First Look Review: The Tesla Cybertruck is truly like none other

The Tesla Cybertruck, one of the most anticipated EVs of the 21st century, is a groundbreaking pickup truck. Be it design, utility, or performance, it defies convention and aims to bring something radically new to the market in many key aspects. Recently, I saw the Tesla Cybertruck in the metal for the first time and spent time checking out its design, features, and interior in detail. Here are my first impressions of the Tesla truck:

Design

The Tesla Cybertruck has an offbeat exterior with soft differentiations like lights, wheels, and bumpers and a totally different shape from normal pickup trucks. As much as I appreciate Tesla’s efforts to break the mold, I don’t find the Cybertruck’s low, wedge-shaped body or its minuscule lights appealing. Apart from its custom stainless steel being too hard to bend—the chief reason behind its peculiar shape—Tesla’s decision to not apply paint and thus avoid offering color options doesn’t help.

I think the Tesla Cybertruck has an intense look from the front because of its prominent daytime running light strip, but overall, it lacks the muscularity I expect from pickup trucks. The Cybertruck is a dual-cab pickup truck with a six-foot-long and four-foot-wide bed, which Tesla claims is so tough that it doesn’t need a liner. It can carry a payload of up to 2,500 pounds.

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Interior

The Tesla Cybertruck features a minimalist interior with sleek and angular dashboard, center console, and door panels. Even its seats have that angular look to match the sharply designed exterior. Even its seats have that angular look to match the sharply designed exterior. I like the thin ambient lights surrounding the cabin and the all-glass roof, which gives me a sense of sitting in a spacious interior.

The Cybertruck has a massive, 18.5-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a big, 9.4-inch rear touchscreen entertainment system, both with crisp graphics. I think the all-glass roof and the rear touchscreen would keep kids in the backseat happily occupied. Where the Cybertruck disappoints me is with the lack of regular buttons, switches, dials, etc. Tesla has incorporated almost all of its controls into the 18.5-inch display, and I don’t find that very convenient.

I’m six feet tall, and the quirky shape of the Cybertruck had me concerned about the ingress, especially in the rear. From my experience, I can now say that this wasn’t a problem at all. The all-around visibility was good, thanks to the large glass areas. The front seats offer good lumbar support, but taller drivers would say that under-thigh support could have been more. In the back, I felt that the legroom was good and the knee room was in abundance, even for someone my height. My head was well clear of the roof even when I was sitting up.

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Specifications

The Tesla Cybertruck is 223.7 inches long, 86.6 inches wide, and 70.5 inches tall and is available in Rear-Wheel Drive, All-Wheel Drive, and Cyberbeast variants. The base variant, as its name indicates, has a RWD drivetrain layout. Tesla claims the base Cybertruck can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 6.5 seconds, achieve a top speed of 112 mph, and tow up to 7,500 lbs. It expects the electric pickup truck to deliver a range of 250 miles.

The All-Wheel Drive variant adds a front motor that changes the drivetrain layout to AWD, ensuring more grip and off-road capability. Producing 600 horsepower, the dual-motor powertrain cuts down the Cybertruck’s 0-60 mph acceleration time to 4.1 seconds. However, the Cybertruck All-Wheel Drive’s top speed is the same – 112 mph.

The mid-range variant gives the Cybertruck a greater towing capacity of 11,000 lbs. On a full charge, it allows traveling up to 340 miles. An optionally available external battery pack installed into the bed can bump this number to 470+ miles.

The Cyberbeast variant sports three motors that produce 845 horsepower and allow the Cybertruck to zoom to 60 mph in just 2.6 seconds (with rollout subtracted) and go faster, at up to 130 mph. Tesla expects it to deliver a range of 320 miles as standard and 440+ miles with the Range Extender.

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Price

The Tesla Cybertruck has been priced at USD 60,990 in the Rear-Wheel Drive variant, USD 79,990 in the All-Wheel Drive Variant, and USD 99,990 in the Cyberbeast variant. Tesla manufactures the Cybertruck at the Giga Texas plant in Austin (Texas), USA.

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TopElectricSUV says

I think the Tesla Cybertruck has the potential to be the future of pickup trucks. It offers some amazing capabilities, comfort and convenience features, and cool entertainment technologies, too. While they aren’t bad, its payload capacity and range fall short of the initial promises. We’ll have to watch how the lack of door handles, dedicated space for a spare tire, and many essential physical controls are received by pickup truck buyers.

I believe Tesla may need to quickly make improvements and possibly revise certain features based on feedback from the first batch of Cybertruck customers to ensure the electric truck’s long-term appeal and market success.

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