Musk endeavours

[redsturgeon]

ps. I think it is fugly, but when I buy pickups I do it for a job. And hitherto my go-to cargo pick ups in the oil patch were the Hilux and the F150. This would get a look-in if I were buying again.

Ahhh the F150, there is a reason it is the best selling vehicle ever.

I drove a 1967 F250 (the three quarter ton version of the F150) 50,000 miles around the USA in 1981/82 and it never missed a beat and felt like it could have carried on for another 50,000 with no worries. One of my favourite vehicles.

John

[BobbyD]

To be fair BD, this isn't an announcement by anybody else.

No, it's an announcement from funding secured, show legacy auto how to manufacture efficiently, autonomous coast to coast by 2017, autonomous taxis making you money while you sleep within the next 58 weeks, $35k model 3 ...which puts off a promise made for 2 years without convincing anybody but the brethren that it is a serious attempt to keep it.

ps. I think it is fugly, but when I buy pickups I do it for a job. And hitherto my go-to cargo pick ups in the oil patch were the Hilux and the F150. This would get a look-in if I were buying again.

...and what job would you buy this to do? If you look at the reaction to the reveal the people who are most critical are people who use pick ups for jobs. Have you actually seen it from the rear?



- https://ksassets.timeincuk.net/wp/uploa ... 68x512.jpg

Access to the bed is virtually non-existent without climbing on to it. This isn't a working truck, it's a recreational vehicle to sling your quad or your jet ski on to when you head out for a long weekend out of town, it even lets you recharge it from the truck's battery. This was Musk's pet project, about which he is on record as saying he doesn't care if noone else likes it, and guess what... it's a recreational vehicle he'll find useful but nobody who buys a truck for access to the bed is going to touch.

A pick up was supposed to give Tesla a way in to the market in the 49 states which aren't California. It was supposed to broaden their base, widen the family, and give them another source of volume. This isn't that truck, even if it is anything more than a bad joke which seemed amusing after a couple of blunts.

[odysseus2000]

This video has more details on the Cyber truck:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APt8V1OJxu0

Regards,

[odysseus2000]

BobbyD
Access to the bed is virtually non-existent without climbing on to it. This isn't a working truck, it's a recreational vehicle to sling your quad or your jet ski on to when you head out for a long weekend out of town, it even lets you recharge it from the truck's battery. This was Musk's pet project, about which he is on record as saying he doesn't care if noone else likes it, and guess what... it's a recreational vehicle he'll find useful but nobody who buys a truck for access to the bed is going to touch.

A pick up was supposed to give Tesla a way in to the market in the 49 states which aren't California. It was supposed to broaden their base, widen the family, and give them another source of volume. This isn't that truck, even if it is anything more than a bad joke which seemed amusing after a couple of blunts.

Interesting thoughts although imho wrong.

Having watched the video you can see that the guy with the quad can easily chuck things into the pickup which is what folk with pickups tend to do. The cover over contents is a plus for anyone who operates in the wet, think cement, plaster, electrical goods that can be kept dry in transit. The hard stainless steel body ideal for the rough aspects of building sites and for the regions that use lots of winter salt, corrosion proof. The available 240 and 110 volt and compressed air makes for very convenient operation although grounding might be an issue.

In essence Tesla have redefined the truck and made it better, cheaper, more comfortable and faster and created something for the 21st century. I expect these to sell.

Regards,

[BobbyD]

Simone Giertz
‏
Verified account

@SimoneGiertz


I take that back! It'll just be me there! The people at Tesla said that Truckla isn't allowed onsite... which I guess is a compliment.

- https://twitter.com/SimoneGiertz/status ... 1884638208

[BobbyD]

Having watched the video you can see that the guy with the quad can easily chuck things into the pickup which is what folk with pickups tend to do.

Half the time.

The cover over contents is a plus for anyone who operates in the wet, think cement, plaster, electrical goods that can be kept dry in transit.

Tesla are of course famous for their ability to exclude water.

[Howard]

Tesla lost around $4 billion in its market cap today. In contrast the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq were up.

Maybe the markets are wrong but Tesla surely needs to have a good Q4 to compensate for its weird truck launch.

It must be the first time we've seen the chief designer of a car smash it up during it's launch. Let's hope the CFO doesn't do the same to the accounts at the end of the year.

regards

Howard

[BobbyD]

Tesla lost around $4 billion in its market cap today. In contrast the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq were up.

Maybe the markets are wrong but Tesla surely needs to have a good Q4 to compensate for its weird truck launch.

It must be the first time we've seen the chief designer of a car smash it up during it's launch. Let's hope the CFO doesn't do the same to the accounts at the end of the year.

regards

Howard

Elon Musk’s Net Worth Falls $770 Million After Tesla’s Botched Cybertruck Debut

- https://www.forbes.com/sites/hayleycucc ... 9c73dd73aa

[BobbyD]

Skoda Citigo-e iV - 5 door, 164 miles WLTP, £16,955 after £3500 government grant.

Order book opens on December 10th.

- https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new- ... A316955-uk

[dspp]

BobbyD
Access to the bed is virtually non-existent without climbing on to it. This isn't a working truck, it's a recreational vehicle to sling your quad or your jet ski on to when you head out for a long weekend out of town, it even lets you recharge it from the truck's battery. This was Musk's pet project, about which he is on record as saying he doesn't care if noone else likes it, and guess what... it's a recreational vehicle he'll find useful but nobody who buys a truck for access to the bed is going to touch.

A pick up was supposed to give Tesla a way in to the market in the 49 states which aren't California. It was supposed to broaden their base, widen the family, and give them another source of volume. This isn't that truck, even if it is anything more than a bad joke which seemed amusing after a couple of blunts.

Interesting thoughts although imho wrong.

Having watched the video you can see that the guy with the quad can easily chuck things into the pickup which is what folk with pickups tend to do. The cover over contents is a plus for anyone who operates in the wet, think cement, plaster, electrical goods that can be kept dry in transit. The hard stainless steel body ideal for the rough aspects of building sites and for the regions that use lots of winter salt, corrosion proof. The available 240 and 110 volt and compressed air makes for very convenient operation although grounding might be an issue.

In essence Tesla have redefined the truck and made it better, cheaper, more comfortable and faster and created something for the 21st century. I expect these to sell.

Regards,

o2000 & BD,

You are both right imho. There are several different segments within the truck buying community. The legacy manufacturers do not try and aim one truck at the whole market as that would risk satisficing vs more targetted point design competitors. In the same way I think this TSLA truck is aimed at a few segments, but not all.

What I also think is that TSLA can make a few design changes and also put out a more conventional back end variant that will suit some of the other segments. They could if they wished go further and do the same to the front end as well, and indeed they've said as much themselves. For now they just need to penetrate enough of the segments to get their (??) truck plant to capacity which I am guessing this one (the more edgy one we see in the reveal) will do for at least a few years.

When I think about the uses I have put trucks to in the oil patch side access was not important. You load heavy objects with a crane, or a forklift, or similar, not by manually reaching over the side with your pinkies. I am not saying that side access is not important to some segments, but it certainly isn't the be all and end all to all segments. That is why you see a lot of trucks going around with hard tops on, because side access is not important to those users (but rain/snow/theft protection are).

My suspicion is that the first-up segment for this will be the family that drives a '3' to work, but uses this truck at weekends. There are enough of those to fill a TSLA truck line for long enough to bed down other segments with the corresponding variants.

But it definitely is a marmite design isn't it. Who needs TV etc advertising when this is on the street ! How long before it turns up in a James Bond film ?

regards, dspp

[PeterGray]

Presumably the Truck is what every other manufacturer would call a "concept" vehicle? No on can seriously be planning on building it.

[BobbyD]

Presumably the Truck is what every other manufacturer would call a "concept" vehicle? No on can seriously be planning on building it.

One would hope so, since in its current iteration it isn't actually road legal in the US...

[BobbyD]

Skoda Citigo-e iV - 5 door, 164 miles WLTP, £16,955 after £3500 government grant.

Order book opens on December 10th.

- https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new- ... A316955-uk

...and production started last week.

- https://www.skoda-storyboard.com/en/pre ... %B5%89-iv/

[BobbyD]

VW motorsport goes all-electric:

Volkswagen is focusing its motorsport strategy on electric mobility. A clear emphasis on fully electric racing cars will be backed up by the farewell to factory-backed commitments using internal combustion engines.

- https://www.volkswagen-newsroom.com/en/ ... ility-5614

Explaining the decision to adopt an electric-only strategy, Volkswagen Motorsport director Sven Smeets said motorsport could be used as a "trailblazer" for the development of electric vehicles.

Volkswagen said its ID.R electric prototype - which has set outright records at Pikes Peak, Goodwood and on the Tianmen Mountain, and also holds the Nurburgring Nordschleife electric record - would continue to take over the "role as a technological pioneer".

It will also work on new projects for its ID. family of cars, which will be developed around the same Modular Electric Drive Toolkit that a number of its electric production vehicles will be based on.

“On the one hand, it serves as a dynamic laboratory for the development of future production cars and, on the other, as a convincing marketing platform to inspire people even more towards electric mobility,” said Smeets.

“That is why we are going to focus more than ever on factory-backed electric drive commitments and continue to expand our activities with the development of the MEB.

"Innovative technology relevant to the car of the future is our focus.”

A spokesperson confirmed to Motorsport.com that the decision will bring an immediate end to the development of a new TCR car based on the Mk8 Golf, and Volkswagen Motorsport's alliance with the Sebastien Loeb Racing World Touring Car Cup team.

- https://uk.motor1.com/news/384026/volks ... sport-tcr/

[odysseus2000]

Cyber truck orders so far:

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/119 ... 85280?s=21

Interesting how the tri motor is so strong, but the price point is good compared to competitors.

E.g. a Volvo V90 now retails in the uk for over £39k, with a Diesel engine.

Regards,

[BobbyD]

Cyber truck orders so far:

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/119 ... 85280?s=21

Interesting how the tri motor is so strong, but the price point is good compared to competitors.

E.g. a Volvo V90 now retails in the uk for over £39k, with a Diesel engine.

Regards,

Tesla had over 500,000 preorders for the model 3, and that required a deposit 10 times that needed to 'order' a cybertruck'. These figures only value is in free media coverage.

Plus there are plenty of reports of people accidentally ordering two because the payment process apparently crashed before completion so they reordered, but both went through...

[odysseus2000]

This video sums up why I think the Cyber truck is one of the most brilliant products ever conceived in form, function and marketing. The more I think about it, the more it makes sense and the more power it has to change the entire pickup industry and the more I think it will hurt Ford 150 sales:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX1xG0a ... e=youtu.be

Regards,

[BobbyD]

This video sums up why I think the Cyber truck is one of the most brilliant products ever conceived in form, function and marketing. The more I think about it, the more it makes sense and the more power it has to change the entire pickup industry and the more I think it will hurt Ford 150 sales:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX1xG0a ... e=youtu.be

Regards,

But Ody, it's vapourware...

[odysseus2000]

Musk on why the Cyber is so planar.

This fits in with my experience of more standard stainless steels which are hard to bend and which also work harden with a slightly blunt drill and then become too hard for example to tap and put thread in:

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/119 ... 56608?s=20

Regards,

[odysseus2000]

This video sums up why I think the Cyber truck is one of the most brilliant products ever conceived in form, function and marketing. The more I think about it, the more it makes sense and the more power it has to change the entire pickup industry and the more I think it will hurt Ford 150 sales:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX1xG0a ... e=youtu.be

Regards,

But Ody, it's vapourware...

Lots of folk like Ford may want it to be vapourware, but it ain't.

This is imho extraordinarily brilliant marketing and if legacy auto doesn't respond fast they will have yet another trouble on top of all the expensive write offs of production lines and all the labour issues with the transition to the much smaller work force needed to build electric.

Ford et al are now praying that this is another "Man in a white suit" product, a reference to a UK film where a boffin invents a new fabric that doesn't need washing and lasts a very long time causing labour and management to unite to destroy the boffin and his new suit.

Regards,