Shatter-proof glass smashes during Tesla's Cybertruck electric pickup demo
Tesla electric pickup's unconventional style features sci-fi-inspired elements; Jeff Flock reports from Hawthorne, California.
Excuses, excuses …
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has spent the past few days tweeting explanations for the embarrassing rollout of the company’s new Cybertruck pickup last Thursday.
During a demonstration of the triangular truck’s allegedly superstrong “Armor” windows, Tesla designer Franz von Holzhausen threw a metal ball at the front door window causing it to shatter, and did it again with the rear door window with the same result.
(Tesla)
Musk laughed off the failed stunt by saying there was “room for improvement.”
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Then late Friday he posted a video to Twitter, which he said was filmed before the event, showing von Holzhauzen throwing the ball at the window without breaking it, workshop vacuum at the ready.
However, many observers noted that the way the tarp-covered door appears to move suggests it is open, which potentially could have absorbed some of the impact.
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Musk followed up on Sunday by claiming that the base of the glass was cracked prior to the ball test when von Holzhausen hit the “bulletproof” door panel with a sledgehammer to demonstrate its dent resistance, but did not provide visual evidence or an account for why the rear door glass also broke.
Musk also explained the Cybertruck’s “planar” design was largely due to the company’s inability to stamp the ultra-hard stainless steel body panels into shapes without breaking a stamping press.
(Tesla)
Along with the clarifications, Musk has been tweeting a running tally of reservations Tesla has received for the Cybertruck, which reached 200,000 orders by Sunday evening. Each requires just a $100 refundable deposit, compared to the $1,000 Tesla asked to reserve a Model 3 when it was first revealed in 2016.