My Cybertruck test drive experience: magnificent machine!

[Cyber Man]

I have been waiting for this day to sit in a Cybertruck and press that pedal to experience what it is really. Fortunately Dublin CA center opened up CT for demo drives. Thanks to another forum member for notifying us. CT demos are available now in several SCs. Folks at Dublin center were super awesome.

Some background on my driving habits - I enjoy driving/riding fast vehicles. I’m very sensitive to all the subtle things that happen while driving. I’m one of those people who others think I’m hearing voices in my head for some rattling noise that nobody hears, but when they open the system for the third time, they will find the loose screw. True story ?. I’m very attuned to how the vehicle performs and operates, and I have a high bar on how the vehicle should drive. Honestly, I wasn’t impressed with other Teslas (3, X, and Y) in terms of how they drive. They are good, but it’s not out of ordinary.

Though I knew CT drives really well, I can’t put it in words on what it feels like when you drive this thing for real. It’s like sitting in a military Tank that drives like a sports car. This is a very unnatural combo.

The sheer size, acceleration, cornering experience, feedback from the steering wheel, center of gravity, and all the physics/aero dynamics, are just out of the world and perfectly tuned for optimal driving experience. It doesn’t budge when there are heavy winds. Suspension is at the perfect sweet spot. Road noise is very low. I didn’t get to try the audio system. Rear view camera was not a problem for me. Indicators took few mins to get used to. After the test drive, when I jumped back into my Porsche, I felt like I was riding an old horse! lol ?. No disrespect to Porsche, but steer by wire is the big secret sauce IMO. If not for this one element, I don’t think Cybertruck driving experience would have been this amazing.

Even the psychological feeling is different. It’s like an untamed machine that just wants to mind its business and doesn’t want to pickup a fight, but all hell will break loose if you mess with it (not hinting at road rage by any means ?). It’s so powerful and strong yet very sophisticated. It doesn’t command anything but still knows it’s better than 99% of the vehicles around it. It’s like the Hulk - he doesn’t care about fighting because he knows he will win. You kinda get that feeling when you are driving a 6000 lbs bullet resistant massive truck with incredible torque, but it can turn on a dime. Probably that’s why people show so much middle finger. They are just intimidated ?.

Yes price is double of what we expected, wait is 5x longer, but man once you drive this thing, all those negative feelings will go into an oblivion. It’s a blissful state. Hard to explain without experiencing it. If you are someone who really enjoys driving experience, Cybertruck will absolutely not let you down!

After test driving this thing, I have nothing but great respect for people behind the screens who built this magnificent machine. I hope the innovation continues and Cybertruck gets better! I’m happy for all those who have FS models. I can’t wait to get my non FS soon. Cheers!

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[Macgreiner]

We did our test drive today. Concur with just about all of this.

 

[Harley]

“It’s like sitting in a military Tank that drives like a sports car.”

Exactly the feeling I’ve had since the first drive in mine, and I’ve put 2,000 miles on it and still marvel that such a big vehicle can feel this responsive and nimble, yet really comfortable (more on that below). About two weeks after taking delivery, I went on a business trip and my rental was upgraded to a Lincoln Navigator — a big, luxurious vehicle that was an underpowered body-rolling slug around corners and a comparative bulldozer in the way it drove. Oh, and after driving around town a week it cost $80 to fill with gas. Couldn't wait to get back in the CT.

One other thing: The ride is so smooth on chill mode. My wife deals with horrible chronic pain, and a 30-minute ride even on a fairly smooth freeway can leave her feeling miserable for days. Our other car is a GL450, a nice-riding vehicle but she keeps cushions under her seat and feet to minimize the vibrations. Our first weekend with the CT, she forgot her cushions. A couple hundred miles later, she felt fine and still has not experienced the pain she has felt in other vehicles. That itself is worth every penny we spent on the CT.

 

[Hunky Dory]

I'm a total noob with all things Tesla. I have a CB ordered with an estimated delivery date of Oct-Dec. I am wondering if I should go on a test drive in one of the cars to familiarize myself with the general theory of operation. It is about 220 miles to the nearest test drive location so it would take a whole day to go there and back. They have Models S, 3, X and Y but no CTs available for test drive. Do the tesla employees go on the test drive with you? Are they helpful in answering questions and training on the system? Is that even necessary? If not I guess I'll test drive mine out of the delivery center.

 

[pricedm]

Driving the Cybertruck today felt like a more solid version of driving my Model Y. Hopefully end of Q3 or Q4 push leads to opening up non-Foundation series orders.

 

[pricedm]

I'm a total noob with all things Tesla. I have a CB ordered with an estimated delivery date of Oct-Dec. I am wondering if I should go on a test drive in one of the cars to familiarize myself with the general theory of operation. It is about 220 miles to the nearest test drive location so it would take a whole day to go there and back. They have Models S, 3, X and Y but no CTs available for test drive. Do the tesla employees go on the test drive with you? Are they helpful in answering questions and training on the system? Is that even necessary? If not I guess I'll test drive mine out of the delivery center.

No need. If you have free time, sure.

Cybertruck is just a larger Tesla model "other!"

 

[CyberGus]

Yeah, but how did you handle the laggy steering

 

[mdorty]

I have been waiting for this day to sit in a Cybertruck and press that pedal to experience what it is really. Fortunately Dublin CA center opened up CT for demo drives. Thanks to another forum member for notifying us. CT demos are available now in several SCs. Folks at Dublin center were super awesome.

Some background on my driving habits - I enjoy driving/riding fast vehicles. I’m very sensitive to all the subtle things that happen while driving. I’m one of those people who others think I’m hearing voices in my head for some rattling noise that nobody hears, but when they open the system for the third time, they will find the loose screw. True story ?. I’m very attuned to how the vehicle performs and operates, and I have a high bar on how the vehicle should drive. Honestly, I wasn’t impressed with other Teslas (3, X, and Y) in terms of how they drive. They are good, but it’s not out of ordinary.

Though I knew CT drives really well, I can’t put it in words on what it feels like when you drive this thing for real. It’s like sitting in a military Tank that drives like a sports car. This is a very unnatural combo.

The sheer size, acceleration, cornering experience, feedback from the steering wheel, center of gravity, and all the physics/aero dynamics, are just out of the world and perfectly tuned for optimal driving experience. It doesn’t budge when there are heavy winds. Suspension is at the perfect sweet spot. Road noise is very low. I didn’t get to try the audio system. Rear view camera was not a problem for me. Indicators took few mins to get used to. After the test drive, when I jumped back into my Porsche, I felt like I was riding an old horse! lol ?. No disrespect to Porsche, but steer by wire is the big secret sauce IMO. If not for this one element, I don’t think Cybertruck driving experience would have been this amazing.

Even the psychological feeling is different. It’s like an untamed machine that just wants to mind its business and doesn’t want to pickup a fight, but all hell will break loose if you mess with it (not hinting at road rage by any means ?). It’s so powerful and strong yet very sophisticated. It doesn’t command anything but still knows it’s better than 99% of the vehicles around it. It’s like the Hulk - he doesn’t care about fighting because he knows he will win. You kinda get that feeling when you are driving a 6000 lbs bullet resistant massive truck with incredible torque, but it can turn on a dime. Probably that’s why people show so much middle finger. They are just intimidated ?.

Yes price is double of what we expected, wait is 5x longer, but man once you drive this thing, all those negative feelings will go into an oblivion. It’s a blissful state. Hard to explain without experiencing it. If you are someone who really enjoys driving experience, Cybertruck will absolutely not let you down!

After test driving this thing, I have nothing but great respect for people behind the screens who built this magnificent machine. I hope the innovation continues and Cybertruck gets better! I’m happy for all those who have FS models. I can’t wait to get my non FS soon. Cheers!

My test drive is this Friday at the Dublin CA Center... based on your assessment, I am so looking forward to it. ?

 

[Killlbox]

I'm a total noob with all things Tesla. I have a CB ordered with an estimated delivery date of Oct-Dec. I am wondering if I should go on a test drive in one of the cars to familiarize myself with the general theory of operation. It is about 220 miles to the nearest test drive location so it would take a whole day to go there and back. They have Models S, 3, X and Y but no CTs available for test drive. Do the tesla employees go on the test drive with you? Are they helpful in answering questions and training on the system? Is that even necessary? If not I guess I'll test drive mine out of the delivery center.

I was a noob to all things Tesla too prior to taking delivery of a Beast on 8/3.

Just my 0.02 here, I highly recommend not test driving it. The Test drive will only make every day without one in the garage absolutely miserable. You’ll quickly find that driving anything else is unbearable. I recommend enjoying ignorance in this case.

 

[Cyber Man]

“It’s like sitting in a military Tank that drives like a sports car.”

Exactly the feeling I’ve had since the first drive in mine, and I’ve put 2,000 miles on it and still marvel that such a big vehicle can feel this responsive and nimble, yet really comfortable (more on that below). About two weeks after taking delivery, I went on a business trip and my rental was upgraded to a Lincoln Navigator — a big, luxurious vehicle that was an underpowered body-rolling slug around corners and a comparative bulldozer in the way it drove. Oh, and after driving around town a week it cost $80 to fill with gas. Couldn't wait to get back in the CT.

One other thing: The ride is so smooth on chill mode. My wife deals with horrible chronic pain, and a 30-minute ride even on a fairly smooth freeway can leave her feeling miserable for days. Our other car is a GL450, a nice-riding vehicle but she keeps cushions under her seat and feet to minimize the vibrations. Our first weekend with the CT, she forgot her cushions. A couple hundred miles later, she felt fine and still has not experienced the pain she has felt in other vehicles. That itself is worth every penny we spent on the CT.

I’m glad to hear that. You are the second person who is saying that traveling in Cybertruck makes the chronic pain extremely manageable. Another owner said the same thing with the steering wheel. His wife gets severe wrist pains when she drivers any car. As steer by wire greatly reduces or technically eliminates the micro vibrations from the wheels, she can drive it without any pain. So many side benefits of this engineering marvel. Enjoy and have fun! ?

 

[Cyber Man]

I'm a total noob with all things Tesla. I have a CB ordered with an estimated delivery date of Oct-Dec. I am wondering if I should go on a test drive in one of the cars to familiarize myself with the general theory of operation. It is about 220 miles to the nearest test drive location so it would take a whole day to go there and back. They have Models S, 3, X and Y but no CTs available for test drive. Do the tesla employees go on the test drive with you? Are they helpful in answering questions and training on the system? Is that even necessary? If not I guess I'll test drive mine out of the delivery center.

It’s not that important to test drive other Teslas to understand Cybertruck. CT has the same DNA as other Teslas - super minimalistic design, cameras everywhere, etc. These things might shock you in the beginning, but CT drives very different IMO. Some who are not sensitive to the driving experience might not see much difference, but I felt it was different. CT is more heavy and grounded. Generally with a vehicle of that size, you think it takes more power to drive and maneuver but absolutely not true with Cybertruck. It drives like a sports car but feels like a large truck. You won’t get that experience driving other Teslas. The things that are same as other Teslas - minimal design, camera sensors, touch screen for everything, not worrying about locking unlocking your car, navigation, charging, and few more things.

 

[Cyber Man]

My test drive is this Friday at the Dublin CA Center... based on your assessment, I am so looking forward to it. ?

Nice! Have fun. Dublin folks are super amazing. Unlike in other Teslas, in CT they want to tag along. One of their reps will sit with you during test drive. They will take you through 680 to San Ramon, and drive through some curvy roads and join back from an interior route to the Tesla center. They will let you launch the truck and have fun with it. If you need a different route, tell them ahead of time. The rep and I were giggling and smiling like kids whenever the truck did something amazing. The rep at the end said that her day ended really well with this test drive. I think the fun of driving CT never wears off. ?

I wanted to test drive Beast as well. They are not allowing that yet.

Have fun! Looking forward to hearing your experience. ?

 

[Harley]

I’m glad to hear that. You are the second person who is saying that traveling in Cybertruck makes the chronic pain extremely manageable. Another owner said the same thing with the steering wheel. His wife gets severe wrist pains when she drivers any car. As steer by wire greatly reduces or technically eliminates the micro vibrations from the wheels, she can drive it without any pain. So many side benefits of this engineering marvel. Enjoy and have fun! ?

Now that you mention it…

The steering wheel definitely is more comfortable. The shape, the lack of vibrations, etc. I have arthritis in my left hand and feel less pain driving the CT.

 

[Cyber Man]

I was a noob to all things Tesla too prior to taking delivery of a Beast on 8/3.

Just my 0.02 here, I highly recommend not test driving it. The Test drive will only make every day without one in the garage absolutely miserable. You’ll quickly find that driving anything else is unbearable. I recommend enjoying ignorance in this case.

lol, that’s so true. In fact that’s how I ended up getting a Porsche, and just before the test drive, I told the rep that this could be a bad idea. How do you walk away from something like this? Fortunately or unfortunately, I have a much stronger motive to use $20K somewhere else, so I’m able to delay the gratification a little longer. If regular AWD specs turn out to be bad, I’m pulling the trigger for FS. Screw it!

 

[Cyber Man]

Now that you mention it…

The steering wheel definitely is more comfortable. The shape, the lack of vibrations, etc. I have arthritis in my left hand and feel less pain driving the CT.

There you go! The science definitely checks out. If you watch Sandy Munro’s video of tearing down Cybertruck, he shows how Tesla added a system to actually give force feedback to make you feel like a real steering wheel. Otherwise, it would feel like a toy wheel. The steering wheel is not mechanically connected to the wheel axles at all. So, there is no vibration to feel. In regular drivetrain system, these micro vibrations could amplify the wrist pain in the long drives. That might explain why it feels more comfortable for you compared to regular steering wheels.

I’m simply in love with steer by wire. Not many talk about these side benefits of this new drive system. Imagine how many people suffer from chronic health issues. We spend so much time commuting. If a vehicle is built to minimize the health issues while driving, it’s money worth spent IMO.

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