Some Tesla engineers hated Cybertruck's design and secretly designed alternative -- says design chief Franz (in new Musk biography book)

[CyberCowboy]

For me, it was love at first sight! I thought Elon was joking at first and would reveal the "real" Cybertruck after our initial astonishment. I REALLY was hoping the alien construct which rolled onto the stage was the actual design, but I kept thinking to myself, "No way even Elon has the balls to produce this vehicle". The longer the presentation went on, it became abundantly clear that Mr. Musk was serious! I ordered as soon as Elon said reservations were open. No regrets!!!

Sponsored

 

[ÆCIII]

The design is a departure from legacy while also futuristic, but that was the intent. In the end, the public consumers will decide how well the Cybertruck will scale.

Personally I hope Tesla optimizes the vault sides just a little bit as I discussed in the naysayer thread, but that's not a deal breaker for me:

https://www.cybertruckownersclub.com/forum/threads/naysayer-superthread.9125/post-176500

- ÆCIII

 

[SlegMD]

Wasn’t sold on it at first, though I did feel it was edgy(!). Then EM started talking features and that is what blew me over. SS skin (years of abusing paint) was one of the biggest factors.

I empathize with the engineers that folded, I guess, as they have more to lose in this situation in a way. So far so good though, they lost that gamble!

 

[Diehard]

A little background on one of the decision makers:

 

[Setok]

Tesla’s basic vehicles are actually quite bland. So it was with great surprise and excitement that I witnessed the unveiling of the Cybertruck. Now we are currently quite starved for options when it comes to offroad capable abusable EVs (especially in Europe where there’s a grand total of 0), but the Cybertruck design is a big part of the appeal for me. I have always loved dystopian sci-fi and this fits right in. The design is great enough that it allows me to turn a half blind eye towards some of the Tesla nonsense which might otherwise end up being a dealbreaker (my half blind eye is looking at you, stalkless steering wheel).

 

[Klaxon]

You mean that is why the glass was broken?

 

[Cullaby]

Exactly! This world has too many followers and not enough great leaders! Too many self-styled "leaders" attempt to lead by never saying anything controversial or offensive. I prefer leaders who lead through their own brilliance and vision, not those who lead by not offending anyone. Because that's not creating change. This is why pickup trucks still have the same boring designs from the 1950's. Nobody was willing to challenge the status quo and question whether the old designs were still valid in a new world with different parameters. Except for people like Elon and Franz.



“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt to the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”
~ George Bernard Shaw

We need to celebrate great leaders, not expect them to avoid controversy and be like everyone who came before.

Exactly! This world has too many followers and not enough great leaders! Too many self-styled "leaders" attempt to lead by never saying anything controversial or offensive. I prefer leaders who lead through their own brilliance and vision, not those who lead by not offending anyone. Because that's not creating change. This is why pickup trucks still have the same boring designs from the 1950's. Nobody was willing to challenge the status quo and question whether the old designs were still valid in a new world with different parameters. Except for people like Elon and Franz.

We need to celebrate great leaders, not expect them to avoid controversy and be like everyone who came before.

 

[Cullaby]

“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt to the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”

~ George Bernard Shaw

 

[FarAway]

So even TESLA has a "deep state", the swamp lives on!

 

[Trbizwiz]

I am guessign that Franz was one of the designers that was not emotionally bought in. Franz is the father of Tesla's design language. If you look at his designs throughout his career, including time at Mazda, and GM, he has a style. But I am guessing the difference is that Franz appreciated the challenge, and took it as such. That is where he and Elon were aligned.
I'll admit that I hated Cybertruck. I watched the original launch event. I was so disappointed with the design. But I loved Tesla, so I continued to consume all things Tesla. The more I got to know Cybertruck, the more I liked it. My love for the design did not come in an instant. There was no spark. I had to get to know her, and fall in love with who she is, not what she looks like. After all that, she became beautiful.
I think that most of the rest of the world will go through a similar process, after they get to know the real cybertruck, not the speculative hype, and FUD.

 

[Cybergirl]

-Henry Ford


-Elon Musk

"A lot of times, people don't know what they want until your show it to them"
-Steve Jobs

 

[punkt]

https://www.autoblog.com/2023/09/11...cybertruck-alternative-because-they-hated-it/

• Some Tesla engineers "hated" the look of the Cybertruck, design chief Franz von Holzhausen told Walter Isaacson.
• Certain engineers secretly worked on a alternate version, Isaacson wrote in his new book on Elon Musk.
• The edgy Cybertruck is known for its hard lines and stainless steel body.

Some Tesla engineers weren't fans of Elon Musk's plans for the Cybertruck, the automaker's design chief Franz von Holzhausen told Walter Isaacson, whose biography on Musk comes out this week.

"A majority of the people in this studio hated it," von Holzhausen said of the futuristic design, according to the book. "They were like, 'You can't be serious.' They didn't want to have anything to do with it. It was just too weird."

Some Tesla engineers even took to covertly designing another version of the electric pickup after they saw a mock-up of the futuristic truck on display at SpaceX's showroom in Los Angeles during the summer of 2019, Isaacson, who shadowed Musk for three years, wrote.

It's unclear what happened to the alternative version of the vehicle. Musk, von Holzhausen, and a spokesperson for Tesla did not respond to a request for comment ahead of publication.

"Von Holzhausen, who is as gentle as Musk is brusque, spent time listening carefully to their concerns. 'If you don't have buy-in from the people around you, it's hard to get things done,' he says," Isaacson wrote.

But Musk was "less patient," Isaacson reported, and did not want to hear concerns related to the Cybertruck.

"I don't do focus groups," the CEO said, according to Isaacson.

Rather than focus on adjusting the design, Musk told von Holzhausen that he wanted a driveable version of the vehicle that he could demo at a Tesla event in November, which von Holzhausen said "forced the team to come together, work twenty-four-seven," Isaacson wrote.

After the Cybertruck was demoed at the November 2019 event, Musk took Grimes on a date to Nobu in the prototype, Isaacson reported.

The biographer had previously told CNBC that Musk came up with the Cybertruck as an answer to traditional trucks, which he found "boring."

Musk first unveiled the concept for the electric pickup truck about four years ago and the project has faced a series of delays over the past two years. Musk has said the carmaker plans to start delivering the Cybertruck within the year, but the company has yet to release pricing for the vehicle.

The vehicle's unusual design — including its stainless steel, smudge-prone exterior and massive windshield wiper —has been a point of debate ahead of its release. Those who have pre-ordered the vehicle with a $100 deposit have been nitpicking the final version of the Cybertruck.

Read the original article on Business Insider

I'd love to see what they came up with..

 

[RVAC]

I'd love to see what they came up with..

Some of the designs they came up with:

Sponsored