Will Cybertruck be the next VW Beetle for work trucks?

[CyberBC]

I'm thinking that in the 1930s when the first Beetle was released, most people probably thought it was ugly, or at the very least unusual. What it had was a very cheap and functional design. In the end there were around 21 million of them made, with many of them still around. It seems like Tesla really went back to the drawing board with this truck and it seems that they totally put function before aesthetics. If their planning tree went like this:

Best vehicle frame: Body-on-frame or uni-body? Answer: Uni-body
Toughest skin for uni-body? Aluminum, steel, stainless? Answer: Stainless
Best design for uni-body using stainless steel to maximize lowest drag, highest strength and easiest manufacturing? Answer: Wedge shape (vs. more conventional square or rounded)

and if the Tesla engineers really did their homework and optimized function with this shape, it will put the other truck manufacturers in a difficult position. They are going to have to try to build a better truck than Tesla with a sub-optimal design wrt to function. I think they are already behind on battery technology and will be unlikely to be successful trying to copycat Tesla's design. If this theory holds true, we could see the uni-body, stainless steel frame wedge being around for a long time. Tesla just has to do a good job on the marketing and in proving the design.

 

[Cyber_Dav]

My two thoughts in response... the Bug was built to be cheap. No Tesla will ever be regarded in that fashion.
And people prefer aesthetics as much or more than function. Automakers are forced by government regulations to produce ever more efficient vehicles, thus the wedge shape. Take away those requirements and few people actually prefer a wedge.

Again, just my opinions.

 

[CyberBC]

Here's an excerpt from Wiki on the Land Rover. It seems to me to be somewhat fitting for the Cybertruck too, except that aerodynamics was added to the mix:

"Many of the defining and successful features of the Land Rover design were in fact the result of Rover's drive to simplify the tooling required for the vehicle and to use the minimum amount of rationed materials. As well as the aluminium alloy bodywork (which has been retained throughout production despite it now being more expensive than a conventional steel body due to its ideal properties of light weight and corrosion resistance) other examples include the distinctive flat body panels with only simple, constant-radius curves (originally used because they could be cut and formed by hand from aluminium sheet on a basic jig) and the sturdy box-section ladder chassis, which on series vehicles was made up from four strips of steel welded at each side to form a box, thus cutting down on the complex operations required when making a more conventional U- or I-section frame. "

I am still thinking this Cybertruck design came more from function and keeping costs down than from a wish to follow Bladerunner aesthetics. I still think it looks pretty good though and it keeps growing on me.??

 

[Cyberman]

I think the beetle was revolutionary for its simplicity and efficiency. It was cheap to manufacture, easy to work on, and was unique looking. It gathered a following through many decades of production. Great car. But what Elon is producing is on another level entirely, it's a new truck design that launches the industry forward by a few decades. It's almost as if Elon traveled to the future, took a look at truck designs, came back and said: "Here you go, this is the truck design of the future". And it's packed with amazing features, not a bland, stripped down design like the beetle. So while there are similarities, Cybertruck is taking ass-kicking to another dimension. Am I a fan? Damn straight I am.