarded contracts. Did no one tell the CEO that they landed one of the premier federal government departments as a client? Well, that’s his story, and he’s sticking (Tweeting?) to it.
A third update: as of 2/24/25, the paper trail isn’t adding up. NPR reports that the smattering of denials and/or misdirections based on the Biden administration’s origination of the deal don’t hold water. The original award was nowhere near the scope of the $400 million that was discovered on the State Department’s procurement forecasting books. At some point, the original award amount increased more than 100 fold. The procurement forecast has been updated again, this time removing the line item entirely. The plot thickens!
Original story to follow below! – Kay
Well, we’ve got a live one! Hats off to Ryan Grim at Dropsite News for the scoop.
Tucked into the State Department’s 2025 Procurement Forecast is a projected new contract: $400 million for “Armored Tesla (Production Units).”
Wow! A lot to unpack here, and so little time to unpack it.
The Details for the Armored Tesla Contract
Read the full details at the State Department’s procurement forecast website, or read our Spark Notes below:
- Length of contract: 5 years.
- Anticipated award date: 9/30/2025.
- Incumbent contractor: none. This is brand new, not replacing an existing provider.
- Contract terms: IDIQ. That means “Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity.” Learn all about the federal contract jargon here.
- Production units: This means that we are not talking an up-armored Tesla. This is armored off the production line. That means either a brand new model of armored Tesla vehicles, or more likely, that means the Cybertruck (more on that to follow).
An Armored Tesla? That Rings a Bell…
Now, anyone who follows Cybertrucks probably has alarm bells going off in their head. Or maybe that’s just me?
Tesla has a production “armored” vehicle already. At least, they market it as such. That’s their luxury off-roading EV, the Cybertruck.
Elon Musk Promised Bulletproof, But YMMV
The reason I say that the Cybertruck is “armored” in scare quotes is that the level of armoring is somewhat controversial.
For instance, here is Elon Musk describing the Cybertruck on Joe Rogan as “bulletproof,” full-stop and no caveats. Note that he is not saying partially bulletproof, not bullet resistant, that’ll be important in a second:
Here is a more recent iteration of Elon Musk’s bulletproofing claims for the Cybertruck, and notice how this one has two massive exceptions:
The two massive exceptions are:
- The Cybertruck’s glass surfaces, including its colossal windshield, are not at all bulletproof. So long as your assailant doesn’t think to shoot through the large windows that they can see you through, you’re safe!
- The Cybertruck’s panels stop small caliber bullets, like low-caliber pistols, shotgun pellets, and “tommy gun” rounds. Common weapons like AR-15s chambered for typical rifle ammo and high-caliber pistols punch through a Cybertruck like it’s made of wet paper.
What Convenient Timing, Things Were Looking Rough for the Cybertruck
This news is convenient for Tesla across many different dimensions, if the “Armored Tesla” is indeed the Cybertruck:
Even for Tesla, $400 million is a large order: At current pricing listed on the Tesla website, each base model Cybertruck runs $88,509 with taxes and fees included. That’s 4,519 Cybertrucks, assuming the federal government opts for the base-level luxury EV rather than fancier “Cyberbeast” model.
Cybertruck consumer demand has been lackluster: Due in part to the controversial styling and in part due to the persistent scuttlebutt among buyers about major mechanical defects and recalls, truck buyers have not been racing to purchase Cybertrucks. Public estimates of about 2,000,000 Cybertruck reservations only resulted in a thoroughly underwhelming estimated 34,438 Cybertrucks sold as of January 1st 2025. (For comparison, the Hyundai Santa Cruz is an absolutely awful pickup truck and Hyundai moved 36,675 units in the USA in 2023.)
Inventory issues, solved: Perceptive Redditors have been noticing Cybertrucks stacking up at out-of-the-way lots across the country. Seems like Tesla has more inventory on hand than they have buyers to sell to. This contract will go a long way in moving those rusting trucks off of the backlots (and off of Tesla’s books!).
What an unexpected piece of news! The State Department doesn’t include a reason for their purchase in the Procurement Forecast, so we are left guessing: why do America’s diplomats need armored Teslas? Fervent speculation to follow.
