We hit the Tesla Cybertruck with sledgehammers
Check out our brand-new film on the Tesla Cybertruck in the latest installment of “Jason Cammisa on the ICONS,” which you can watch right now on the Hagerty YouTube channel.
If being visionary means having the power to peer into and understand the future, how do we define the ability to create the future? Is that not much rarer? Doesn’t it demand a boldness that verges on being preposterous, a willfulness that balks at the conventions that block so many others? Can it take the form of … an unpainted pickup truck?
What about an electric, 800-horsepower tri-motor four-wheeled Frigidaire that completes the quarter-mile in 11 seconds flat and can outrun a go-kart… on a go-kart track?
We just spent two days at Sonoma Raceway filming, drag racing, and whacking the Tesla Cybertruck with sledgehammers in vain attempts to dent its “HFS” exoskeleton. (It was a riot.) HFS, by the way, is short for Tesla’s immature-but-accurate name for the in-house alloy developed for the Cybertruck: Hard F*cking Steel. That it seems a fitting but clunky moniker for an aspiring adult actor is pretty in line with Musk’s brand of humor. But we digress.
This truck doesn’t need crude jokes to get noticed. Even at California’s Sonoma Raceway, a place regularly populated with high-end racing cars (more than a few scenes had to be reshot thanks to the sporadic background yawps of a hotlapping Fly Yellow GT3 Ferrari) the Tesla slab was a gravity well of attention. Every single soul who caught a glimpse wanted another. And they all had something to say: “What in the Cyberf*** am I looking at?“ “That’s the coolest thing I’ve ever seen!” “That’s hideous. May I please test if it’s bulletproof?”
Hagerty video host Jason Cammisa summed it up best: “[The Cybertruck] is going to become a polarizing status symbol parked in the driveway of every Lamborghini owner as their ‘suburban assault’ daily driver, but very much like a Lamborghini, there’s real genuine substance baked in … And the sad part is, you’ve already made up your mind about the Cybertruck based on the way it looks. So did I, so did everyone else. But that’s not fair to this thing.”
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He’s right. Beneath the controversially curveless skin lies the truly interesting bits. For starters, the Cybertruck features a “steer-by-wire” system wherein there is no mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the wheels. Instead, a group of sensors interpret it all for the driver, changing the steering ratio depending on the environment. This technology isn’t new, but Tesla’s use of it here feels dramatic, and there’s no physical failsafe as there was in the decade-old Infiniti Q50. While hauling down the highway at 80 mph, the ratio is high; while navigating a tight parking garage causes the ratio to drop so you’re not rotating the wheel around like you’re driving a dump truck. In other words, the Cybertruck’s four-wheel steering system is bolstered by a variable steering ratio for greater adaptability. That’s not just a party trick, like the Tesla whoopie cushion gag that makes a fart noise when you sit down, that’s a very practical piece of tech. The Cybertruck uses proprietary batteries that are both more efficient for vehicular power and manufacturing. The batteries feed a 48-volt electric architecture.
And that bodywork that we had so much fun slamming with our sledgehammers? It’s not just a fun way to show off your Mars-mobile to your idiot friends—it translates into a structure that’s so tough that Tesla doesn’t need to put crash bars in the doors. If you want to see what that looks like in a crash test, pay special attention to that part of our Cybertruck film, which goes into much more technical detail on the aforementioned gizmos.
Time will reveal whether the Cybertruck heralds our driving future, or if it merely becomes one of many alternate realities that atrophied in ours. What’s certain, though, is that it’s unlike any other new vehicle. And even the people firmly opposed to its existence must admit that this truck is fascinating. In a time when we’re seeing a massive paradigm shift in the way we think about personal transportation, yet only see a handful of cars and trucks that seem to be doing more than trend-chasing, we say “the more the merrier.”
Backing up a provocative design like the Cybertruck with genuine innovation is how seemingly farcical visions become visionary realities, and this thing falls squarely (or is it rectangularly?) in the latter category.
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There is a group that all electric will/are great for, but trying to push everyone isn’t the way to go. Have a 2021 Camry hybrid and am sold that is the best way to go for now. Drives normal but gets 57 mpg around here and about 49 mpg once you get to 70 mph and above. If only I could have done that back when gas was 19-21 cents a gallon!
Is this an actual article or was it written by Elmo’s AI chat bot? And exactly what sledgehammer testing have you done? News for you: stainless isn’t any stronger than non-stainless steel and has the same properties, but it is more ductile. Harder to drill, bend and punch because of those properties, but it’s not stronger. Somehow you’ve given the impression that the skin on this thing adds to structural strength – it does not. And the “proprietary battery”? Tesla makes all its own batteries, likely one of the cell types they currently manufacture. Saying it’s proprietary adds nothing useful. Your light description of the steer by wire setup seems dubious. I was of the understanding that a mechanical linkage for the front end is required. Certainly the rear wheels are steer by wire, which would affect the overall effective ratio – is that what you meant? You’re light on details to say the least. And regarding the steel – what alloy are we talking about here? If it’s akin to 304 and contains no molybdenum it’s going to rust immediately if you drive down the beach and come into contact with salt spray or salt air. I suspect the body is clear coated, so it will rust later when it wears off. All stainless steel stains easily. I expected more critical and fact based articles from Hagerty.
You should do more research before making comments.
I have a friend whose kid works for Tesla and ordered one of these. I have a standing offer to do a tug-of-war with it in the dirt. I will use my 2003 Chevy 2500 HD with a gas motor I promise not to hurt him when I pull them around the lot Like a roped steer . simple physics I have weight, gearing and traction. I may need to cheat a little bit by busting the truck with dive weights and a load of firewood. The heavy vehicle with the torque and gearing will win. by the way most people have bought electric trucks and try to tow stuff with them end up with very short cycle life or worse yet needing to charge going up the hill.
Surprised by all the negativity. A lot of people seem to take it personally. There, there, have a warm beverage, everything will be alright…
Guess what? People are allowed to have opinions that are different than yours
Some love it. I think it’s about the god ugliest thing I’ve seen in a ling time.
The technology may be state of the art, but I just can’t get over the exterior appearance. I wonder how many sales are for virtue signaling? As suggested, I think initial buyers are for the look at me people; vs the technology first adopter crowd. I will be part of the never buy it crowd.
Brilliant video! I was prepared to hate the CT, but now, not so much. It’ll be fun to see how they work in the real world…
So how much will it cost to insure this vehicle every six months?
It’s a rolling coffin fuel tank from a 70’s Chopper.
Automotive Frankenstein!
Yeah, I’ma skeptic. Will the Cybertruck ever be more than an expensive vitrue-signifyer / lifestyle bauble – a quality it shares with the Lamborghini? People buy trucks because they can be used to do “truck things”, not because they can out-drag cars at the stoplight. A demonstration of a Cybertruck hauling a rack-full of lumber or pulling a large travel trailer would be instructive. Also, I hope Tesla is able to improve its off-road capability. Recent videos of prototype testing on ORV tracks are not encouraging. FWIW, one of the questions not answered in the video is whether the “impact-proof glass” is still in the spec. In a serious accident / fire / flood it would be nice to know that the rescue crew could get you out.
That sledgehammer trick reminds me of the photo of Henry Ford beating on the ’40s Ford having an experimental soy bean based body.
“Beneath the controversially curveless skin LIE the truly interesting bits.” It’s the bits, not the skin, that lie beneath.
Has the 1955 Citroen DS finally met its match?
When I buy mine, I’m memorizing Jason’s quips so I can snark back at our dumbunny detractors !