It’s a bit of a hybrid. Not quite as much of an exoskeleton as they hinted in the beginning, but the skin is absolutely structural.
As best I can tell, the main components are large front and rear castings, with a skateboard pack connecting them, and then the body panels bolted to the outside. The panels absorb energy on impact and increase stiffness–allegedly, the triangle panels above the bed increase torsional rigidity by 25%. And the door panels are sufficient for side-impact protection without extra stiffener bars. There are some energy-absorbing elements besides these for crash protection.
That’s not quite the full-fledged exoskeleton that was promised, but it’s not nothing, either. And since 2019, Tesla has really stepped up their large casting technology, so I think they decided that they’d put that to use here.
I decided to stop by the Tesla showroom while out shopping, and they did have a Cybertruck there. Was super busy! It actually looks great in person; better than most photos. I think it’s so big that a lot of pics have to use wide angle, and that does not do the vehicle any favors, particularly from the rear. But in person you don’t notice it. In fact it looked surprisingly normal compared to the bloated, overmuscled, overgrilled mess that is most modern pickups.
Fit and finish was good, but not perfect. I noticed that at very shallow angles, some of the panels had a bit of ripple to them, because they weren’t perfectly flat. Not really noticeable unless you were looking for it, but still, a flaw. Alignment and panel gaps were pretty good. I did see some sharp edges that could catch on clothing, etc. I hope they can radius some of these corners more for the full production versions.
The windshield wiper was, as advertised, hilariously large. But apparently effective, and the tiny bit of asymmetry arguably makes it look more futuristic.
One of the reps there said he expects everyone to take off the side-view mirrors. There are plenty of cameras for visibility (which show up on the main screen), and it’s easy to remove them. It looks a bit sleeker without them, and improves range by a few percent. Legally, they have to ship with them, but no law says that cars on the road must have them. You know, like the tags on your mattress.
Certainly didn’t hear any laughing or anything. I dunno how many people there liked the looks, but everyone was super interested. The showroom was in a large mall area, so it wasn’t just Tesla nerds stopping by.
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