2023 Is the Year of the Tesla Cybertruck, Despite Elon Musk's Understated Expectations

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2023 will be the year of the Tesla Cybertruck, despite Elon Musk's understated expectations. The company will start production of the pickup truck, a new-generation vehicle that has no analogs on the market.

The Tesla Cybertruck was unveiled at the end of 2019 and has been the most anticipated vehicle since then. According to unofficial data, the company has received more than one and a half million pre-orders for it, which is definitely a success story.

The electric pickup truck has a very polarizing design, so you can meet people who find it unattractive while others are madly in love with it. However, the appearance of Cybertruck has many practical properties, from aerodynamics and a protective shell to ease of care for the body, which will appeal to if not everyone, then most.

“Cybertruck is really born out of the idea of a different way of manufacturing a material that put the toughness on the outside,” said Tesla Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen. Its styling is vastly different from anything on the automotive market today and is a breath of fresh air.

The futuristic origami design of Cybertruck is revolutionary for the entire automotive industry. The Tesla pickup truck has an exoskeleton made from stainless steel alloy, the same material as the outer shell of the SpaceX Starship rocket. Cybertruck is extremely tough—perfect for a zombie-apocalyptic future. “It is, it is literally bulletproof to a nine-millimeter handgun. That's how strong the skin is—it's ultra-hard, cold-rolled stainless steel alloy that we've developed. We’re going to be using the same alloy in the Starship rocket, and in the Cybertruck,” said Tesla CEO Elon Musk during the pickup’s unveiling in November 2019.

However, Cybertruck is much more than a mere exterior design. It will be as fast as a Porsche and extremely agile yet with the power of an F-150. Cybertruck offers incredible storage space as well as onboard electrical outlets, a rare addition to vehicles. Musk teased that the pickup truck would also be able to cross streams and also float for a while. And these are only some of the already known features, while the company said that some are still secret.

Cybertruck is a breakthrough in design and technology, a breath of fresh air for the automotive market and a challenge for the entire automotive industry. It is obvious that the production of such a unique product in itself is a very difficult task. But, Tesla's path has been weighed down by additional headwinds such as the COVID-19 epidemic and disruption to supply chains, which only eased a few months ago. Although with delays, the company still intends to start production this year, as confirmed in its Q4 2022 earnings report.

Last year, the company revealed that initial production was scheduled for mid-2023 and seems to be sticking to that plan. Asked by an investor during the earnings сall, Musk said the company expects production to start in the summer. However, he noted that mass deliveries should not be expected before 2024, indicating that he prefers to play it down rather than give false hopes. Musk explained that the start of production is always very slow, but increases exponentially. That is why he warned investors to take this into account in their expectations, pointing out that in 2023, Cybertruck will not make a significant contribution to the bottom line, but this will change next year. He did not mention if even a few Cybertrucks will be delivered to the first customers, but if it does, it will be really positive news. The start of production of the pickup truck this year will be a turning point for both Tesla and the entire automotive industry.

At the moment, the production line for Cybertruck is already being installed. SVP, Powertrain and Energy Engineering at Tesla, Andrew Baglino said that “castings, GA, general assembly, body shops” are currently being installed at Giga Texas, in parallel with which beta vehicles are being produced.

“Like just to emphasize on that, we've started installation of production equipment here in Giga Texas, castings, GA, general assembly, body shops. We built all our beta vehicles, some more coming still in the next month, but as you said the ramp will really come in 2024.”

Musk himself is in love with Cybertruck because he developed it with all his heart. This is his favorite car, which will become his daily vehicle. “So it's an incredible product. I can't wait to drive it personally. It will be the car that I drive every day,” he said.

© 2023, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.

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