The Cybertruck has seen several improvements since it was unveiled back in 2019. One of those improvements targeted at the truck's practicality and maneuverability is 4-wheel steering. And today, in response to a new video of a preproduction beta Cybertruck showing off its agility in Californian streets, Elon Musk has suggested that the Cybertruck will be easier to maneuver than the Model Y.
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The Cybertruck is Tesla’s most daring vehicle design to date. The futuristic truck, unlike most vehicles, has an exoskeleton body and will be made out of 90% recycled stainless steel.
Despite the already groundbreaking design of the Cybertruck shown off at the unveiling event back in 2019, the vehicle in the meantime has still seen several notable design changes.
The redesigned Cybertruck has several changes including rear-wheel steering, handless doors, a front trunk that opens like the F-150 Lightning, and many smaller changes.
Musk has also confirmed there will be a new quad-motor Cybertruck variant. Even though Elon hasn’t shared details of the new truck, insider leaks have suggested it will have 0 to 60 mph time of under 2 seconds.
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At Tesla’s Investor Day, we also got a sneak peek at the new interior of the redesigned Cybertruck. This new interior has some notable changes such as the white rectangular marble-looking dashboard of the Cybertruck prototype is now replaced with a more traditional triangular shape and black material resembling the dashboard of the Model 3 & Y.
And like the new Model S & X, the redesigned Cybertruck interior now also comes with a second screen for the rear passengers. And other changes we were able to notice include an attachment for side view screens, a less angular seat design, and a new center console.
And if all these changes weren’t enough, recently Elon Musk has teased us with a picture of a Cybertruck design with 6 wheels and a much wider body.
Every design improvement has made the Cybertruck an even more compelling vehicle than it already is however, according to the third part of Elon Musk’s interview with Tesla Owners Silicon Valley, the Tesla CEO says they have finalized the design of the Cybertruck.
And since then, thanks to a video of a new Cybertruck prototype that surfaced online, and later at the Investor Day presentation, we were able to see all the final changes Tesla has made to the futuristic truck before the start of production.
In the above video, we can see Tesla has made changes to the Cybertruck’s taillights. When the vehicle parks, a new pattern of brake lights can be seen which wasn’t present in previous Cybertruck prototype spottings.
On the new prototype, we can see Tesla has broken up the taillight into sections as opposed to previous prototypes where it used to be one continuous bar across the tailgate. Now, the part of the taillight which is mounted on the rear body has twice the length of that of the taillight which is on the tailgate.
And the black bar that surrounds the taillight is now much larger and matches the increased size of the taillight which is mounted on the rear body.
Another change we can see is the addition of two reverse lights on each side of the futuristic truck’s license plate. We can also see the addition of two reflectors at the bottom of the tailgate.
However, when we thought we have seen all the changes Tesla has made to the futuristic truck, we received yet another image of a new Cybertruck prototype.
The image was taken near Tesla’s design studio in Palo Alto, California. And follows Elon Musk’s Twitter announcement that he “was just reviewing the production beta Cybertruck,” and that “it is incredible.”
Unfortunately, at the time we only got a single grainy picture, however, we have gotten better footage of the production beta Cybertruck from Tesla’s recently held Investor Day. And in the video below we can make out additional changes Tesla has made to the final design of the Cybertruck.
The most notable of these changes is the design of the side view mirrors. The large rectangular side view mirror of prior prototypes is now replaced by a much smaller and triangular side view mirror design.
Tesla presumably made this change in order to improve the overall aerodynamics of the vehicle. However, if you are not a fan of the new side-view mirror design, you shouldn’t worry as Elon Musk has confirmed that the side-view mirrors are removable and that the Cybertruck will instead come equipped with screens in the interior that will serve as side-view mirrors.
This is all well and good, however, despite all the improvements Tesla added to the truck, there is still fear that the Cybertruck’s sheer size will make it unpractical and hard to maneuver for most people.
However, today for those fears we have gotten a new video of the production beta Cybertruck testing out in California and in the video we see the truck showing off its agility and turning capability.
As you can see, with four-wheel steering the truck is not only able to complete a turn in a very tight radius, but the vehicle also has some amazing maneuverability for a truck of that size. The Cybertruck’s handling will undoubtedly be helped by the fact that it has a low center of gravity thanks to carrying most of its weight close to the ground due to its battery pack.
And for those of us asking how good the Cybertruck’s four-wheel steering is, Musk has responded to the video stating that the Cybertruck will perhaps have a better turning radius than the Tesla Model Y which is a much smaller vehicle.
For reference, the Tesla Model Y has a turning radius of 19.9 feet, and if the Cybertruck’s turning radius is better than 19.9 feet it means the truck will be in a class of its own amongst full-sized trucks.
Currently, this is all the information we have regarding the Cybertruck, however, the truck is expected to start production in the third quarter of this year and we will be sure to keep you posted as we learn further information regarding the futuristic truck.
Until then, make sure to visit our site torquenews.com/Tesla regularly for the latest updates.
Image: Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.
So what do you think? Are you excited to see the Cybertruck’s quick turning and maneuverability? Also, do you think it’s feasible to replace the Model Y with a Cybertruck? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
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Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and The evolution of the EV space on a daily basis for several years. He covers everything about Tesla from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.
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