Sandy has been saying Cybertruck not going to be a "work" truck since at least 2020.
I think this is splitting hairs. Legacy trucks have bigger mirrors, and often they extend for towing. That said, I've towed many big loads with small non-extending mirrors and never thought they were inadequate. The Cybertruck has more towing capacity, and tows a heavy load more securely, than any of the current crop of EV pickups, due to it's more rigid frame. It simply doesn't flex as much when a heavy trailer pushes back.
I don't get this at all. None of the "work trucks" I used through my working career had a crew cab, they were for towing and hauling lots of stuff. They had a higher ratio of bed space to cab space. File boxes? We never had those with us and in 2024 it would be even less likely. Nooks and crannies? They would just collect dirt and require employee time to clean out periodically and find the owner of left behind items. We put our dirty work gloves on the floor of the cab. Lunches stayed with us. We did not spend our day stashing things in nooks and crannies because then we would have to retrieve them, we only brought what we needed to get the job done.
Minimalistic is utilitarian. We didn't wear our gloves in the cab, nor did we spend much time twiddling knobs. It was turn the heater on and maybe play the radio. In the Cybertruck both these things happen automatically, or the driver can manually control them with the scroll wheel or a voice command. It's not going to differentiate something as a "work truck" or not. Bed steps? We wouldn't have used them, too inefficient. It was about getting the job done. Time is money. We didn't spend our time deploying and folding up little "man steps" we grabbed what we needed and jumped in or out of the bed as required. Man steps take too long and are added for retired homeowners, they are not a feature for real workers. You've been watching too many truck commercials that make you think they belong on a jobsite.
Huh? This is what we are debating, whether the Cybertruck is a work truck or not. You can't answer the question by declaring one is "built as" a work truck and the other is not. That's the question, not the answer.
That layer of leather is just vanity. Cybertruck doesn't have that, does that make it a work truck? LOL! It is inconsequential either way.
Wait, the question is whether the Cybertruck is a work truck. You can't answer that question by saying legacy auto should have the better work truck because they have a century of experience. A good work truck has to be reliable of all things, the Silverado EV is showing a shocking number of serious failures relative to how few they have made/sold. It makes me question the long-term reliability. A good work truck needs to make it more efficient to get work done. The low bed height of the Cybertruck in Easy Entry mode makes it easy to load/unload heavy items and it's lack of intrusions into the loading area means your cargo can go straight in/out, without those intrusions messing up your loading pattern. A good work truck needs to have low running costs. It has to be at home on rugged job sites and be tough and damage resistant. Legacy pickups get damaged if almost anything rubs on them of falls on their fragile and thin painted bodies. The Cybertruck's hard shell repels damage. Before I got the Cybertruck I thought a good truck was inherently awkward and unwieldy in tight work areas. The Cybertruck taught me a full sized truck can maneuver and jockey around tight spots like a compact. Less time waiting to get through or spent jockeying around gets the job done faster.
Work trucks are defined by being minimalistic. That's what a truck is, a tool to get work done that can't be done with a car or SUV. The more minimalistic it is, the less things to get in the way of the job at hand. You are trying to turn the minimalistic styling aesthetic of the interior and exterior of the Cybertruck into a negative that doesn't exist. The styling is inconsequential as to how it performs as a work truck.
To be fair, this type of experience reiterates some of the differences in uses I've mentioned. Sounds like a lot of localized work. I can see where your comment apply. Our industry is pipelines, drilling wells, etc. Always far from localities and home. This would definitely influence our perspective and expectations.
It is splitting hairs, but sort of justifies my point because I'm not saying CT sucks or can't do any of this, only that it could be a little bit easier. Things like better visibility, 360 cameras, camera rearview mirror, turning signal camera that highlights the blind spot next to the trailer, etc. I'd also question whether the CT would tow a heavy trailer more securely when it weighs 6,500lbs vs the Silverado that weights 8,500lbs, which is more than the weight that a typical cargo trailer towed by a half ton would weigh. I'd love to tow with a CT to experience the difference.
Goes back to our different types of work backgrounds. I'm assuming you didn't have to bring a crew with you then. Didn't have ride alongs to the ROW with visitors, etc. Same with job boxes. Energy and construction industry is still old school. Also, when moving from project to project (in different cities/states), you don't want to throw all of your belongings in the bed. You're thinking in terms of fleet trucks. I think this whole discussion is a result of us having different work environments or industries.
Fair. Goes back to definition of work and your industry. I'll retract based on having made a generalized comment.
I think you misread that. That was my point. It's trim added to a work truck.
You can walk onto the truck on load mode? If so that's awesome and cancels out my step comment. I'm not going to get into the body issue; it's my thoughts that that body won't make the final determination, but that's subjective, no argument there. Size goes back to our work environment perspectives. No lack of space in the places I work. I can see how this is a plus in urban centers.
I haven't used the CT for work, I look forward to at some point, and I expect to be enlightened in some way; it's the reason I'm here. I disagree that my logic is flimsy, but I think we have different work experiences and environments that blur our understanding of each other. In my industry big miles are the norm. The industry I'm in requires long freeway drives, sometimes miles off on a country road, out in some farm land, Walmart is the only place for groceries, and closest "major" cities 1-2 hours way type of deal. Our projects at times mobilize hundreds of people to these locations, along with their families, travel trailers, welding equipment, utility trailers, etc. We're clearly not comparing work apples to apples.
I appreciate your mostly reasonable response. It highlights that there is no one kind of "work truck" because use cases are varied. But I've never been on a construction site that wasn't tight and constricted (and I've never been on an urban construction site, all of them have been pretty rural, with a few suburban sites). Space is always at a premium and an easily maneuverable truck like the Cybertruck is just quicker and easier to get the materials where they are going.
Appreciate the candid discussion! Won't add anymore to the differences but will clarify again that I did not say CT is not a work truck.
Did you test-drive the Cybertruck yet?
I did, but it was rushed. I also dragged the family with me to see if I could fit three car seats in the back like I could in my Lightning. They were churning people out so it was jump in do the loop, jump out. I'm actually planning do a second one to review some of the things I've learned from you guys. Hopefully it won't be as rushed and I can take a deeper dive.
