The Tesla Cybertruck is real, and it's on sale

Tesla’s polarising Cybertruck was first unveiled in its concept form in November 2019, with Elon Musk promising something different that competes with the likes of the Ford F150 with a stainless steel skin and unbreakable windows — with a projected starting price of US$39,900 (S$53,202).

Four years on, and the Cybertruck is finally on sale in its full, slab-sided stainless steel glory at nearly double the truck’s original projected starting price.

Three variants of the Cybertruck have been announced, beginning with a rear-wheel drive model that starts from an estimated US$60,900 to a top-shelf Cyberbeast model that will cost an estimated US$99,990. 

There's not a lot that can be said about the Cybertruck's appearance, apart from its polygonal shell and continuous light strips both front and rear of the car. It certainly looks unlike any other flatbed pickup truck on the market with its triangular silhouette and a massive moonroof.

According to Elon, the design of the Cybertruck was inspired by the submersible Lotus Esprit from the "The Spy Who Loved Me" Bond flick. Grudgingly, we can see the slight resemblance between the two. A better comparison would be the similarly (un)finished body of the DMC DeLorean.

Inside, the Cybertruck's cabin looks broadly similar to that of other Teslas with a centrally mounted infotainment screen and a minimalist cabin. But apart from the polarising exterior looks and lacklustre interior, the specifications of the Cybertruck are impressive.

According to Musk, the unpainted stainless steel body panels are developed in-house by Tesla and are able to withstand the absolute worst that any conventional Cybertruck owner will endure in the cars lifetime — scratches, rock chips, even sledgehammers. Reportedly, the steel panels can even withstand .45 calibre bullets without being punctured.

The wheels themselves are capped off with a plastic cover that appears to make the 3000-kilogram truck more aerodynamic. On the subject of aero optimisation, the Cybertruck has a drag coefficient of Cd 0.335, higher than most hatchbacks and sedans but lower than that of the average pickup truck (which typically rise above Cd 0.45).

All Cybertruck models come with adaptive air suspension that has 12 inches of suspension travel and 17 inches of ground clearance, allowing you to ford through fjords or bash through rocky terrain of your choosing. The air compressor system of the Cybertruck also allows you to use it as a portable air compressor.

The load bed can accommodate up to 1897 litres of storage and lug payloads up to 1134kg, which can be locked under the flatbed cover. The top-spec Cyberbeast and AWD variants of the Cybertruck have towing capacities rated up to five tons so effectively, you could tow a light-duty truck with some weight to spare.

All models even come fitted with vehicle-to-load power outlets that can supply 120V or 240V, effectively turning the Cybertruck into a portable power bank or as seen in the image above, used to charge another Tesla. The car even dispenses 11.5kW of juice to power your home in the event of a power outage.

The specifications of the rear wheel drive variant of the Cybertruck are not available at the time of writing, but the car will have an estimated 250 mile range on a single charge with a 0-60mph (0-96.5km/h) time of 6.5 seconds. The RWD Cybertruck will be made available to the masses sometime in 2025 and start from roughly US$60,900 — or roughly S$81,400.

The AWD version is rated for 600 horsepower and a whopping 10,080Nm of torque. 0-60mph is dealt with in just 4.1 seconds and the truck has a 112mph (180km/h) top speed. Range is estimated at 547km and the car starts from an estimated US$79,990 (S$106,666 at today’s exchange rates).

The Cyberbeast is a whole other beast entirely with a headlining 0-60mph time of 2.6 seconds, which would more than likely mean that this pickup truck will do 0-100km/h in well under three seconds. That comes courtesy of the Cyberbeast’s 845 horsepower and frankly monstrous 13,959Nm of torque. Top speed is rated at 130mph (209km/h) and the Cyberbeast’s range is listed at 515km. 

You’d probably want one right about now, but prices for the Cyberbeast start at US$99,990. Or S$133,547 without factoring in local taxes. Unfortunately, it’s highly unlikely that the Cybertruck in any weight shape or form will make it to Singapore’s shores. But if it does, you should expect it to go for quite a considerable sum of money. North of S$700k considerable.

But all things aside, it’s fairly impressive that Tesla (and by extension Elon Musk) has managed to bring the Cybertruck to production. We might joke about Elon from time to time, but it’s clear that the Cybertruck isn’t just Elon’s flight of fancy. It’s a reality. 

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This article was first published in CarBuyer.