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<\/p>\nThe frequency of Tesla Cybertruck prototype sightings has been rapidly increasing as we approach Elon Musk\u2019s promised Nov. 30 event, where actual customers will allegedly take delivery of their long-awaited trucks. Over the weekend, Tesla chief designer Franz von Holzhausen was seen driving around Southern California in a Cybertruck with a matte-black finish, something we haven\u2019t seen before, and I got to take a lengthy up-close look at it when von Holzhausen brought the truck to a cars and coffee event in Malibu. Basking in the SoCal sun, this Cybertruck looked frankly horrible.<\/p>\n
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I\u2019ve been around hundreds of prototype cars in my career, ranging from early test mules to near-production prototypes, and I\u2019ve never seen an automaker proudly present something of this poor quality, especially not this late in development. It is absolutely baffling to me that Tesla\u2019s lead designer would parade around a vehicle in this condition just weeks before deliveries of production cars are allegedly commencing and even more baffling that he\u2019d park it at such a public enthusiast event. <\/p>\n
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This doesn\u2019t look like an early prototype, either. Its details and finishes match what we\u2019ve seen from other \u201cRelease Candidate\u201d Cybertrucks that Tesla has been showing off over the past few months, and not a single thing about it doesn\u2019t look production-intent. Tesla\u2019s Texas Gigafactory commenced pilot production of the Cybertruck earlier this year, and components like the lights, window glass, cameras, fender liners, and underbody trims of this prototype all look final. <\/p>\n
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Late-stage prototypes can have essentially zero differences from the full production cars that consumers buy; sometimes they\u2019re just the earliest ones to roll off the production line and fine-tune the process, getting driven by engineers and other employees to work out any kinks. Many of the cars that journalists are given to review are \u201cpre-production\u201d models, too. Will production Cybertrucks have better fit-and-finish than this one? Maybe later down the line. But with Tesla\u2019s quality track record, I have a feeling most early Cybertrucks will look just like this.<\/p>\n
What you see here isn\u2019t paint, but a matte black vinyl wrap on top of the Cybertruck\u2019s stainless steel body panels. Tesla recently announced a lineup of wraps available as a factory accessory for the Model 3 and Model Y, so there\u2019s a chance that this could become an option for the Cybertruck, though Tesla hasn\u2019t said anything as of yet. I overheard von Holzhausen say that he designed the car with a matte black finish in mind, so he just had the wrap applied. Hopefully this wrap job isn\u2019t an indication of what quality would be for consumers, as it was shoddily applied with air bubbles and pieces of vinyl visibly lifting and peeling off.<\/p>\n
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While it fixes the stainless steel\u2019s reflection and fingerprint issues, the matte black wrap makes build quality problems even more noticeable. Some of the gaps between panels were big enough to stick a finger through, with no visible seals or trim pieces even for the frunk. The lower sections of the front doors were particularly bad, with big gaps both in terms of width and depth. All four angular fender flares were misaligned and ill-fitting, but each one in different ways or amounts, honestly an impressive feat. The tailgate had maybe the worst fitment of all and was uneven to boot, which is even more noticeable when the taillights are illuminated. Keep in mind that Musk told employees that all Cybertruck parts needed to be built to \u201csub-10 micron accuracy\u201d in an email that leaked earlier this year. I\u2019m not a human tape measure, but this Cybertruck certainly didn\u2019t seem to adhere to that standard.<\/p>\n
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Now Tesla panel gaps are nothing new\u2014I\u2019ve seen production Teslas with worse fitment than some of this Cybertruck\u2019s panels\u2014and they\u2019re far from the worst of Cybertruck\u2019s problems. The seam where the A-pillar meets the nose looks terrible, with visible overlap of the panels. Many of the edges look dangerously sharp, or at the very least would be painful to knock into. Plastic parts like the fender flares and bumpers don\u2019t look very durable either, not great for a vehicle pitched partially as a work truck with off-road capability. And then there\u2019s the ridiculous windshield wiper, which does cover a ton of surface area but sits vertically against the A-pillar without any sort of protective shroud or cowl.<\/p>\n
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Perhaps most concerning is how thick the upright A-pillar is from the inside. This prototype\u2019s headliner seemed more well-sorted and a bit slimmer than other Cybertrucks I\u2019ve seen images of, but it still has what is by far the worst forward blind spot I\u2019ve ever seen in a new car. That triangular window ahead of the main pillar support definitely helps a bit, but it looks legitimately dangerous. The Cybertruck has a short nose and front overhang, but there is so much space ahead of the driver taken up by a long, flat cowl that it can\u2019t be easy to see out of, especially when dealing with the super raked windshield and the reflections it creates.<\/p>\n
Rear visibility looks awful too, both because of the bed\u2019s thick, long fairings and the short side windows. It\u2019s unclear whether the Cybertruck has a rear-view camera to be used when the tonneau cover is closed, as it cuts off the view out the tiny rear window. The only camera I noticed at the rear was at the top of the tailgate, and I couldn\u2019t tell if the rear-view mirror was of the digital kind. The Cybertruck does have blind-spot cameras mounted in the front fenders, like what you get on other Teslas and cars like the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Lucid Air.<\/p>\n
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I do think it\u2019s pretty cool that the all-terrain tire option is a custom Goodyear with notches in the sidewall to accommodate the plastic aero covers, which look like the concept\u2019s and have spokes that extend over sections of the tire itself, but if the cover is even a little bit misaligned it won\u2019t look right. The first photos of the less-chunky all-season option recently surfaced, and while the tire design is more practical the design looks even goofier. <\/p>\n
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One new-to-Tesla feature on the Cybertruck is the rear-axle steering system, which I saw at work as the Cybertruck pulled in and out of its parking spot. To my eyes, it seems like the rear wheels will turn at up to 5 degrees, or somewhere thereabouts. Rear-wheel steering is my absolutely favorite feature on new cars, so it\u2019s awesome to see Tesla jump on that bandwagon, though it doesn\u2019t seem like the Cybertruck will match the 10-degree angle of vehicles like the GMC Hummer EV and Mercedes-Benz EQS.<\/p>\n
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Regardless of build quality issues, I just plain don\u2019t like the Cybertruck\u2019s design. In fact, as the years have gone on and I\u2019ve seen more of them in person, I like it even less. I appreciate the low-poly, Cyberpunk-style design inspiration, but to me it\u2019s just far too simple and badly executed, not to mention concerning from a safety perspective for both pedestrians and other drivers. The Cybertruck certainly has a ton of visual impact in real life and looks like nothing else on the road, but the production model possibly shrunk in size and lost the dramatic proportions of the concept from 2019, and details like the rear diffuser are way more ungainly. <\/p>\n
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Three weeks out from the delivery event we still don\u2019t know any concrete specs or details about the Cybertruck. Final pricing hasn\u2019t been announced either, but we know the original $40,000 base price is no more. The Cybertruck isn\u2019t even prominently featured on Tesla\u2019s website, and all of the imagery still shows the concept from 2019. In Tesla\u2019s Q3 earnings report the company estimates annual Cybertruck production to be 125,000 units, with Musk saying production will be slow until 2025 but that number could increase to 250,000 per year at some point. Musk also warned the Cybertruck will be \u201cenormously challenging\u201d to produce and make profitable. Don\u2019t even get me started on the claims of bulletproof body panels, which are even sillier when you realize the truck doesn\u2019t have bulletproof glass.<\/p>\n
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Yes, this is still just a prototype at the end of the day. But at this stage of development, this close to customer deliveries starting, I couldn\u2019t help but feel something akin to second-hand embarrassment when looking at it. If Tesla feels comfortable showing this Cybertruck off, I don\u2019t think it bodes well for early customers.<\/p>\n
Tesla has made fantastic, attractive cars in the past\u2014I\u2019m a big fan of the early Model S, and even defend the Model X\u2019s design\u2014but the Cybertruck is shaping up to be a nightmare. Luckily there are plenty of other automakers producing wonderful EVs that both look and feel like the future, a sentiment solidified in my mind after spotting a couple of Hummer EVs and dozens of Rivians in traffic later in the day. <\/p>\n