- cross-posted to:
- technology@beehaw.org
- cross-posted to:
- technology@beehaw.org
You must log in or register to comment.
The androids butt plug.
Should have included a heads up display
Removed by mod
Even if Musk had remained entirely apolitical, I can’t imagine the Cyber Truck doing much better without also doing something to address the high profile safety issues with the car and the insane number of recalls issued for it. Even if it had managed to get off to a stronger start, I would still expect people to abandon it in droves once they realized it was an overpriced deathtrap that could crap out on them and leave them stranded at any time.
Politics aside it would have done significantly better if the pricing they had during its announcement event was anything close to the pricing it had at release. They announced it at $39.9k, $49.9k, and $69.9k for the RWD, AWD, and Cyberbeast. The RWD didn’t really ever happen, at least not as announced. They did release a RWD but it was different and much more expensive. They pulled it from market after ~5 months. The AWD and Cyberbeast actually released at $69.9k and $99.9k. Needless to say many people cancelled their preorders.
You say it’s just in the hostory books, but unfortunately for me, I see one almost every time I drive anywhere longer than 10 minutes. It’s entirety possible I’m seeing the same guy more frequently because we live close to each other, but checking the license plates on them when I can, I’ve seen no less than half a dozen unique Cybertrucks in the last couple years, mostly along the same commute to and from work (no highways)
Removed by mod
I had some weirdo conservative explain that he would have gotten one but he was scared some “trans thug” would single him out for retribution if he drove one - it’s incredible, musk has finally united both sides of US politics with this truck; Nobody wants to be seen in one of these things.
I think I have a pretty good idea of what their porn history search looks like
They have always reminded me of a trough type urinal in a gay men’s leather bar, especially the silver ones.
Are we talking about the lose metal ones you see at like national parks that sound like youre pissing into a metal drum? If so I agree.
Yes. Those exactly. Except at a leather bar they have a mirror mounted on the wall above them.
Imagine being so dumb you manage to turn that kind of momentum into the electric Edsel
IDK, the Edsel was at least reasonably priced.
I also don’t think the Cybertruck’s aestetics are going to age the same way Edsel’s has.
Even placed in de universe of Cyberpunk, where it’s allegedly from, it really is mostly just a dumpster with wheels.
I was going to comment on that but didn’t want to get burned at the stake. I agree the Edsel was a pretty good looking car, even if it wasn’t completely conventional for the time period. The cybertruck almost looked good in its early concept days before it got turned into a literal dumpster fire.
I saw some Chinese company had done a reskin or replica of the cyber truck body but actually made it look kinda cool, like something you’d actually expect to find in a film.
It just showed what an abject failure Musk is, as it’s the only car he had a hand in designing…
Oh yeah. I’ve definately seen some renders that make it look quite nice, but they do that by adding a bunch of elements to it like skirts, extended wheel arches, spoilers, light bars, paint and lower it to the point you can’t use it as a truck anymore.
But then it also really stops being what it origionally was.
The idea that anyone used one as a truck, or that it could even reasonably be used as one is pretty laughable.
But if I was a man child who wanted a toy car the Chinese one at least looks less like a bin on wheels. https://www.carscoops.com/2025/05/gacs-cybertruck-inspired-pickup-launching-in-2027/
Couldn’t happen to an uglier, more stupid car.
It looks like something a 6 year old designed on a 1980s PC.
Indeed.
Still shocking he never hired a designer. Even an idiot fraud like Elizabeth Holmes knew to do that.
Still shocking he never hired a designer
Cyber truck designer was Franz von Holzhausen.
That’s quite exactly what they were going for actually. Lo-res graphic to represent hi-tech. Somewhat like military camo is now pixelated for no practical reason.
Just because you don’t know why digital camouflage exists doesn’t mean it has no practical purpose.
Very interesting, but after reading, it specifically states that it’s the multi scaling that has a function on the battlefield, which can be implemented through all shapes basically.
The ‘digital’ (square) patterning is most certainly either cost saving measures, fashion, or both.
“The pixellated style, however, simplifies design and eases printing on fabric, compared to traditional patterns. While digital patterns are becoming widespread, critics maintain that the pixellated look is a question of fashion rather than function.[7]”
Now I’m aware you just stated that ‘it had a practical purpose’ but your tone and framing suggests to me something other than ‘its easier and cheaper to manufacture’.
Neither pixellation nor digitization contributes to the camouflaging effect. The pixellated style, however, simplifies design and eases printing on fabric, compared to traditional patterns. While digital patterns are becoming widespread, critics maintain that the pixellated look is a question of fashion rather than function.
Simplified design and easier printing sounds like a very practical purpose.
At the cost of drip? Very much not worth.
Drip or drown, baby 😎
That paragraph seems to contradict itself. “ease of printing” is a functional concern, even if it doesn’t affect the camo while in use.
nah, you’re totally off topic. I was responding to looks. sorry for distracting you away from looks by mentioning practicality. on practicality, the reason for the cybertruck panels is they’re stainless steel. on looks, you didn’t reply. since you avoided that topic, i suspect you’re another sheep who jumped on the “ugly” bandwagon and aren’t able to say much more than “ugly ugly ugly”. no interest.
You just know this is the one car that Elon designed personally, like that episode of the Simpsons where Homer bankrupts his brothers car company, only real life doesn’t actually punish idiocy.
I’d actually drive a Homer.
When the cybertruck was first announced, I actually appreciated how different it looked, but its performance and association to Musk has entirely ruined any hope of me ever liking a low-poly vehicle ever again.
I know this sounds really pathetic to say out loud now that it’s a confirmed flop, but I never liked the look.
it never had the makings of a varsity athlete
I didn’t really care about the look. Then I saw one in the flesh in a car show. The thing just looked strange up close. It was cordoned off too unlike the hundreds of other cars there. I guess they didn’t want people touching it because lots of greasy fingers and stainless steel body don’t mix well.
I thought it would look unique in a geeky way. Instead it looks unique in a Nazi way. That’s not my vibe. Killed my enthusiasm for owning something that I knew most people would hate. Also costing twice as much and being a piece of shit.
I think it has plenty of reasons to not like it that are completely non political. The other stuff is just icing on the cake.
When the cybertruck was first announced, I actually appreciated how different it looked
Yeah, same here. I usually like weird looking forms for ordinary objects. The cybertruck counts.
Even disregarding the emotional association to Musk, which is nigh impossible, the engineering of the car makes it suck to hell, because that’s all Musk’s decision he forced.
I dunno, the original Lotus esprit is still pretty cool in my book
I saw a concept car and expected to see a radically different version on the road. As a design study, I thought it had potential.
It looks like something a 6 year old designed on a 1980s PC.
It looks like my drawing of a car as a 4 year old brought to reality
If only Americans applied this level of critical thought to every pickup truck they love to buy.
I dunno man, I’m pretty sure as a 6 year old I knew how to use the curve / circle tool in DeluxePaint on my Amiga.
I would usually give a lot of credit to someone trying something different, but I’d drive a 1971 Ford Pinto before I ever intentionally get within photographable proximity to a Cybertruck.
And you’d be safer for it.
The danger of the Pinto was exaggerated. Do a web search for the You’re Wrong About episode on the Pinto. The investigative reporting on the Pinto’s safety flaw used a demonstration rigged to explode. Other subcompact cars had a similar dangling fuel tank, and the number of actual Pinto explosions in the field was actually rarer than those of its competitors.
It was all fueled by a law firm, who picked out Ford because they had the most cash at the time.
Same thing with AUDI “sudden acceleration”.
then again with Toyota “sudden acceleration” , but Toyota had black boxes that proved the car’s accelerators were being pressed. Since then, every car company tracks data to prevent lawsuits.
And ironically, the danger of teslas is underreported and downplayed. Don’t you still burn a lithium-firey death if the electricity goes out during a car fire? There have been many people that have died from that insane intentional design already…
WOW! TIL!
Super gluing pieces onto the vehicle is certainly something different. But I think there’s something different should have a reason behind it. XD
Now if the world were only truly a meritocracy.
How you fuck up making a truck so badly?
Yeah the electric pickup is such a no brainer for the US market and it was one of the first.
But what if it was horribly ugly and made everyone hate you? Surely it will sell even better then!
Yeah the electric pickup is such a no brainer for the US
Disagree. The truck market itself is a no brainer, but electric trucks have design challenges that electric sedans don’t. Namely, aerodynamics, towing, and aerodynamics while towing. It is much harder to make an electric truck capable of doing “truck stuff” with a reasonable range and price compared to making an electric car.
Correct, but now consider how much time and money has been spent over the decades on making sure that “trucks can do truck stuff” for combustion vs. electric drives. “it’s much harder” is true only in the context that thousands of years of engineering time have already been poured into diesel and gas trucks, and only a tiny fraction of that has yet been dedicated to electric. So it’s not “much harder” it just “hasn’t been funded yet at the level that the oil industry has provided combustion vehicles for nearly 100 years”.
It’s not a technology/research issue; it’s an economics issue. Trucks simply need an absolutely huge battery pack to brute-force not only themselves but a boxy trailer through the air for hundreds of miles, and all but one of them don’t actually have it (even at the very expensive prices they sell for).
Look up the curve of the density of energy storage for batteries the last 20-ish years and then honestly tell me this isn’t a technology issue in the midst of being addressed.
Harder maybe but it’s clearly doable. We have a number of options now. And it’s not like they’ve had to make them hyper-aerodynamic or anything. Just took a little more advanced battery tech.
IIRC, according to Aging Wheels on YouTube, of all the electric trucks, only one (the Chevy Silvarado) actually manages to have decent range while towing.
Think it might’ve been in this video? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmKf8smvGsA
I believe Ford has the f150 lightning, an ev version. I don’t know how it’s been doing though.
No one bought them. barely 80,000 sold over three years. Killed in 2025. They sold 10X more F series every year. Really not sure where anyone gets the idea pickup buyers give a fuck about fuel efficiency or emissions.
The all electric version has been cancelled in favor of a hybrid design, but they claim the hybrid has a 700 mile range
https://www.npr.org/2025/12/15/nx-s1-5645147/ford-discontinues-all-electric-f-150-lightning
Thanks for the update
An electric pickup isn’t a no-brainer for the US market. It’s a big-brainer.
Most EVs are shaped like running shoes for aerodynamics. Pickup trucks are big air smacking slabs. Larger pickup trucks advertise towing capacity as a major feature, EVs are bad at towing, again because of aerodynamics. The additional batteries and such required to make an EV pickup work are large, heavy and expensive. I think the technology needs to cook a bit before we get there.
Now on the compact pickup truck front…those are basically extinct. The Slate is almost a good attempt, the problem is it’s almost the anti-cybertruck. The Cybertruck is what you get when a billionaire nazi notices how thoroughly the drugs have emptied his scrotum. It’s the costume a truly awful male wears to cosplay as a man. The Slate is almost the equal and opposite, it’s what r/fuckcars thinks of when they start a sentence with “Can’t you just make do with…” A 20 year old S10 kicks the Slate’s ass in every way because the Slate is designed mostly to play dress-up like a barbie doll. They’re taking pre-orders but they won’t show you where the tie down points in the bed are.
Gas trucks suck fuel when towing too. It’s the nature of the task. The question mostly imo is - are you towing long distances? (well are you going long distances is a big EV question generally). If you’re towing stuff back from the hardware store then EV is fine for towing. If you’re doing some sort of small hauling job going hundreds of miles then not so much.
Where I end up is - how often generally are you towing? If it’s 2x a year or less - rent a truck and otherwise save craptons of money. I know - I have wasted 10k splitting a 2003 f250 with my sister to get a tractor home “and we would need to tow stuff semi regularly and renting from Enterprise was a PITA”. Yea sure - we used it for towing twice. Finally managed to sell it.
I think we tow more on a 8x10 landscape trailer for bringing lumber home etc and tow with my Outback and now Pilot than we tow with the 1500 we have for “bigger stuff”.
Though maybe that’s because we sort of stopped going to farm auctions…
The folks who really care about tow ratings and range are those who have boats or campers. Which means they do road trips while towing. Do you want to tow a camper on a road trip in a rented vehicle?
Yes, gas trucks also suffer poorer fuel economy when towing. It’s less of a practical problem because it means more 10 minute fuel stops. With an EV, it means more 3 hour fuel stops. It’s fairly easy to equip a gas truck with a larger or additional fuel tank. My S10’s fuel tank is on the left side of the bed; it would be fairly trivial to mount another tank on the right side, or, a Blazer’s fuel tank isn’t that hard to install behind the axle where the pickup hangs its spare tire. Doubling or tripling a pickup truck’s range is something a guy can do at his house. It’s functionally impossible with an EV.
Modern EVs require more of a 30 minute fuel stop.
3 hours hasn’t been a thing since before 2020.
Does that include larger vehicles with larger batteries like the Lightning and Silverado? Bigger battery takes longer to charge.
I don’t know enough about physics or cars to really rebut you but this doesn’t seem plausible to me.
I don’t think aerodynamics are particularly relevant to towing? Prime movers (tractor trailers?) are about the least aerodynamic vehicle there is but they regularly tow more than 100 tonnes at highway speed.
If I had to guess I’d suggest the primary problem is the relationship between system weight of the vehicle and load, battery capacity, and the battery’s weight. As in, if you want to be able to cart 1 ton for 200km then the additional battery requirement is another 300kg so that’s really only an extra 700kg so you need more battery and heavier frame and so on.
Another problem I suppose, and I emphasize that this is supposition, is optimising motors for both torque and speed. The torque required to break inertia with lots of weight in sandy or muddy terrain.
The maximum weight for a tractor-trailer rig in the United States is 80,000 pounds, 40 short tons or 36.36 metric tons.
A tractor-trailer rig is surprisingly streamlined. The cab is shaped and sized for the front of the trailer to ride closely in its wake, often with fairings that reach as close to the trailer as practicable. Sure it’s a brick, but it’s ONE brick:
A pickup truck towing a trailer isn’t anywhere near that slick, even with a gooseneck trailer, the trailer is often taller and wider than the cab. It’s a brick, attached to another, larger brick being pulled through the turbulent disturbed air from the first brick:
In terms of torque, EVs have a significant advantage. Electric motors produce a lot more torque at low to zero RPM than internal combustion engines do. Limited slip differentials or all-wheel drive are solved problems.
The additional energy required to accelerate the additional weight up to speed isn’t that much of a problem as an EV will get that back with regenerative braking. Well, some of it. Most trailers have brakes of their own that do help with braking distance but are there mostly to keep the hitch under tension to prevent jackknifing. An ICEV figures on losing all of that energy to friction braking, a BEV plans on recovering some of it. An electric pickup carrying 1000 pounds in the bed will be more efficient than one pulling a 1000 pound trailer, in most cases.
The maximum weight for a tractor-trailer rig in the United States is 80,000 pounds, 40 short tons or 36.36 metric tons.
I’m not sure what you’re getting at with this. Here in Australia road trains haul 90 metric tons of grain and fertilizer all the time, that doesn’t include the weight of the trailers.
Regardless, I’m not quite sure what you’re trying to illustrate - your example of a “streamlined vehicle” undoubtedly consumes a lot more diesel than your example of a vehicle which is not streamlined. Isn’t that antithetical?
In terms of torque, EVs have a significant advantage.
Yes, but a “truck” with a 4 ton towing capacity obviously needs motors with more torque than those on a tesla.
The additional energy required to accelerate the additional weight up to speed isn’t that much of a problem as an EV will get that back with regenerative braking. Well, some of it.
As little as 5 to 10% on the highway, not particularly significant. Installing regenerative brakes on a trailer is a lot of additional cost and complexity.
In the United States, if you need more than about 20 tons of freight moved, you use the railroad not the highway. “Road trains” aren’t a thing here.
Regardless, I’m not quite sure what you’re trying to illustrate - your example of a “streamlined vehicle” undoubtedly consumes a lot more diesel than your example of a vehicle which is not streamlined. Isn’t that antithetical?
In absolute terms, yes. A semi truck consumes more fuel than a pickup truck. So does a diesel locomotive. The point is the difference in aerodynamic drag with and without the trailer.
Aerodynamically, a semi truck is the same shape with and without a trailer. Somewhat streamlined nose, flat sides, flat rear. With the trailer attached, that flat rear is just 50 feet further away. A semi truck without a trailer will make better fuel economy because it doesn’t have to accelerate the additional weight or overcome the friction in the additional axles, but the cab has already taken most of the aerodynamic punishment it can.
With a non-streamlined pickup truck, the additional wheel friction and acceleration energy are factors, but you’re also functionally doing this:
So a pickup truck sees a much bigger punishment to fuel economy when you hitch up a trailer than a semi does.
Yes, but a “truck” with a 4 ton towing capacity obviously needs motors with more torque than those on a tesla.
Not necessarily. My S10’s 4.3L V6 engine makes 200 horsepower and 200 foot pounds of torque. It’s rated to tow 7600 pounds, with the addition of a transmission cooler. A Tesla Model Y is rated at 397 horsepower and 389 foot pounds of torque, it is rated to tow 3500 pounds. A lot more factors than horsepower and torque go into a tow rating. The strength of the frame at the hitch, a height sensing proportioning valve, the duty cycle ratings of the power train to name a few. It’s not about “Can this car get this weight moving” it’s “can this car perform a safe emergency stop 9 hours into a 10 hour journey towing this weight?”
As little as 5 to 10% on the highway, not particularly significant.
See that’s the funny thing about EVs. ICEVs get better fuel economy on the highway because the constant aerodynamic drag at cruising speed is less than all the braking you do in the city. EVs are the other way up, because of regenerative braking they get a lot of their energy back when braking, but you can’t get aerodynamic drag back. And that’s without the additional drag of a trailer.
They very much are, depending on what you’re towing, most of your fuel used goes into overcoming aerodynamic drag. If you tow a load of gravel on a trailer, compared to a caravan of the same weight, the difference in fuel used can be double.
Towing something that’s not very aerodynamic can easily double your fuel use, which means half the range or less in an EV.
I don’t think aerodynamics are particularly relevant to towing?
Aerodynamics are extremely relevant to towing. “Aging Wheels” on Youtube did a test and found that payload weight makes basically no difference at all, but a trailer with bad aerodynamics can cut an electric truck’s range in half.
The Slate is almost the equal and opposite, it’s what r/fuckcars thinks of when they start a sentence with “Can’t you just make do with…” A 20 year old S10 kicks the Slate’s ass in every way because the Slate is designed mostly to play dress-up like a barbie doll. They’re taking pre-orders but they won’t show you where the tie down points in the bed are.
Speaking as a mod of !fuckcars and the owner of a 30-year-old Ford Ranger, I want a Slate truck and I don’t think my current truck would be able to kick its ass. (Well, aside from off-roading, since the Slate doesn’t have a 4x4 version yet. And, uh, ease of refueling in the wilderness. Hmm.)
Okay, so maybe it wouldn’t be an upgrade in all ways, but IMO those tradeoffs are still worth it because the lack of telemetry and other enshittification means it’s the first modern mass-market electric car (of any type, truck or otherwise) I’ll be willing to own.
My S10 outranges a Slate by over 50%, refuels from empty to full in less than five minutes, seats 4, has a 6 foot bed, tows up to 7600 pounds…a Slate is a massive step back in a lot of ways.
My Ranger seats 3 in a pinch and is rated to tow 1600 pounds (2.3L I4, regular cab, manual, 4x4) so you can see how my perspective is a little different.
If the Slate had a 6 foot bed, VTL capability, and a little more range I’d be really into it. I’m a woodworker, hauling plywood and lumber with a 5 foot bed doesn’t sound fun.
Most trucks need the tailgate down to haul plywood or 8ft lumber.
That’s why actual woodworkers use vans.
Step 1: be a fascist
It’s not even actually a truck. It’s a ute. Like the Hyundai Santa Cruz. It’s a car (unibody) with a bed.
I don’t dislike utes at all, and even have an old one I am restoring, but it is not a truck.with a bed.
Nazi
Dunno… ask Rivian. They integrated the rear quarter panels, the most damaged part of any truck, into the structure so that a minor collision backing into something is either $20,000 or a write-off.
That’s just
slavery with extra stepscapitalism baby.
Really? I see chuds driving them all over my town unfortunately. Admittedly far less popular than other Tesla vehicles though which are absolutely everywhere here in CA. Seems like most people forgot Musk is a nazi already.
Please remind them by flipping off every Cybertruck driver you see.
Nah, then they just flip you back.
Do a thumbs down while shaking your head. They don’t know how to respond to that.
I see them every so often in Seattle. I always give them a disapproving look and a big thumbs down, I’ve found that pisses people off more than a middle finger.
I drew a swastika in the dust on the hood of one once and gave the finger to the cameras. I have little hope that the owner was persuaded in the slightest. Also, my nephews yell out “Lego car!” when they see one.
Californian here.
I’ll never forget.
Swasticars are driven by Nazi’s.
I point and laugh when I see one and say “look at the fucking idiot.” They love that.
It’s even better when you do it pure organically, I was bashing a model y with some friends, no clue the owner was showing back up, “I like the concept of electric vehicles, however Tesla’s are one of worse options you could go for, plus they look like obese Porsches.” Ohh hey “I don’t like your car”
Seems like most people forgot Musk is a nazi already.
A realisation I’ve had is that if everyone from this era went back in time to the 1930’s there’d be a lot of investing into the Nazi stock market for those stonks!
Genocide, war crimes and general harm towards humanity don’t mean much to a lot of people when personal gains or convenience are available.
Those chuds bought early into the idea they would be renting out their trucks at night using self driving and make a profit.
Cybertruck Is the Biggest Flop
Why does anyone think that is still news?
Who would have thought a three year olds drawing of a car would have not resonated with the masses.
More bloodthirsty than the Pinto too.
The design was meant to be controversial and it certainly got a lot of attention when it was first introduced. The reason that thing failed is that its performance was way worse than what was promised while costing a lot more.
From what I understand, it was never supposed to be a truck, it was supposed to be a tax write-off for businesses. That’s also why it’s stupid ugly and heavy, it has to be 500 or 600 lbs (I forget which) to get the write-off as a truck. The fact that everyone laughs when they see them was unexpected. I think they thought it would be loved by all, especially the businesses.
A new piece from Bloomberg makes the case, comparing the Tesla vehicle to the misfortunes of Ford’s Edsel, which was first introduced in 1957 and discontinued just two years later. After spending years building up hype for the car, Ford predicted selling 200,000 units in its first year, but ended up selling less than a third of that.
That’s comparable to expectations versus reality of the Cybertruck. In fact, the Cybertruck is actually doing worse in key ways. Tesla’s annual sales target was 250,000 units, but it didn’t even crack 40,000 sales in its first year. And like the Edsel, it’s sold less with each successive year, with barely 7,100 registered in the US in 2026 so far, according to S&P Global Mobility data — despite Musk juicing those figures by selling Cybertrucks to his own companies.
6,000, not 600. 600 would be a very light vehicle indeed. Even the Reliant Robin is about 970. The Smart Fortwo is at least 1,800.
Or it has to have certain offroading features.
https://www.autoblog.com/features/everything-is-an-suv-today-because-of-this-fuel-economy-loophole
Also the rest of the theory is as inaccurate as the weight figure.
The IRS gives business tax deductions for vehicles. Under 6000lbs it’s $12k, over 6000 is $31k
I think you forgot a zero, right?
-
Rear-Wheel Drive (Single Motor): 6,118 lbs (2,775 kg)
-
All-Wheel Drive (Dual Motor): 6,634 to 6,669 lbs (3,009 to 3,025 kg)
-
Cyberbeast (Tri-Motor): 6,863 to 6,898 lbs (3,113 to 3,129 kg)
Yep, you’re correct, my bad
Yep, forgot a zero, lol
-
Interesting.
