As of November 30th, 2023 history was made as Tesla showcased an event for the first deliveries of their newest product the Cybertruck. This monumental event was held at Tesla’s Gigafactory in Austin Texas, the same factory that is currently producing this new vehicle. On Tesla’s official website they posted an invitation for shareholders to attend this event in Austin to celebrate their recent success. Shareholders were selected through a random raffle as there was a limited capacity for the event.
Tesla announced they would be taking on a new project called Cybertruck in 2019. The initial appearance of this car debuted on November 21, 2019 when the first physical model was ever made. In July 2023, the first pre-production models were produced then shortly after serial production was launched, finalizing the official design of this car. Now in 2023 these trucks are available to purchase and receive. The Cybertruck is an experimental one of a kind electric vehicle. This means in order for it to function you will need to plug it in and charge it.
Sophomore Saskia Bley explains that, “I think it’s great that a company as big as Tesla is encouraging people to use more electric driving. I also think that it is safer to drive this car because Tesla has cool features to avoid crashes.”
Similar to Tesla’s previous designs the Cybertruck has a digital touch screen that composes all the features typically located on the dashboard such as the speedometer, ventilation control, and music.
However, alongside these regular features there are unique add ons to ensure extra safety. The screen displays the speed limit of the area you are in and projects a satellite view of the car and the other vehicles and humans around it. The screen comes with a GPS and sentry mode system. Sentry mode monitors the car using built in cameras that turn on and off even while the car is in park, it senses motion near the vehicle. There is an extra screen located behind the center console.
Nico Zurita argues that, “in certain aspects it is less convenient because of battery life.”
It takes 21 hours and 30 minutes to fully charge the car from 0% to 100% and 340 miles to fully drain the car’s battery life.
The car’s exterior is made of high quality 300 series stainless steel giving the car a sleek futuristic design. The Cybertruck portrays very geometrical shapes with prominent sharp lines and edges. In general it is shaped like a dorito with all black wheels and triangular windows.
Sophomore Nick Ruiz states, “the shape makes it look pretty dumb, I think it would be inconvenient because it is much bigger than a regular car.”
The Cybertruck is 380.6 cm long and 202.7 cm wide compared to the ford F-150 which is 232.7 cm and 203 cm wide. It has no handles and is opened via buttons located on the B and C pillars of the door window. It has thin horizontal head and tail lights. The truck bed is closed over by a rolling bed cover, the car’s unique shape however places the bed cover at an angle. The truck’s rear view mirror is a video screen because the truck design restricts a regular mirror to view the back.
Tesla has already begun to offer add-on accessories to the car such as a truck bed tent that allows you to camp in your own car with the illusion of being inside an RV. Other extensions such as bike racks have also been discussed as an add-on. This truck also has towing capabilities of up to 11,000 LBS. The interior of the Cybertruck is a deep matte black. The steering wheel does not form the traditional circle shape and instead looks like a game controller. Between the front seats the center console is closed over with the same design used to enclose the truck bed. The AC and heating comes out from a horizontal vent that stretches beneath an opening in the dashboard.
Tesla is offering three different models of the cybertruck all with varying capabilities and purchase prices.
Rear-wheel drive
The Cybertruck rear-wheel drive only uses the back two wheels to navigate. It will be available for delivery in 2025 with an estimated 250 mile range and a 6.5 second 0-60 mile per hour time. This model costs about $60,990
All-wheel drive
The all-wheel drive uses all four wheels and will be available to deliver in 2024. It has an estimated 340 mile range and 4.1 second 0-60 mile per hour time. This model has a top speed of 112 MPH as well as 600 horsepower. It has 7,435 pounds of torque, 11,000 pound towing capacity and an estimated cost of $79,990.
The Cyberbeast
This car is truly a beast, one that will be open for delivery in 2024. It has an estimated 320 mile range, 2.6 second 0-60 mile per hour time, 130 top speed MPH, 845 horsepower and an impressive 10,296 LB of torque. This car can also tow 11,000 pounds. The estimated cost is $99,990.
