Everybody’s family when you buy a Tesla—and pays full price. That’s the official Musk family policy, according to Elon Musk‘s 76-year-old mother, Maye Musk. Despite being the matriarch of one of the most influential tech dynasties, she has confirmed multiple times that her billionaire son doesn’t hand out Tesla TSLA-0.41%Get Free Report discounts—even to his own relatives.
This no-special-treatment approach isn’t new, but it resurfaced in a 2024 exchange on X when Musk responded to a nearly two-year-old video from Snoop Dogg, who had jokingly asked for a free Tesla. Musk’s response? A firm no. “Everyone pays full price for a Tesla, including me,” he wrote.
Snoop, who has been seen driving a Tesla Model X, may have been hoping for a VIP hookup, but Musk made it clear that even celebrity status doesn’t earn you a discount. And if music royalty isn’t getting a deal, family members certainly aren’t either.
Even Mom Doesn’t Get a Deal
Maye Musk, a model and dietitian, has confirmed multiple times that when her son bought her a Tesla, it was at full price. In a 2023 interview with the Associated Press, she even compared her Tesla experience with paying for X verification, stating that Musk’s policies remain the same across the board.
“Elon paid full price when he got me a Tesla.” She mentioned his motto “Everybody’s family when you buy a Tesla”, adding “I think that’s cute.”
She previously shared another story with The New York Times in 2017, revealing that even though her son owns the company, she didn’t get to skip the Model 3 waitlist. She was approximately 300,000th in line like everyone else. “Even though I have good connections, I can’t jump the line,” she said.
Cousins Don’t Get Discounts Either
It turns out Musk has been keeping this policy intact for years. Back in 2016, his cousin, Lyndon Rive, then the CEO of SolarCity, tried to see if a little family favoritism could score him a deal on a Tesla. The response? Classic Musk.
“I asked, ‘Elon, hey, can I have a family discount?’ And his answer was, ‘Yeah, absolutely. Go to TeslaMotor.com, buy the car online, and the price you see there is the family discount,'” Rive told Business Insider.
Rive, who bought a Model S while his wife drove a Model X, had no complaints. “It’s totally fair,” he said. “For the amount of car you’re getting, it’s a totally fair price.” He even went so far as to praise Musk’s strict no-nepotism stance. “I give Elon credit beyond the fact of being the best entrepreneur in the world—he treats everyone the same. Everyone.”
When the Musk Name Increases Prices
Not only does Musk refuse to hand out discounts, but in some cases, having his last name can actually make things more expensive. His younger sister, Tosca Musk, an entrepreneur and founder of the streaming platform Passionflix, told the Daily Mail that being a Musk comes with its own set of financial hurdles.
She recounted how a rental location for her business suddenly jumped from $5,000 to $25,000 per day when the owner realized she was related to the Elon Musk. She explained people assume he pays for everything, but he doesn’t.
No Special Treatment in the Musk Universe
Whether you’re a Grammy-winning rapper, a billionaire’s mother, or his cousin, the rules remain the same: everybody pays full price for a Tesla. Musk’s unwavering commitment to equal pricing has been a long-standing policy, and it seems unlikely to change—and don’t expect any sympathy from his mom either.
