Unless you have been living under a rock for the past 24 hours or so, you probably saw a photo or video of the new Tesla Cybertruck floating around the internet today. The new battery-electric pickup has generated a massive amount of publicity for the American company, though not all of it has been about the truck’s admittedly impressive performance and range. Many have been critical of the truck’s triangular shape and brutalist design approach and it’s easy to see why. Simply put (and without being too crass), the industry never seen anything quite like the Cybertruck.
The MotorTrend team visited @Tesla twice during the development of #Cybertruck. Six exclusive stories and five videos at https://t.co/QekmkjBSJi pic.twitter.com/8HBnsspbtg
— MotorTrend (@MotorTrend) November 22, 2019
While the Cybertruck is unlike any other pickup truck on sale today (or any vehicle period, for that matter), it appears that Tesla’s chief designer, Franz von Holzhausen, still looked over at the competition when putting his pen to paper for the truck. Motor Trend sent out a tweet today with an attached photo showing Editor-in-chief Ed Loh and other Motor Trend employees posing with the Cybertruck and von Holzhausen in Tesla’s design studio. Hiding in the right-hand side of the photo appears to be the front end of a 2019 or 2020 Chevrolet Silverado. We believe this is a Trail Boss model, as the truck in question has knobby off-road tires and black-painted front fascia.
It’s hard to say why Tesla has a Silverado in its design studio. Clearly it wasn’t intent on copying the design of the truck or any truck current in production, as the Cybertruck has more in common with the Great Pyramids of Giza than it does with a Silverado or F-150. If we had to guess, we’d say Tesla was using the Silverado to help guide it when designing more practical parts of the truck, such as bed tie-down points and the size and location of interior storage compartments. But again, we’re only guessing, and there a number of reasons why Tesla may want to have a close eye on the competition when designing new products.
General Motors will also have a close eye on the Cybertruck as it develops its new electric pickup truck, which GM CEO Mary Barra said will go on sale by the fall of 2021. It’s not clear which GM brand the new electric pickup will fall under (rumors allege it will be a GMC), but the truck will be built at the automaker’s Detroit-Hamtramck plant in Metro Detroit. Meanwhile, the Cybertruck will go on sale toward the end of 2021 as well, with the high-performance tri-motor version set to arrive a year later in late 2022.
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Comments
Why wouldn’t the new battery truck be a Silverado and Sierra both? They’re the same underneath. Chevy has the commercial lines where it would be a potential success. The Tesla is awful.. I thought it was a joke during the reveal. I kept waiting for the real truck to roll out.
I am going to let the shock of this wear off a little before settling on an opinion of this. Consider that this is a Tesla and Elon Musk is not your average automobile vendor. Also he is capable, with his engineers, of pushing vision to where we are uncomfortable with the product. This is called change and it sometimes forces us to look at ideas that take some time to fit. He of course would check the existing competition, the Silverado and the F150 which he name checked a few times during the presentation.
I for one look forward to this new truck as well as anything Ford and GM, heck even FCA, can bring to the masses. Ideas from this Cybertruck will help revolutionize what we drive.
Love him or hate him you can’t deny he is out there doing shit that is poking at the status quo.
And the way things are going out there in the auto manufacturing field it could be just what is needed to make real change. I am comfortable with that.
Thanks
I cannot wait to see all the Behind the scenes from Motor Trend that will for sure be released slowly.
no need to wait.
it will consist of bags of weed, bags of doritos, cans of mountain dew, and binge watching 80s sci-fi flicks in Elon’s living room.
steve
Weed, Doritos, Mountain Dew and old SNL skits. Where they ended up repeating “More Cow Bell” all day.
@Steve
HAHA now that was hilarious. I actually visualized that for sure. Lol
But early reports are Elon is the one laughing with all the Pre-Orders.
Just remember what the Media was saying about Hummer when GM showed it off.
I personally really like the Cybertruck a lot. The Front and sides are great. The Stainless Steel is an amazing surprise. The Glass was a massive Oopsie for sure but it obviously works as there are videos out there showing it off. Also it is used on the Tesla Semi’s they are using.
But I do not like the rear at all. Hopefully the Tailgate will be changed. Also not sure what the Dash will really look like as the one at the Reveal was not anywhere near Production Spec.
Final Production Spec and look will be interesting for sure.
But the Specs and Price are out of this World along with the Looks HAHA
$100 deposit. that deserves at least one HAHA.
People will pay for that, stupid people at that, but nonetheless people.
So…nobody from Motor Trend tried to stop that monstrosity from being built over at Tesla?
I still feel that this is a design exercise, and the final version will look nothing like this truck.
The underpinnings, yes…but the actual sheet metal? No.
I don’t see how this truck generates conquest sales.
Tesla fans and Ridgeline types for sure. But I don’t see dyed-in-the-wool truck owners purchasing this thing.
The real “dyed-in-the-wool truck owners” will first buy Ford’s electric F-150 because it will be produced sooner, cost less, share the same basic F-150 features, and built “Ford Tough”. GM will be catching up to all the EV truck competition.
Thanks for agreeing with me on the Tesla truck…
FYI –
GM has announced an electric pickup by 2021…which is in line with Ford’s announcement.
I don’t think GM will be playing “catch-up”
If GM was playing catch up it would not be coming in 2021.
People assume if they have not seen it or announced it 4 years ago that nothing is being done. GM no longer has to long lead vehicles or presell them for needed cash as some have to do.
GM needs at least two years from a concept to an actual vehicle for sale. The Bolt EV was announced in January 2015 but wasn’t on sale until November 2016 (22 months later). If GM did announce a real concept EV truck today (late 2019), it will be selling it late 2021 as a 2022 model year. As for Ford, it has already demonstrated a working prototype EV truck a few weeks ago. So its EV version of the F-150 will be offered in 2020 as a 2021 model year. That is clearly one year ahead of GM.
GM, bring back the Chevy Avalanche as an EV truck! It is a multi-purposed vehicle, which can be a SUV, pickup, and sports truck all in one. Electric power will make it more versatile and useful for off-road drivers, too.
Or, maybe, they weren’t using g the chev for anything… since the Tesla truck isnt available yet, maybe it just belo gas to someone who works there…
Finally something different is offered in the truck space. Most of the trucks over the last few years have been quite boring. No real innovation.
Well Elon has an out now. They are claiming now this was just an un finished concept.
I suspect we may not see this one again.
It was not like this would have been on time for release anyways.
Maybe an SUV but not a pick up.
I could see that being a big seller as an SUV in SoCal.
Was designed by a 3 year old for a 1980’s sci-fi flick no? A very low budget flick!