This is the first time I have seen a production vehicle's design to be less realistic (in terms of usability, component reuse, artistic freedom, etc) than it's artistic renders.
Here's a few artist imagined renders, and to be honest, they would be a lot less likely to get an April 1st calendar check reaction:
Whether it looks hideous or not would still depend on personal preferences though. I like the fact that it looks, well like a concept car, but it isn't.
The divisiveness of this design is precisely what will propel its success. It's the coolest production car I've ever seen. And I expect >50% of the population to strongly disagree, mostly people from different generations. "Appalling" designs get free viral marketing; the trick is to still appeal to enough of your target market.
This truck gets attention. It's a loud status statement that looks cheap to build, costs less than $50k. Well done Tesla.
This thread already has more comments than anything I've seen in months. The design is absolutely doing its job as a marketing tool.
Some people will love it, some people will hate it, a lot of people are probably just kind of confounded by it but will come to like it after they see a few in person.
Either way it's absolutely dominating a news cycle, which isn't easy to do.
I actually like this design because it's not the same old boring style of nearly every other vehicle these days, but I've always been pretty nonconformist.
What really stood out to me is the truck bed and the way the ramp pulls (or folds?) out. It actually seems very sensible and well designed, despite looking like it's trying too hard to be different.
And the sides of the bed of the truck come down at an angle so you can't lean over the side to grab something out of the bed or sit on the side of the bed. Strapping things down at an angle like that will be difficult as well.
It's tough in unimportant ways but weak when it comes to the bed which is arguably the most important feature of a truck.
I think this vehicle is better described as a crossover. For a crossover its not as ugly to me because I'm not hung up on the design decision to neuter the bed. But as a truck it looks like they chose a really terrible looking form over function.
A week is too long to be out of commission -- most parts for a Ford/GM/Dodge/Toyota, especially stuff that gets damaged are <2 hours away for like 10 years. Tesla's vertical model is a liability for a work scenario.
My dad loves his Honda Ridgeline. He can put his trash in the bed to take to the dump, put the dogs back there if needed, and tow a lawnmower over to some elderly people he helps out. But it is essentially an "El Camino" hack of a Honda minivan with jacked up suspension.
A Tesla work truck would be awesome -- they should sell a cab and shell that a third party can customize.
I feel like this is aimed as a similar demographic as the Ridgeline is: people who want a lot of flexibility out of their vehicle, but don't need a dedicated workhorse.
A friend of mine has a Ridgeline, too. The thing is great. Goes off-road, just about anywhere he wants to go, hauls skiing/camping gear for 4 people with room to spare, hauls 2 motorcycles and a dirt bike in the bed.
He's not hauling a horse trailer, or a boat, or following a TRD Pro 4Runner into the desert. If something breaks, he fixes it or rides his second vehicle until he can get it fixed.
People are acting like Tesla needs every farmer and construction worker to replace their diesel truck with the Cybertruck. If they didn't replace it with a Ridgeline (or similar unibody truck), the Cybertruck isn't for them.
What's not safe about it? The truck drives itself, and on day one Tesla autopilot will have already statistically proven itself as a far safer driver than a human.
I'd buy this one in a minute if I had the need for a truck. It's so beautiful. I totally dig into this retro futuristic design. Wish they made a car like that. Tesla is killing it.
I absolutely love the design! It's so new, so unique, and so bold where as I am not certain I'd be able to tell a ford a chevy and a ram apart without their logos
I love the fact that Tesla are moving away from the boring, middle of the road designs of their previous models.
But this.... this is just hideous.
It doesn’t look tough or futuristic; it looks like something a 10 year old designed, and no, that’s not a good thing.