The mishap happened when Elon Musk presented the Cybertruck 2019 and its design star Franz von Holzhausen threw a steel ball at the side windows to show how “bulletproof” they are. The windows shattered.
Mainstream vs community
While the mainstream took delight in the shattered side windows, the community took this as a declaration of war against what they saw as the world’s most advanced pickup truck. We also wrote about the failed demonstration on my portal e-engine.de. The result was that the Tesla fanboys felt duped and resigned their allegiance to us in large numbers.
You have to live with that
Criticism of the Musk company or its products is not welcome in the community. (Rarely) Burning Tesla electric cars are seen as vilification by the mainstream press; the assessment of the lack of ultrasound and radar in the vehicles is dismissed as a stupid talk from ignorant people.
Other participants in the electric car market, such as Lucid or Rivian, are gladly covered in scorn and derision.
In general, anyone who dares to doubt Musk’s promises, which do materialize in some form or another, but usually much later and differently than expected, is an enemy of progress and has understood nothing.
He said Jehovah*
The cyberthriller (?) “Leave the World Behind” by Sam Esmail was recently released on Netflix. One scene shows hundreds of Teslas crashing into each other on the freeway. The “self-driving” software had probably been hijacked. On X, critics (aka Tesla fans) are running amok over this. And the fact that the Obamas are among the producers seems to prove that Musk and the company are being bullied here.
Cybertruck hysteria
Since the production version of the Cybertruck was unveiled, the Teslarati have been back on top. The company, the master Musk, has proven that they can put the vehicle, which is extremely controversial (you either love it or hate it), on wheels. So what if it came two years later than expected and cost tens of thousands of US dollars more?
Dystopia in its purest form
The Cybertruck uses technologies that no other manufacturer could have achieved in this way. Tesla fans are sure of that. Steer-by-wire? Canoo showed that years ago, but it’s a revelation at Tesla. 48-volt technology? It’s time someone put this superior thing into production (the Audi SQ7 has had it for a while). Co-steering rear axle? No car can compete with that (except Porsche or Mercedes-Benz, to name just two). And then there’s the off-road capability. So far, it has hardly been able to deliver compelling results compared to the competition, but this is probably due to the inability of the drivers.
Sect-like movements
Nobody wants to question that the company’s cars are highly efficient. No one wants to question that the technology behind them, including the Cybertruck, is incredibly forward-looking. But it has a nasty aftertaste when people with a Tesla conscience declare that all other trucks are for the “eternally yesterday” and that only this angular monster is the future.
What future?
A future for preppers and fans of dystopia? After all, the car is largely bulletproof and could also function as a troop transporter after the big catastrophe.
Or as support for minimized self-confidence? After all, the car is so fast, from 0 to 100 km/h, that even Porsches have a hard time, not to mention other trucks.
I have no idea. But the fact is that all the great and sophisticated technology doesn’t make it easy for me to like the car. With its 3.5 tons of weight, I find it superfluous, ugly, and aesthetically questionable, even as an “ecological statement”. But that’s just my personal opinion. And nothing more.
* Quotation from “The Life of Brian” by the British comedy troupe Monty Python.
