Bikerbob
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Written by Dan M Henderson
If you hate EV’s, Tesla, Elon, the Cybertruck, please just scroll, this post probably isn’t for you. I don’t want to talk about the grid, “soul”, Cybertruck looks, or children in Africa. This is about vehicle function and dynamics.
I’ve had a Cybertruck on order for 4+ years. I couldn’t wait anymore so I last year I bought this Code Orange Raptor 37 with Recaros. I fell in love with it, it’s the best overall vehicle I’ve ever owned. Supremely capable, supremely comfortable, fairly quick, and tons of space for all my gear. I work out ot this every day. I’m racking up huge miles on it but I don’t care. Still, I kept my Cybertruck reservation to see how it is. Today I finally got my chance to drive one so here are my impressions:
1. The most striking thing is the thick steel sheet body. You’ve seen it in photos but examining it up close is weird. It’s just hard to believe anyone even tried this with a vehicle. I looked at every panel, and it’s just crazy. This is as TOUGH of a vehicle body as you can get. Kick it, slam a door into it, ram a grocery cart into it, drop a ladder on it. Construction jobsite stuff… it does not care. The body is the definition of “tough”. It also looks like shit most of the time, dirt, fingerprints, it’s quite dull inside the jambs, etc. Nor do the panels line up perfectly. Do I care? Not one bit. I want to throw in my gear, lock it up, not worry about it. I have work to do. The body is a home run for someone who actually WORKS out of a truck.
2. The performance is unreal. The steering and throttle are pure response. It feels like it’s 3000 pounds, not 7000. The steering is so sensitive to your inputs it’s unlike anything you’ve driven. This long vehicle pirouettes around itself so tightly it’s disconcerting. The chassis is rigid. It’s a level beyond rigid car, nevermind a body on frame truck. There is no jiggle. The steering wheel is TINY. Felt like the 330mm OMP race wheel I use in the NSX. On the highway I found it to be too sensitive, but you can turn the rear wheel steer off. Overall it drives like no other truck, it feels like a sports car. It’s much closer to a model 3 than to an F150 in driving dynamics. It also makes quite a pleasant Motor/Gear noise. I found the sound so pleasant I started to wonder if it was fake.
3. The suspension is sophisticated, it goes from almost slammed truck to 15+ inches of complete ground clearance but this cannot be done while you’re moving as far as I know. The down is fast, the up is painfully slow. The ride is very good, though I’m not sure it’s as good as my Raptor on the Fox live valve dampers with those monster 37” tires. Either way, it jiggles less. The raptor has some flex. It’s a box frame. Either is beyond “great ride quality”.
4. The aluminum roll up/down cover for the bed is phenomenal. Lock your valuables in, turn on sentry mode, leave it in a bad area. you’re fine. You do not have to worry about someone dinging it, kicking it, trying to steal your stuff, they are on live camera you can see on your phone and they’re not getting in easily anyway. It’s a tank.
5. The sound system is reference quality.
So what’s bad?
1. No one has said this in any review but this is a 9/10th’s sized truck. Neither the interior nor the bed nor the vehicle is as wide as an F150. The center console is smaller. The bed is longer, but it’s less wide. The seats are narrower. They are supportive and excellent, but still not quite my Recaros for my body. I know they reduced the size of this truck to fit in more garages, but… I want the original. That’s just my preference, I think it’s perfectly fine for most buyers. Being narrow reduces frontal area increasing range. My Raptor gets 13 MPG. I’m dropping $10K a year just fueling it. It’s a work truck, I don’t care. The CT would cost a lot less for sure.
2. Not a surprise here, but almost zero buttons whereas I have a button for almost everything in the raptor. The raptor interior just feels more opulent. Theres no denying the Cybertruck is plain. You open the glovebox through a screen button. I mean… come on.
The doors have fewer pockets. My F150 has dual “glove boxes”. This is small stuff but it matters to me. I have something specific in every nook and cranny. The CT adds a drink and an under the bed cargo box, very welcome, but both slightly smaller than they appear in photos. I can just “feel” it’s just slightly smaller.
No it doesn’t rust, the frame doesn’t break under hard use, it’s a vehicle that’s in a category of one. I know no other vehicle like it. It feels like it’s half truck, half sports car. The tech is almost overwhelming. It FEELS as if it’s from another era of vehicle design. Fast, powerful, quiet, completely connected, 48V running ethernet. Well beyond CAN bus. The raptor does feel more “dated”, but it’s a damn good dated.
Essentially, Tesla has taken the pickup truck and solved nearly every negative about the driving experience with trucks. It’s a Ridgeline on massive PED’s. It’s quiet. It rides well. It is fast. The center of gravity is low. They took one of the worst attributes, which is turning radius, and made it the same as a car’s. If you charge at home, they’ve made it economical. Standard pickups always leave your stuff exposed in the bed. This gives it serious metal protection. The height of some trucks in low garages public or private is a no-go. I avoid some with the Raptor. It just won’t fit. This will just squat down and go in. Entry and exit is like that of a car as it squats. Tow and it levels itself. Even the steering wheel is small and not “truck”. For people who have never owned a truck, they’ve taken every pain away.
So was it enough to tear me away from the Raptor? Not quite… it’s not a negative of the Cybertruck, I just love the Raptor TOO MUCH… but the CT a remarkable vehicle, and if I was forced to swap…. I wouldn’t exactly be upset. They are so different in fact, I started to wonder if it would be ridiculous to own one of each.
If you hate EV’s, Tesla, Elon, the Cybertruck, please just scroll, this post probably isn’t for you. I don’t want to talk about the grid, “soul”, Cybertruck looks, or children in Africa. This is about vehicle function and dynamics.
I’ve had a Cybertruck on order for 4+ years. I couldn’t wait anymore so I last year I bought this Code Orange Raptor 37 with Recaros. I fell in love with it, it’s the best overall vehicle I’ve ever owned. Supremely capable, supremely comfortable, fairly quick, and tons of space for all my gear. I work out ot this every day. I’m racking up huge miles on it but I don’t care. Still, I kept my Cybertruck reservation to see how it is. Today I finally got my chance to drive one so here are my impressions:
1. The most striking thing is the thick steel sheet body. You’ve seen it in photos but examining it up close is weird. It’s just hard to believe anyone even tried this with a vehicle. I looked at every panel, and it’s just crazy. This is as TOUGH of a vehicle body as you can get. Kick it, slam a door into it, ram a grocery cart into it, drop a ladder on it. Construction jobsite stuff… it does not care. The body is the definition of “tough”. It also looks like shit most of the time, dirt, fingerprints, it’s quite dull inside the jambs, etc. Nor do the panels line up perfectly. Do I care? Not one bit. I want to throw in my gear, lock it up, not worry about it. I have work to do. The body is a home run for someone who actually WORKS out of a truck.
2. The performance is unreal. The steering and throttle are pure response. It feels like it’s 3000 pounds, not 7000. The steering is so sensitive to your inputs it’s unlike anything you’ve driven. This long vehicle pirouettes around itself so tightly it’s disconcerting. The chassis is rigid. It’s a level beyond rigid car, nevermind a body on frame truck. There is no jiggle. The steering wheel is TINY. Felt like the 330mm OMP race wheel I use in the NSX. On the highway I found it to be too sensitive, but you can turn the rear wheel steer off. Overall it drives like no other truck, it feels like a sports car. It’s much closer to a model 3 than to an F150 in driving dynamics. It also makes quite a pleasant Motor/Gear noise. I found the sound so pleasant I started to wonder if it was fake.
3. The suspension is sophisticated, it goes from almost slammed truck to 15+ inches of complete ground clearance but this cannot be done while you’re moving as far as I know. The down is fast, the up is painfully slow. The ride is very good, though I’m not sure it’s as good as my Raptor on the Fox live valve dampers with those monster 37” tires. Either way, it jiggles less. The raptor has some flex. It’s a box frame. Either is beyond “great ride quality”.
4. The aluminum roll up/down cover for the bed is phenomenal. Lock your valuables in, turn on sentry mode, leave it in a bad area. you’re fine. You do not have to worry about someone dinging it, kicking it, trying to steal your stuff, they are on live camera you can see on your phone and they’re not getting in easily anyway. It’s a tank.
5. The sound system is reference quality.
So what’s bad?
1. No one has said this in any review but this is a 9/10th’s sized truck. Neither the interior nor the bed nor the vehicle is as wide as an F150. The center console is smaller. The bed is longer, but it’s less wide. The seats are narrower. They are supportive and excellent, but still not quite my Recaros for my body. I know they reduced the size of this truck to fit in more garages, but… I want the original. That’s just my preference, I think it’s perfectly fine for most buyers. Being narrow reduces frontal area increasing range. My Raptor gets 13 MPG. I’m dropping $10K a year just fueling it. It’s a work truck, I don’t care. The CT would cost a lot less for sure.
2. Not a surprise here, but almost zero buttons whereas I have a button for almost everything in the raptor. The raptor interior just feels more opulent. Theres no denying the Cybertruck is plain. You open the glovebox through a screen button. I mean… come on.
The doors have fewer pockets. My F150 has dual “glove boxes”. This is small stuff but it matters to me. I have something specific in every nook and cranny. The CT adds a drink and an under the bed cargo box, very welcome, but both slightly smaller than they appear in photos. I can just “feel” it’s just slightly smaller.
No it doesn’t rust, the frame doesn’t break under hard use, it’s a vehicle that’s in a category of one. I know no other vehicle like it. It feels like it’s half truck, half sports car. The tech is almost overwhelming. It FEELS as if it’s from another era of vehicle design. Fast, powerful, quiet, completely connected, 48V running ethernet. Well beyond CAN bus. The raptor does feel more “dated”, but it’s a damn good dated.
Essentially, Tesla has taken the pickup truck and solved nearly every negative about the driving experience with trucks. It’s a Ridgeline on massive PED’s. It’s quiet. It rides well. It is fast. The center of gravity is low. They took one of the worst attributes, which is turning radius, and made it the same as a car’s. If you charge at home, they’ve made it economical. Standard pickups always leave your stuff exposed in the bed. This gives it serious metal protection. The height of some trucks in low garages public or private is a no-go. I avoid some with the Raptor. It just won’t fit. This will just squat down and go in. Entry and exit is like that of a car as it squats. Tow and it levels itself. Even the steering wheel is small and not “truck”. For people who have never owned a truck, they’ve taken every pain away.
So was it enough to tear me away from the Raptor? Not quite… it’s not a negative of the Cybertruck, I just love the Raptor TOO MUCH… but the CT a remarkable vehicle, and if I was forced to swap…. I wouldn’t exactly be upset. They are so different in fact, I started to wonder if it would be ridiculous to own one of each.
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