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Analysts, Gamers, and Blade Runner's Artistic Director React To The Look of Tesla's Cybertruck (businessinsider.com) 293

Syd Mead, the artistic director on Blade Runner says Tesla's new Cybertruck "has completely changed the vocabulary of the personal truck market design."

Or, for another perspective, "Tesla's Cybertruck looks weird... like, really weird," wrote Toni Sacconaghi, a senior equity research analyst at the global asset management firm AllianceBernstein. "Add a little bit of dirt, and you could even say it gives off a retro-future vibe a la Mad Max."

That's from a Market Insider article citing Wall Street analysts they say "aren't buying the futuristic design of Tesla's new electric pickup truck." For example, Dan Levy of Credit Suisse, who wrote "amid the radical design for Cybertruck, it's somewhat unclear to us who the core buyer will be." "We do not see this vehicle in its current form being a success," Jeffrey Osborne of Cowen wrote in a note on Friday, adding that he doesn't see the Tesla brand or the Cybertruck design "resonating with existing pickup truck owners...."

Still, the Cybertruck's design wasn't unanimously disliked by Wall Street. The design "will be a hit with the company's fanatic EV installed base globally as Musk & Co. are clearly thinking way out of the box on this model design," Dan Ives of Wedbush wrote in a Friday note....

[And] "While styling will always be subjective, we believe the unique and futuristic design will resonate with consumers, leading to solid demand," Jed Dorsheimer of Canaccord Genuity wrote in a Friday note.

The article also quotes Toni Sacconaghi of Bernstein as saying that the "really futuristic, like cyberpunk Blade Runner" design "is too bad, because its on-paper specs are insane."

But IGN reports there's another group commenting enthusiastically on the Cybertruck's looks: gamers. Unlike anything else we've seen from Musk's line of vehicles before, the Tesla truck resembles something you'd see in an old video game set in the future or sci-fi flick from the late '90s to the early 2000s.

Of course, gamers all over the internet couldn't help themselves from sharing images, making memes, and drawing comparisons to look-alikes we've seen in games, TV shows, and movies... According to the internet, the Tesla Cybertruck either hasn't finished rendering yet or is made of some very dated graphics. Either way, it takes us back to the days where we got to experience the famous low-poly Lara Croft.

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Analysts, Gamers, and Blade Runner's Artistic Director React To The Look of Tesla's Cybertruck

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  • by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 25, 2019 @06:40AM (#59451242)

    wedge designs were popular in the late 1960s from italian design bureaus for concept cars
    lancia stratos zero
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]

    i don't know what a "vocabulary" is when it comes to cars but if a bunch of lines with an apex counts, there you go

    • If you look at the start of Elon Musk's presentation you'll a Lotus Esprit at top left just after he says the word "inspiration".

      (and it's the first car I thought of when I saw it)

    • by Jamu ( 852752 )
      I'm fairly sure the "vocabulary" doesn't include the word "aerodynamic".
    • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @08:10AM (#59451486) Homepage Journal

      Presumably the vocabulary is "does not meet EU safety standards for pedestrian collisions".

      It's just a prototype, the final design will be different. This one doesn't have wing mirrors or cameras. The single cyclops front headlight is illegal in the EU. The marble dash will need to be some kind of veneer do they can get an airbag in there. The steering wheel is stupid and also not legal in the EU.

      • by Ol Olsoc ( 1175323 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @09:59AM (#59451902)

        Presumably the vocabulary is "does not meet EU safety standards for pedestrian collisions".

        It's just a prototype, the final design will be different. This one doesn't have wing mirrors or cameras. The single cyclops front headlight is illegal in the EU. The marble dash will need to be some kind of veneer do they can get an airbag in there. The steering wheel is stupid and also not legal in the EU.

        We call them "concept cars". run a concept up the flagpole and see who salutes. This oone does have a slightly different angle in that it is itended to go into production at some point (most concept cars aren't)

        But while it is a bit strange looking, apparently a lot of people have put in reservations:

        FTA"That's from a Market Insider article citing Wall Street analysts they say "aren't buying the futuristic design of Tesla's new electric pickup truck." For example, Dan Levy of Credit Suisse, who wrote "amid the radical design for Cybertruck, it's somewhat unclear to us who the core buyer will be."

        As a start, perhaps they could poll those folks who have made reservations.

        "We do not see this vehicle in its current form being a success," Jeffrey Osborne of Cowen wrote in a note on Friday, adding that he doesn't see the Tesla brand or the Cybertruck design "resonating with existing pickup truck owners...."

        Well, the existing pickup truck owners have taken the humble pickup to something more resembling a over the road tractor in their zeal for huge vehicles. It has reached the point where they are downsizing now because the next step would be placing a truck bed on a Kenworth or Mack.

        My point is, there is a whole market out there for pickups that aren't 10 mile per gallon behemoths that don't fit into parking spaces and need a ladder to get into. I myself had a Chevy S-10 FWD Pickup before they fell to the trucks on steroids disease.

        The coal rollers will still be able to buy their "Prius Killers", and spend their retirements on fuel if they wish.

        I'll be looking forward to seeing how the final version looks. One thing is for certain - check the prices of current Pickups and you'll see that the Tesla is in the ballpark.

      • You know, imagining this thing hitting a pedestrian, I kind of imagine it hits the person, they go rolling up the hood, over the windshield, and are deposited in the bed. Works as intended?

    • by arglebargle_xiv ( 2212710 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @08:27AM (#59451542)

      For example, Dan Levy of Credit Suisse, who wrote "amid the radical design for Cybertruck, it's somewhat unclear to us who the core buyer will be."

      Boys aged between five and eight would be my first guess. Once Musk puts a robot grappling arm on it.

      • by cusco ( 717999 ) <brian@bixby.gmail@com> on Monday November 25, 2019 @10:24AM (#59452042)

        The market is the 90% of pickup truck owners who never put anything heavier than moving boxes and a hideabed into theirs, and whose vehicles never leave the asphalt. The people who haul horse trailers and fill the box with landscaping rock? Not so much, but they're really very much the minority in the light truck market.

        • by PsychoSlashDot ( 207849 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @12:51PM (#59452718)

          The market is the 90% of pickup truck owners who never put anything heavier than moving boxes and a hideabed into theirs, and whose vehicles never leave the asphalt. The people who haul horse trailers and fill the box with landscaping rock? Not so much, but they're really very much the minority in the light truck market.

          The funny thing is how busy the "truck people" are moving the goalposts, step by step.

          "It's bed is too small." - It's two feet longer than the Rivian's, and matches the middle of the F150's three options.
          "It has insufficient towing capacity." - It's got (up to) 3,000 pounds more than Rivian, and more than double the highest F150's capacity.
          "It lacks mount points in the bed." - It has T-slots throughout the bed and sidewalls, letting you put mount points anywhere.
          "I can't access things in the bed over the high sidewalls." - Lifting anything significant over sidewalls four feet off the ground isn't practical, but a built-in ramp is. Also, with 4 inches of suspension lowering, this may actually be incorrect.
          "It has insufficient cargo capacity." - An F150 (same bed length) has 62 cuFt of space while the Cybertruck has 100.
          "It lacks utility." - Other than doing literally everything existing trucks do, plus having a built-in air compressor and 110V and 220V power jacks. "It's not aerodynamic." - Turns out, it is. The sloping rear negates cabin-back drag. The available range is massive for an EV, and cheapest price-for-range.
          "It's not safe for pedestrians." - The front of an F150 isn't and more designed for survivability.
          "There are no crumple zones." - Yes, there are, in front of the frunk.

          Look truck folks.. it's got more power, more capacity, more utility, more ability, more durability, more clearance, and more options than existing trucks. And looks like an Lamborghini Countach. Get over the horror.

    • A "vocabulary" is like a "vernacular". Both are words designers use in an attempt to sound smarter than the crayon-wielding mouth-breathers that they actually are.
  • by Kokuyo ( 549451 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @06:43AM (#59451250) Journal

    So ugly, that EVERYBODY's talking about it.

    Marketing win.

    Also it isn't half as ugly as a Fiat Multipla and that thing sold, too.

    • Just have this truck made in one of the former Czech republics, wait for the BBC Top Gear episode to fill it up with water and show folks that it's watertight, let the Italians make another cheesy spaghetti Mad Max 2000 flick with their backlot pack of extras, and Elon puts out even more of his signature pocket blowtorches. Guess I'll be taking out my Halloween outfit for another go

    • >"So ugly, that EVERYBODY's talking about it. Marketing win."

      That is certainly true. I suspect when they finally start making, years later, it might be "toned down" some. Hard to say.

      • The old saying "no such thing as bad publicity" isn't 100% true, the ugly truckling certainly got them a lot of publicity but when time comes to pony up the 40+ grand, people need to actually like it.

        As you say, the'll most likely tone done the design for production. While I like the overall direction they went with, my main issues with the design are:
        a) The triangular profile of the passenger cabin/bed just looks wrong. If you look at the much more pleasing DMC-12, the roof is flat and not pointy. It was p

    • by dbialac ( 320955 )

      > Also it isn't half as ugly as a Fiat Multipla and that thing sold, too.

      I would say it's more equivalent to a Pontiac Aztec. It even has some of the same features that sold really well. Wait...

    • by GuB-42 ( 2483988 )

      The Fiat Multipla was a function-over-form car. That's basically what you get when you try to optimize for interior over exterior volume. In that regard, it was really well designed, and it explains its success in Italy, despite its ugliness.

      The Cybertruck looks like it was deliberately made ugly, rather than a result of designers not giving a fuck.

      • by Kokuyo ( 549451 )

        Not having seen it in person, much less driven it, I wouldn't dare judge this cars merits in terms of function.

    • The thing is it isn't ugly. But it challenges our expectation on what a truck looks like which can be simplified as =#__ which we can see a a truck (or a duck).

      Unlike automobiles the basic design of a truck has been fairly standard. Perhaps bigger in some areas, but you look at a 1950's corvette vs a 2019 corvette it is a very different looking body. But if you look at a 1950's Ford pickup truck with a 2019 Ford pickup truck it looks basically the same.

      The Testa Truck isn't necessarily ugly, but challenge

  • As I commented before, for me the Cybertruck gives me a kind of retro future vision vibe.
    As if in Back to the future they would have chosen a pickup truck as a futuristic vehicle (in 1985).
    My worst nightmare is that Micheal J. Fox would be replaced by fat belly Joe Sixpack "1.21 jiga **burps* watt's that?"

    • As if in Back to the future they would have chosen a pickup truck as a futuristic vehicle (in 1985).

      maybe it's a US thing at the time ("US" != "world", you now... here in Brazil pickups wasn't very popular at the time)? And about Delorean [wikipedia.org]?

  • just remembering :P (I miss suvsux.org so much!)
  • Pre-orders at 150k+ (Score:3, Informative)

    by Fluffymuffin Cocobut ( 1536039 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @06:56AM (#59451272) Homepage
    Pre-orders are already north of 150,000? It's only a refundable $100 to reserve, but still...
    • Marketing directors at Ford/GM will be shitting pineapples at midnight meetings right now.

    • by Rei ( 128717 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @07:04AM (#59451302) Homepage

      200k as of this morning.

      FYI, the reason it's so fast is because they kept the polygon count down.

      • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

        More likely because they are only asking for $100. The Model 3 was $1000 which is enough to make people think twice before doing it.

        The $100 pre-order price was designed to ensure they got a lot of pre-orders and build up the hype. I imagine a lot of them will cancel when they see the price of the spec they want.

      • How many of those are multiple orders from same person? I've already see quite a few people stating they pre ordered several configs.

  • by bill_mcgonigle ( 4333 ) * on Monday November 25, 2019 @06:58AM (#59451278) Homepage Journal

    For actual truck buyers, the $50K model can move as much as as a 350-sized truck and for substantially less money. With (probably) less maintenance and definitely less fuel costs. You should see what a fuel pump costs to replace in a Chevy diesel.

    Actual working men are going to want to pocket that difference. Who knows about Dallas commuters.

    The "X/Y" construction is responsible for a good chunk of that cost savings. Tesla isn't losing money on this and "form-follows-function" is a big part of it.

  • by wierd_w ( 1375923 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @06:58AM (#59451280)

    definately an 80s vibe suffused though the whole thing, but it looks more "Knight rider meets robocop" than mad max or blade runner.

    Thats it! Its a 6000 SUX! Only Electric!

  • F-150 (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Tomahawk ( 1343 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @07:01AM (#59451294) Homepage

    It was pointed out that people who buy the Ford F-150 keep going back every few years to buy a Ford F-150. They don't buy the other trucks that look like the F-150, which is just about all of the rest of them.

    So why should Tesla try to enter the market with something that looks like the F-150? If other non-Ford truck makers are finding the market hard, then Tesla will find it harder to get into.

    So they make something that stands out among all trucks, something entirely different. It many not appeal to F-150 drivers, but F-150 drivers are likely not the target audience here.

    It's a risk. Time will tell if it pays off or not. However, they do have 200,000+ preorders for it in the first 48 hours, and it's 2 years from rolling off the line. And that's without any advertisements or paid endorsements. So they have done something right.

    One of the reasons for the design (especially the flat panels) is due to the 30X steel used on the body, which is very very hard, and stronger than titanium (which was the initial choice for the body). So hard that it breaks a stamping press. To fold it the have to deeply score it on the other side. So simplified design means a simplified manufacturing process, which means lower costs, although they do now need to think about how to build such a line.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • I build models as a hobby, and among many types of models I make some of then using paper. And because of this I know from experience how easier it is to construct a body using flat faces than curves, and the model using flat faces is also always more structurally resilient than an equivalent using curved faces.
    • by Nidi62 ( 1525137 )

      It was pointed out that people who buy the Ford F-150 keep going back every few years to buy a Ford F-150. They don't buy the other trucks that look like the F-150, which is just about all of the rest of them.

      So why should Tesla try to enter the market with something that looks like the F-150? If other non-Ford truck makers are finding the market hard, then Tesla will find it harder to get into.

      So they make something that stands out among all trucks, something entirely different. It many not appeal to F-150 drivers, but F-150 drivers are likely not the target audience here.

      It's a risk. Time will tell if it pays off or not. However, they do have 200,000+ preorders for it in the first 48 hours, and it's 2 years from rolling off the line. And that's without any advertisements or paid endorsements. So they have done something right.

      One of the reasons for the design (especially the flat panels) is due to the 30X steel used on the body, which is very very hard, and stronger than titanium (which was the initial choice for the body). So hard that it breaks a stamping press. To fold it the have to deeply score it on the other side. So simplified design means a simplified manufacturing process, which means lower costs, although they do now need to think about how to build such a line.

      I drive an F-150. I want an electric truck. I will not be buying a cybertruck. The Rivian R1T is closer, but the bed is tiny and the lines look awkward. It looks like all they did was take an SUV and cut the roof off the cargo compartment, which never looks good (see the Explorer Sport Trac or the Jeep Gladiator). Guess I'll have to hope the new Bronco looks halfway decent and the electric version isn't ridiculously expensive.

      • The triangular side walls make the bed look smaller than it really is. There is a 6.5 feet long x 4 feet wide x 2 feet deep bed in the cybertruck. The triangle is extra on top of the basic bed. The triangle allows the bed to be closed and locked, and it improves aerodynamics when hauling air.

        When you do price comparison, spec out a F150 or F250, Super Crew Cab, 6.5 feet bed, 3500 lb pay load, 13000 lb tow package, and a lockable hard bed cover not plastic fabric. Compressor, 120V, 240V. You can run tools

  • by mark_reh ( 2015546 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @07:27AM (#59451336) Journal

    It doesn't look enough like a freight train. Where's the big, impressive, manly, grill? Where's the trailer hitch that sticks out the back, ready to knee-cap inattentive pedestrians and destroy brick walls when you back it into parking spaces? How are you gonna hang truck nutz on it? How are you gonna roll coal with it? How are you going to piss people off when you park it in a charging space? Where will you put your tobacco spit cup?

    The damn thing probably backs into parking spaces automatically...

  • by TheDarkMaster ( 1292526 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @07:45AM (#59451408)
    Robust, simple construction, virtually immune to most types of small bumps you might experience in normal traffic (those where no one gets hurt but you're forced to spend thousands of dollars in the car shop). I don't care a damn about this "curves everywhere" fashion, if it didn't cost an arm and a leg to have one in Brazil (you pay one to you and another in taxes) I would buy.
  • According to this YouTube video [youtube.com], the vehicle's exterior will stop a 9mm round fired from a handgun - gangsters ought to love that..

    On the more law-abiding side of things, its stainless steel exoskeleton laughed off a sledgehammer blow that caused not far south of a kilobuck's worth of damage to a traditional pickup truck door. So while it is ugly, (according to the traditional domestic truck aesthetic), it seems pretty practical. Plus that 80's SF-style ugliness, along with its toughness, might just appeal

  • Before starting his own company he worked for Ford in the advanced styling department. He knows a thing or two about automotive design.

    That doesn't mean I like the design, though.

  • It looks to me like this thing was really spec'd for military applications:
    • * Bullet proof windows
    • * Tough stainless steel body
    • * Weird angles like a stealth bomber (no right angles to reflect EM)
    • * Autonomous driving! (perfect for transporting supplies through hostile environments)
    • * Insane low-rpm torque for towing supplies through rough terrain.
    • * Solar charging for remote operation (Elon mentioned this capability today)

    Instead of going from Military->Consumer like the Hummer and Jeep thoug

    • LOL. "Bullet proof windows". Too stupid.

    • Stealth is about more than just shape; the materials matter too. I suppose it might have a smaller radar signature than a normal truck, but it's still a big steel box.

      As for the "bullet proof" panels, a design that can only stop ordinary handgun rounds isn't worth much to the military. Handguns are popular in civilian contexts only because rifles and other proper weapons are too large, scary, illegal, or just inconvenient when people aren't really expecting to use them. For anything else (war, hunting, SWAT

  • I can’t look at current vehicle advertisements anymore. After CYBERTRUCK they look like they are _all_ in a past that got us to AGW.

    Thank you Elon. You’ve split reality in one deft move.

  • by 140Mandak262Jamuna ( 970587 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @09:00AM (#59451668) Journal
    American pickup truck makers all make the same design with little variation for several decades now. Engine on top of chassis rail, propeller shaft below the rail, bed above. Same steak different sizzle and different sauce for so many decades they forgot their core product. They think only the sizzle matters.

    EVs are fundamentally different. There is no weight penalty. The kinetic energy is not wasted as heat in the brakes, but recharges the battery to slow the vehicle down. Impact? There is no serious weight penalty on economy. 4000 lb Model 3 is more efficient than carbon fiber body 2000 lb BMW i3.

    There is no power penalty either. Engine rated for high max power, like 300 HP and 400 HP have very poor fuel economy. But electric motor efficiency band is extremely wide. The 280 HP Model 3 motor out performs all the 120 HP to 150HP vehicles from BMW and Nissan.

    The cyber truck comes with the same 6.5 feet bed, 2 feet deep and is closable and lockable by shutters! Stainless steel exoskeleton is a monocoque construction without the bed rails. ICEV 5 liter V8, has heavy pistons in reciprocating motion sitting on one end of the truck. Followed by a heavy transmission. It needs the rail to distribute the load and the entire cab is a non load bearing addition, eating into the payload. Cybertruck's battery is a passive non moving thing, heavy but uniformly distributed and easy to mount and manage. This is the secret of its low price. Motors are cheap. Battery is the only expensive component, and its price is falling. Tesla is going to make this exoskeleton with origami folding technique and robotic welds. Wait for Sandy Monroe to do a tear down and he will speak the language Detroit understands to explain how Tesla did it.

    3500 lb pay load, (vs 1000lb to 1500 lb for F150). 13000 lb towing (vs 7000 lb for F150). Built in air compressor, 120V, 240 V outlets. Lockable bed. Ramp built into tail gate. Rust proof body. All for 50,000$. 12,000$ cheaper than F150 spruced up to this level of crew cab, tow and pay load packages. We are not talking TCO here. Off the dealers' lot this truck is going to be cheaper than comparable F150.

    Looks? No fleet manager cares for looks. Expect all the fleet owned trucks to be cybertrucks in the future.

  • There is a great opportunity here for tesla to spread a rumor that the stealth-like angles on the cybertruck make it not show up well on police radar. If the number of idiots with CDs hanging from their mirror is any clue, this could produce a non-trivial number of sales.
  • I don't like the way the Cybertruck looks. And the launch was laughable when the windows broke. And I won't be buying one. But I gotta hand it to Mr. Musk, he's gotten so much exposure for this vehicle in such a short time.
  • I'll drop a 350 into it.

    Kidding...
  • Room for 6. Great range. More space than a model Y (possibly even more than a model X). Same price as the base model Y.
    It sounds like a great car even if you don't need a pick up truck.

    I don't understand why they can't make a cheaper model X based on this. I don't need the bullet proof glasses, air suspension, off road tires, but I want space and I want it to be cheap. I don't care if it's not fast or luxurious.

  • by LynnwoodRooster ( 966895 ) on Monday November 25, 2019 @11:07AM (#59452248) Journal

    First Tesla Roadster: gorgeous, but it was a re-motored Lotus
    Model S: OK, looks amazingly similar to a Maserati Quattroporte or Jaguar XF, but still very attractive and good looking
    Model X: Huh. You chose design cues from the ugliest BMW on the market, the X6. I mean, I guess it's OK, but really? A fat-around-the-middle S?
    Model 3: WTF? A duck bill up front? Pudgy tail? Did someone want to insult Donald Duck? Really, Disney should NOT be a car inspiration
    Cybertruck: Someone's really gone off the deep end. Picasso meets the Canyonero. Just - no. No. Really. No.

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