Tesla Cybertruck: Does the electric pick-up still have any glaring defects?

Tesla’s chief designer drove a matt black model with protruding panels and sharp edges

There are only a few weeks left until the delivery event for the Tesla Cybertruck on November 30th, but now freelance journalist Daniel Golson is reporting on InsideEvs USA about shocking defects in a pre-production example: The matt black pick-up was designed by Tesla chief designer Franz von Holzhausen brought him to a “Cars & Coffee” event in Malibu.

At first glance, the dark Cybertruck looks impressive in the pictures. But Golson took a closer look, and his verdict is extremely negative: He has seen hundreds of prototypes, but has never seen an automaker proudly present a car of such poor quality, especially not at such a late stage of development. 

Body joints so wide you can stick a finger in them 

According to the details, it is the release candidate . Actually, such a pre-production model should hardly have any differences from the production cars, according to Golson. It’s conceivable that the build quality will be improved later, but he “feels like most early Cybertrucks will look the same.”

The stainless steel body of the electric pick-up shown had a matt black foil – possibly an extra. However, according to Golson, the film was applied improperly; Air bubbles were visible. The foiling would prevent problematic reflections and fingerprints, but it makes processing weaknesses easier to recognize, writes our reporter. 

Some of the gaps between the panels were large enough to fit a finger into. The lower areas of the front doors were apparently particularly bad. All four fender flares also fit poorly, but each in a different way. 

The tailgate didn’t fit and wasn’t flat. In any case, the model presented does not seem to meet Musk’s requirement (in a leaked email, see report at InsideEvs USA ) that all parts of the Cybertruck must be built with an “accuracy of less than 10 micrometers”, according to Golson.

But oversized gaps are not the only problem that the colleague identified. The seam where the A-pillar and front end meet also looked “terrible,” as Golson writes. Many edges looked dangerously sharp, so that if you hit them you would at least hurt yourself. 

Plastic parts like fender flares and bumpers also didn’t look very trustworthy to our reporter. He also complains that the windshield wiper does not have a protective cover.

Golson also criticizes the all-round visibility from the driver’s seat. The thick vertical bar on the A-pillar covers a lot. The windshield is also tilted so strongly that reflections are to be feared. According to the report, visibility to the rear is impaired by both the thick, long paneling of the loading area and the short side windows. The rear window is tiny and a rearview camera may not be usable if the truck bed cover is closed, Golson says. For the blind spot, however, the Cybertruck has cameras in the front fenders, like those in the Hyundai Ioniq 5.

However, the reporter really liked the rear-axle steering, which he was able to observe in action when parking and parking. He estimates the turning angle of the rear wheels to be around five degrees; The car cannot keep up with the 10 degree angle on the Mercedes EQS.

The interesting “low-poly” approach to the design is poorly implemented, and Golson believes it worsens safety when colliding with pedestrians and other cars. He also thinks it’s silly that Tesla emphasizes the supposedly bulletproof body  when the car doesn’t have bulletproof glass.

Overall, Golson feels embarrassed by this Cybertruck example. He fears that the Cybertruck will turn into “a nightmare.”