After years of anticipation, Tesla finally lifted the curtain on its all-electric Cybertruck this week. And let's just say not everyone was impressed.
During a promotional event in Los Angeles, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the so-called "bulletproof" vehicle on stage, touting its unique design, performance capabilities, and overall toughness. To demonstrate the vehicle's durability, Musk asked his chief designer, Franz von Holzhausen, to take a sledgehammer to a standard truck door and then the Cybertruck's stainless steel door. As expected, the former was left with a huge dent, while the latter was left without a mark.
"You want a truck that's really tough? Not fake tough?" Musk asked the crowd. "You want a truck you can take a sledgehammer to, a truck that won’t scratch, doesn’t dent."
The Tesla CEO went on to highlight the strength of the "armored glass" and asked Holzhausen to throw a metal ball at the side window. This test, however, wasn't so successful, as the glass was left shattered.
"Oh my fucking god," Musk said with a laugh. "Well, maybe that was a little too hard."
They then threw the metal ball at the rear window. That one shattered too.
"Ah, not bad. Room for improvement," Musk told the audience. "We'll fix it in post."
According to Forbes, Tesla share price fell about 6 percent following the Cybertruck debut; this caused Musk's net worth to drop to $768 million, leaving him with $23.6 billion. The outlet also cited a number of Wall Street analysts who had differing opinions on the Cybertruck's marketability.
"We believe there are important unanswered questions to be able to assess potential buyer interest in the model, and whether or not this could attract commercial fleets or remain a consumer niche vehicle," Deutsche Bank analyst Emmanuel Rosner wrote. "The shattering of the truck's unbreakable glass windows during the live demonstration was not a good start."
Some have theorized the Cybertruck flub was nothing more than a publicity stunt, but sources tell TMZ that the shattered windows were not planned. Insiders claim Musk and Holzhausen did not rehearse the test, and were left "upset, bewildered and dumbfounded."
