I’m unsure if I ever will, but I very much wish to drive a Tesla Cybertruck. I mean, take a look at that thing. Distinctive, weird or simply plain ridiculous cars have all the time been probably the most interesting cars, they usually’re those that automobile enthusiasts most wish to drive or learn more about. Doug DeMuro has made a profession out of showcasing them. And if the Cybertruck doesn’t qualify as distinctive, weird and just plain ridiculous … well, it sure ain’t normal.
Yet, I also wish to drive the Cybertruck since the experience itself must be fascinating. And I don’t just mean staring through the vast, flat windshield over the starkly plain dash. The mixture of chassis and drivetrain elements described by Tesla CEO Elon Musk yesterday on the Cybertruck’s delivery event (itself distinctive, weird and just plain ridiculous), is fascinating.
Musk describes the Cybertruck as having the “handling of a sports automobile.” I haven’t driven it, but I can’t imagine that’ll be the case. It’s way more more likely to have the handling of absolutely nothing else. How could it not? It’s as wide as a Ford F-150, but 6 inches shorter in length. It weighs nearly 7,000 kilos when most trucks are within the upper 5,000 range. Sports cars nowadays are within the 3,000s, possibly 4,000s. It then has the low center of gravity afforded by its gargantuan (and gargantuanly heavy) battery pack. It also has all-terrain tires, which sports cars don’t are likely to have. Unless named Dakar.
Then there’s those chassis and drivetrain elements I discussed. Every Cybertruck has rear-wheel steering (RWS), typically an option on large, upper-crust luxury cars in addition to some sports cars, including the Porsche 911. By turning the rear wheels in the other way because the fronts, it significantly reduces the vehicle’s turning circle, increasing its agility around corners, and usually making it feel like a smaller vehicle. That’s a giant deal for a giant vehicle just like the Cybertruck.
Nevertheless it’s not the most important deal. That’ll be the steer-by-wire system, which to me, explains why Tesla got here up with its controversial yoke in the primary place (it just jumped the gun by putting it within the Model S first). While the yoke drew unsurprising ire for being a poor fit for conventional steering, as Lexus discovered while concurrently developing its own steer-by-wire system, a yoke is definitely well-suited for what’s apparently within the Cybertruck. Assuming it really works in the identical manner as Lexus Steer by Wire, sensors will determine how much you turned the yoke and send that info to the electrical power steering system while the Cybertruck determines how briskly it’s going. Those two pieces of information are then used to radically alter the steering ratio and due to this fact how much it is advisable steer. More simply, you’ll barely need to turn the yoke at low speeds to make it turn. As a substitute of turning hand-over-hand multiple times in a U-turn, you’ll likely just bring your right hand from 3 to 10 o’clock.
Because the above video shows, it’s really weird and unlikely anything you’ve ever experienced before, nevertheless it also looked as if it would work well within the Lexus. If it’s similar within the Cybertruck, you possibly can see why I feel it’ll handle and drive like absolutely nothing else. But that’s not the tip of it.
The range-topping Cyberbeast adds a second motor to the rear axle (just like the Audi SQ8 E-Tron), due to this fact granting each wheel its own motor that may spin at different rates. This enables for what’s called torque vectoring, or the skin rear wheel spinning faster than the within one to push the rear end around a corner and reducing understeer. It’s indeed a boon for handling, as we’ve seen in various all-wheel-drive cars, most notably those by Acura.
Add all that up, and the Cybertruck could possibly be just as wild to drive because it is to take a look at. I wanted to listen to lots more about those elements, but unfortunately, Tesla doesn’t hand out press materials and doesn’t go into greater detail in its consumer website, either. Musk also spent a number of time, assisted by a pre-made video presentation, occurring concerning the many amazing Cybertruck feats of strength. That’s where it lost me, because so many were completely bereft of context.
I’m sure many non-car media outlets will parrot these capabilities as in the event that they are unique and incredible (and possibly they’re!), but won’t dig deeper to see in the event that they are in actual fact distinctive for brand new vehicles in 2023, whether the provided footage/info tells only a sliver of the complete story, or if it was just plain-old misleading. Listed below are a few of those examples.
Rollover
“Because the middle of gravity is so low, it doesn’t roll over,” Musk said while video played showing a rollover test conducted at 16 mph (in keeping with a graphic on the screen) whereby the Cybertruck laterally slides off a sled and lands with each left wheels in a sand pit. It doesn’t in actual fact rollover.
Perhaps that is an incredibly common test within the automotive industry. Perhaps this seemingly random speed of 16 mph is the common industry standard. Or possibly Musk is exaggerating and it totally would’ve flipped ass over tea kettle at 20 mph. Who knows! The issue is the utter lack of context here, including how other vehicles of assorted kinds would perform.
We within the automobile media see footage of random tests like this on a regular basis on latest automobile launches as a way to exhibit certain capabilities. I assume it’s often in good faith, and it probably is here, too. The difficulty is, again, I actually have no context for it and without context, you possibly can’t exactly use it as evidence for “it doesn’t roll over.” Musk and Tesla definitely can. That’s called marketing. People reporting concerning the Cybertruck and even those reading about it? Nope!
Crash test
Immediately after that rollover test in that video, footage was shown of the Cybertruck crashing right into a seemingly standard crash test barrier. The group erupted in applause, which did seem odd. Do they think cars often accordion from bumper to bumper in crash tests? Explode? Have they seen a crash test recently?
Anyway, the one information provided about its performance in that crash test together with a seemingly standard side test was Musk saying, “In case you’re ever in an argument with one other automobile, you’ll win.” Okey dokey. Once more, that’s marketing, and it’s absolutely no different than the sticker on my son’s Britax automobile seat that just says “Crash Tested.” That’s nice, how did it do in that crash test?
To be clear, I wasn’t expecting Musk to whip out a nine-page report documenting dummy head deflections, but until the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gets its hands on one, we shouldn’t get too carried away about its crash performance. True, the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y are IIHS Top Safety Picks, but that ensures nothing a couple of subsequent latest model, especially one as fundamentally different because the Cybertruck. All we all know is that it didn’t accordion or explode on impact.
Pulling a Porsche 911
That is one other one lacking context. First, what form of Porsche 911 is it? There are A LOT. Judging by the colour and wheels, it’s almost definitely a Porsche 911 Carrera T, which has the least powerful engine available. Assuming Tesla was using launch control (and that’s definitely an assumption given the stunt nature of this exercise), the Carrera T will hit 60 in 4.3 seconds with a manual or 3.8 seconds with an automatic. That’s also assuming the person driving the 911 is of a comparable skill as the one that did Porsche’s times. Again, an assumption.
Also assuming the Cybertruck does indeed hit 60 in 2.6 seconds (with 1-foot of rollout as is the usual on a drag strip or at publications similar to Automobile and Driver), it will stand to reason that the Cybertruck accelerates from zero to 60 mph in possibly 4.2 or 3.7 seconds while towing 3,900 kilos of 911 Carrera T plus trailer. That’s really cool!
Again, though, context! Tesla definitely picked a 911 here that it knew it could beat in a 0-60 test while towing one other 911. In the event that they selected literally another latest Porsche 911 here, one which isn’t a lightweighted model and/or quicker to 60, the Cybertruck loses this stunt.
Also, it must be noted that by 0-60 times alone, a Rivian R1T with the Quad-Motor setup hits 60 mph in 3.0 seconds, in keeping with Automobile and Driver. So a Rivian might find a way to do that, too.
Torque!
I nearly did a spit take once I read motor outputs for the Cybertruck. The Cyberbeast version has 845 horsepower, which is one crazy boatload, but in addition, that Rivian Quad-Motor has 835. The Cyberbeast order page then lists torque: 10,296 pound-feet. Aaaaand, my laptop is sort of covered in coffee.
The Rivian Quad-Motor, for context, has 908 lb-ft as its stated torque figure. So, holy crap, the Cybertruck is the torqueist rattling thing this side of a Falcon 9! Um, no. Tesla doesn’t measure torque or a minimum of report torque in the identical way as nearly every other latest carmaker. That is in no way an apples-to-apples situation. They could as well be saying the Cybertruck produces 10,296 millicochranes of torque. It means nothing in context of the figures you’ll see elsewhere.
Well, one exception: The GMC Hummer EV. GM reports that it maxes out at 11,500 alternative torques. So, um, the Cybertruck has lower than that. Good to know.
The spare tire
As the web site says, “All-terrain tires have you ever covered in any environment. Bring a spare tire for while you go where roadside assistance can’t.” It then shows an image of an infinite tire taking on half the truck bed. This mainly just says, “The Cybertruck doesn’t have a regular spare tire, unlike the Rivian, Ford Lightning and (insert name of other truck), and even in the event you go for one, it’s a serious compromise.”
This is definitely not a great thing.
The range extender
One in all the surprises of the event was the so-called “Range Extender” battery that ups the entire range from 320 to 470 miles. That’s a giant difference. It’s also a giant battery that, again, takes up a minimum of 40% of the truck bed.
Is that such a great thing?
Really, that query can just about be asked over and another time while reading concerning the Cybertruck. And while taking a look at it. It looks as if something that we’ll be talking about eternally, but there’s a lot we still don’t know and a lot that’s slathered in a slick film of selling that nobody should get too carried away without more information. Sadly, I’m afraid much will go unanswered as so few will find a way to independently test these amazing feats for themselves as is feasible with almost every other latest automobile manufacturer.
This Article First Appeared At www.autoblog.com
