How many CyberTruck prospective buyers have even driven a Lightning or a Rivian?

[Keeney]

I've considered Rivian and Lightning. My CT deposit was to pull my retirement travel trailer, and the CT delay is eating into my leisure plans. But, my wife had to put off retirement to train her replacement (such a loyal worker) so it gives me a little time to finally decide. My urge to stick with Tesla is ~95% based on sticking with a reliable Fast Charging network. Had NACS been adopted by Rivian or Ford and all SuperChargers opened up to their vehicles already, I'd likely have made the jump already. Trying to go full time EV RVing I need both range while towing and the most options for charging.

Aside from the price, I am delighted at the Range Extender option. It's a flexibility that I was politicking for since way back. If it's a pack that can be removed when you don't need it (?) it will be the ideal solution. I'm trying to think of a way to install a jib crane in the corner of the bed to offload the battery pack to remain at the RV for boondocking or just to shed weight and bed obstruction while day tripping in the truck away from basecamp.

They need to make a range extender option with longer, disconnecting cables and self contained cooling that can be installed on the trailer frame somewhere instead of the truck bed. If it was flat enough it could hang under the trailer frame.
Also going to need some charging extension cables to avoid the hassles of dropping the trailer every time you need to charge.

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[cmugler]

I own a Rivian r1t and a model 3 my reservation for the cyber truck won’t come up for a couple years so I have to wait to see how the Rivian is holding Up so far it’s so far been a great truck

 

[Gurule92]

I havent tried the F150L but I have tried the R1T. One thing i noticed about the R1T was that when you go to floor it, it almost takes like a second to think about it before it explodes with power. That was a bit of a turn off for me but otherwise an awesome truck.

 

[cvalue13]

If it's a pack that can be removed when you don't need it (?) it will be the ideal solution. I'm trying to think of a way to install a jib crane in the corner of the bed to offload the battery pack to remain at the RV for boondocking or just to shed weight and bed obstruction while day tripping in the truck away from basecamp.

unfortunately, I don’t think it’ll be that sort thing

it will very likely be a service center only thing (if not ultimately factory installed only on future units once available), as it’s gonna be a high voltage connection to the penthouse below it (under the forward bed floor), likely involving coolant lines, etc., (not to mention likely a separate bed floor access panel)


will be *very* interesting to see how this thing plugs and plays into the main pack. That kit will likely be a material piece of the price.

 

[Klyde]

just to offer my perspective. I m not a truck guy and have never own any truck, and of cos all my neighbours has trucks, including the F150 lightning and i sat in one be4 for couple of trips. Anyway, i am going to get the Cybertruck when its my turn, for couple of reasons:

1. Cybertruck is a large car but it steer like a model S turn radius thanks to steer-by-wire, thats an amazing feature to begin with and I am pretty sure none of any existing trucks has that.

2. The advancement and implementation of the low voltage system (48V) and the ethernet ring is incredibly brilliant as David and Peter put it, at any instant, data is able to be pulled as a snapshot of all the controllers involved, thats just efficiency to the next level.

3. The design (not talking about the look), in this case the exoskeleton, just better than body-on-frame imo, of cos the downside is its not modular.

4. Noise cancellation and better acoustic glass, its just meditation to drive in a Tesla and i m sure all of you know that, it will be the same for the Cybertruck vs any other trucks, though i m still a little concern about the large tire noise, will see.

5. Its a tank with incredible speed and acceleration, even the 4.3s Dual Motor is incredibly fast, thats some insane engineering defying physics fast on a 6600lb of mass. I know Ravian is pretty fast as well but its far from being a tank tough.

Lastly, the functions first mindset just resonates with many buyers i believe, where Franz and team think about that they want to achieve then design everything around optimizing it including the castings, just mind blowing.

 

[CyberGus]

I haven’t even driven a vehicle with 4 doors

 

[Rutrow]

unfortunately, I don’t think it’ll be that sort thing

it will very likely be a service center only thing (if not ultimately factory installed only on future units once available), as it’s gonna be a high voltage connection to the penthouse below it (under the forward bed floor), likely involving coolant lines, etc., (not to mention likely a separate bed floor access panel)


will be *very* interesting to see how this thing plugs and plays into the main pack. That kit will likely be a material piece of the price.

We make a "high voltage connection to the penthouse" everytime we SuperCharge. An electric gladhands connection isn't out of the question. I can see that the initial install on the early models that don't have the connection outlet factory installed may be a Service Center install, but Elon (or was it Drew) said that the Range Extender is for "long trips and towing up mountains" in a way that hinted it could be for intermittent instances. Although for my use case I'd purchase the Range Extender outright, I think it would be a better use of resources for them to be rentable on daily, or maybe weekly periods.

As for cooling, it may very well be air cooled with resistive heat to get it up to charging temps in the winter. Being a "range extender" and not a "performance enhancer" might mean that it doesn't have huge power transfer ability (akin to Powerwalls, 5kW) I think it will merely shunt power to the main battery at rates like a Level 2 charger would. If it can take any regen power it probably only accepts the small overcurrent that the main battery in incapable of when it's near fully charged or during extreme regen situations. In today's Sandy Munro interview one of the techs mentioned enhanced regen when towing to minimize trailer braking as much as possible.

One thing about the picture on the Tesla website is that there's a line that could be a shadow on the thickness edge. It looks like it may not rest completely on the bed floor. Like some tool boxes that have space underneath to allow 4-5 sheets of plywood underneath. THAT would be huge bonus for folks who think it makes the bed practically useless.

Comparing the raw photo with one that bumps up the contrast shows there's clearly an intentional line in the blackness.

 

[CyberGus]

Hard to believe they wouldn’t use active thermal management. Still, rentals may not be unpossible

 

[Rutrow]

Hard to believe they wouldn’t use active thermal management. Still, rentals may not be unpossible

Fans and heat strips are "active thermal"

 

[wanders]

Wondering how many Tesla owners and prospective CyberTruck buyers have even driven a Lightning or a Rivian?

So much of the hype for the CyberTruck strikes me as general hype for EVs without any consideration that not every EV is a Tesla. People seem to overlook that the Lightning and Rivian ARE EVs. The have super smooth, silent, rapid acceleration. They charge at home. They drive effortlessly in traffic. They have 300+ mile range.

Had a Tesla owner in my F150L the other day and they were amazed that the F150L actually drives like an EV. They assumed it would be more ICE like because its built by Ford and shaped the same as the ICE version?

I haven't driven any EV, only been in a Tesla once. The CT is compelling to me for many reasons that wouldn't be satisfied by any of the competition. That said, I'm a fan of Rivian but wouldn't own one, it's way too posh for me and not capable enough. Ford's EV tech isn't mature, it's just an F150 with a battery.

 

[PilotPete]

Wondering how many Tesla owners and prospective CyberTruck buyers have even driven a Lightning or a Rivian?

So much of the hype for the CyberTruck strikes me as general hype for EVs without any consideration that not every EV is a Tesla. People seem to overlook that the Lightning and Rivian ARE EVs. The have super smooth, silent, rapid acceleration. They charge at home. They drive effortlessly in traffic. They have 300+ mile range.

Had a Tesla owner in my F150L the other day and they were amazed that the F150L actually drives like an EV. They assumed it would be more ICE like because its built by Ford and shaped the same as the ICE version?

I have not driven the Rivian or the Lightning. Why? Is it general BEV hype for me? Do I consider every BEV is a Tesla? Well, first off, That's a bit of an insult to assume that someone doesn't realize that there are BEVs that aren't Teslas. And I'm WELL aware that the Lightning and Rivian ARE BEVs. One of my good friends and neighbors bought a Rivian a couple months ago. I know they all charge at home (just like my wife's BMW PHEV). Just because it is shaped like the ICE version, I know full well it's NOT an ICE vehicle.

Almost half the year I'm driving a rental car somewhere. I've driven cars from pretty much every OEM pretty much every year. (this was a first year for Polestar and Genesis)

There are my observations, opinions, and observances only. I'm going to be brutally blunt. First, that's pretty myopic to think that just because Ford can't sell 1/2 the Lightnings they planned (just announced to their suppliers their rate was being dropped from 150k/yr to 75k/yr) that ignorance and stupidity are the reasons. I haven't and won't drive a Lightning beca use I don't like the Ford products, period. No, it's not a Ford v Chevy thing. I have a very low opinion of the cars they make on many levels. Take design. To not have even taken a chance at something new in the way of truck design in almost 100 years? Their best sellers are warmed over retro stuff? Their design dept is asleep at the wheel, and can't come up with anything new. And I don't even like trucks. Why on earth would I look at a Lightning? My wife looked at a Mach-E. Let's just say, I'm less than "not impressed".

The Rivian? The design is better, but really just a different take on the "classic" pickup. The rest of the design internally isn't bad. Two problems, I'm not sure Rivian will still be here in 5 years, and It's a truck! I'm NOT a truck guy. I don't want, and don't like the look of a truck. WHY would I want an electric version of a vehicle I would never consider all these years that ICE versions have been available?

Then there is the CT. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I like the "cyber", don't really care about the "truck" part. But the design! Both looks and Tech! Doesn't look like a truck, SbW, 4WS, new construction design (Exo or Uni whatever you think it is) The move to 48V, the speed... Then there is the part that makes or breaks a BEV, the software. Nobody, and I mean NO-BODY, is even close to Tesla. (and I haven't even got to the fart mode!) They've been doing it longer and better than Ford or Rivian (or Volvo, Polestar, Genesis, Hyundai, Fiat, or any others) and it shows. A Tesla can access the SC network, natively, TODAY, not it a year, NOW. And a Tesla can access 100% of the SC stands nationwide. Neither Ford or Rivan can say that. Sure, they'll have NACS connectors, but that aren't being given access to EVERY US supercharger.

I don't like Apple products. I don't like the way they lock you out of much of the OS that I'd like to reconfigure. Android gives me that option. But I don't own an Android. And I do own an iPhone, and iPad, and Apple Watch, and AppleTV, and I'm typing this on a MacBook. Why? Their stuff just flat out plain WORKS! I spend 0% of my time doing I.T. stuff on my own stuff. Day in and Day out, it just works. And Tesla is becoming the Apple of Cars and Power.

I know there is competition out there. I just don't like them enough to even consider a test drive. Sorry if that doesn't fit, but it's the way it is (for me).

 

[CyberGus]

Fans and heat strips are "active thermal"

Weak sauce

 

[Keeney]

Ford's EV tech isn't mature, it's just an F150 with a battery.

Looks like one, but hardly anything is legacy F150 under the skin.

 

[wanders]

Looks like one, but hardly anything is legacy F150 under the skin.

Is that right? Other than the looks of course. So what's compelling about it compared to the CT?

 

[Keeney]

...A Tesla can access the SC network, natively, TODAY, not it a year, NOW. ..

Ford and Rivian buyers can use 10,000 Non-Tesla fast chargers and 35 Tesla Superchargers sites in the US already. Another 15,000 coming in 2024.
Simple adapter to retrofit existing CCS vehicles.
CyberTruck buyers can of course use all the chargers as soon as they can get a CyberTruck.
Not clear which will happen first.

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