The new Tesla truck

[varg]

Towing generally brings along with it a long drive and towing inherently cripples range, given that fact I highly doubt this thing will capable as a tow rig let alone be used in towing applications. Mall crawler for the tofu and mandals crowd, because you know they're jealous of the fitted cap and calling everyone bro crowd with their luxury trucks. Electric pickups have potential on road and off, but not in the bumbling hands of tesla motors imo, where designers and engineers think apple's design philosophy applies to vehicles and problems are tackled with a cavalier attitude that results in a lot of "shifted" expectations. Once people get over the fact that doing 0-60 quickly is no longer at all impressive for a powerful AWD electric vehicle, which has the inherent capability of managing traction as close to perfectly as is possible, even that will lose its dazzle factor and marketing will have to shift to something of a little more substance than touch screens an "ludicrous mode."

Batteries mostly under the bed solving the unloaded weight distribution issue and a powerful electric motor running the live axle(s) via a driveshaft, I wouldn't consider an EV conversion outside the realm of possibility for a future truck of mine, provided its function was to carry an engine or a motorcycle occasionally and not to tow or haul very heavy things routinely, but as this ain't it.

[2mAn]

Cant wait to see it parked in a compact spot like all the other douches... Im pretty sure he is trolling, no way he would actually SELL something that ugly. We can thank him though for the golden memes Ive seen posted today

[roguetoaster]

The future is not now.. People are eating laundry detergent and cant even figure out if they're a boy or girl.

Truth.

[flyboyx]

my wife and i are borrowing a model 3 right now from tesla. i have to say its pretty fucking awesome. we are thinking about getting the sleeper performance model. 0-60 in 3.2

dual motor so all wheel drive. roomy cabin, decent handling, comfortable seats, ridiculously quiet cabin, great visibility.....all in all a great girl car.

ive seen a few videos of fit and finish issues from over a year ago. the example we have sitting in our driveway doesn't seem to have those problems.


she drives about 200+ miles a day for work, so a car like this makes a lot of sense. we will be saving well over 300 bucks a month in fuel costs not to mention maintenance.

[Kershaw]

If I was in the market for a truck, I'd totally get it. I don't really need a truck but I do need the utility around the house to haul shit. 2x4s, plywood, mulch, etc. That's why I bought my Vanagon. Anyway, if the truck were electric it's totally justifiable to be a DD then. Obviously it looks like a space coffin on wheels, which is unique in a field of boxes I guess. He really kind of failed with the whole window thing. Has he even seen a bullet hit actual bulletproof glass? It fractures. That's how it disperses its energy. All car glass, being laminated, will do this. He really wiffed there and made his entrance into the truck market a huge joke. It has onboard air, 120v, and 240v, which is really cool. I can definitely see this being a successful city/suburb tradesman truck. Although the angled sides will make mounting boxes awkward. I guess it's steel though, cut and weld. Showing up in this truck certainly will help catering to an upper class clientele if that's their market. He's really pushing the acceptable design envelope though, I'm curious to see if the market accepts it.

Honestly, my only gripe is the stainless steel. What is this, a Delorean? I've seen some shops in white, red, and Halo Warthog green. It looks pretty cool.

[Albie325]

it looks like a space coffin on wheels

Prob the most accurate description I've read. I do agree with a lot of your post about it being a potential hit with business owners in a city environment with a forward-thinking (Read: liberal), upper-crust clientele. It'll definitely garner tons of attention and eyeballs wherever it goes regardless, no doubt about it.

[ForcedFirebird]

The angles are there because of the materials being used. High tensile SS alloys that thick are not easily stamped into shape like 16ga sheet metal is.

Having been a truck owner all my life (from contracting in the old days to hauling cars today) I can see a few issues having actually utilized trucks on a business level. The bed is only 6.5', so it's a "short bed" and the gate will have to be open to carry sheet goods. The bed sides are so funky, good luck reaching over them for your tools/materials. I don't see an easy way to put a roof rack on it, or mount utility boxes as mentioned earlier.

People are impressed at it's weight capacity, but it's the same as any other 1 ton truck - which was unfair to do the tug of war against a 150, should have been a diesel 250 at least to be comparable.

It looks like it's going to be the happy-homeowner crowd buying them, the same group that has a Land Rover that has never even seen a gravel road.

[TobyB]

Back to the Future called-

they want their vehicle back.

t
John DeLorean fanboi

[varg]

^I love angular/wedge cars and I find this butt ugly. Z31 300ZX, AW11 MR2, Esprit, Celica Supra, Tasmin...

[NZM3]

Looks like a vehicle you send to the moon for the astronauts to cruse around in.

[SkiFree]

The angles are there because of the materials being used. High tensile SS alloys that thick are not easily stamped into shape like 16ga sheet metal is.

I'm rather disappointed that so many have somehow not understood this point. The very thing that makes it near-impermeable to a sledge hammer is the very quality that makes it difficult to stamp/shape.

As for wedge shaped cars..... let's not forget...

bertone_lancia_stratos_zero_2 by thomas, on Flickr

1970 Lancia (Bertone) Stratos HF Zero by tlucal, on Flickr

Modulo by 19Bozzy92, on Flickr

I love this one, if only for the fact that you could rock the same design Cosmic wheels on a 2002.
1982-93 Lamborghini LM 002 by Helmut Schopper, on Flickr

[digger]

definitely styled in the US of A.

its alright that its faceted but that's the best they could come up with?

[varg]

I'm rather disappointed that so many have somehow not understood this point. The very thing that makes it near-impermeable to a sledge hammer is the very quality that makes it difficult to stamp/shape.

I don't think it's that nobody understands, but rather that nobody cares. It takes a total lack of imagination to think that this is the only way it could have looked given the design considerations.

Example: what the hell were they thinking with those wheels?

[E30SPDFRK]

I think it’s hideous, but I hope he sells the shit out of them.

If you take the emblems off nearly any new car, you’d be hard pressed to know what it was. No new car manufacturers want to step outside the box and make something different for fear of losing some potential money/market share. I hope they see this selling well and take it as a clue that people want interesting cars that don’t follow typical design philosophy.

[varg]

Well said. Even if it's a complete failure it might serve to make today's pickups as a whole better. I saw this render on instagram, usually I find his work (@bradbuilds) tasteless and shallow, suited only to the vape-and-scrape crowd, but the angle and the big tires and live axles suit this children's drawing design.