After years of promises and delays, the Tesla Cybertruck finally reached customers at the tail end of 2023. And as 2024 comes to an end, it’s pretty clear: It was one of the biggest failures of the year.
It may be ugly, but at least it also doesn’t work.
Significant mechanical, electrical, and design issues left customers stranded and in stitches, as digital ignitions crapped out, systems failed, chasses broke, and sharp edges wounded.
Given the cars are owned by Elon Musk’s biggest fans, they’re still cheering it on.
But we don’t have to.
Here are its ten most (least) impressive moments.
10. Critical errors cause complete failure
When the Cybertruck slowly began making its way into the hands of customers, many reported running into “critical” errors and failures shortly after.
Incredibly, one driver noted in April that he was met with a warning that he needed to “Pull Over Safely” after his premium edition Cybertruck announced it would be “shutting down.”
“Hey @elonmusk — just picked up my @Tesla CyberBeast,” the driver wrote on X. “Drove five miles, parked, and now it won’t drive. Only 21 miles on the odometer. What gives?”
A second driver ran into a similar issue that same month when his premium-edition Cybertruck encountered five critical failures just moments after finalizing his purchase.
“Broke not even 6 inches off the lot,” the second driver said.
9. Car wash defeats Cybertruck
Also in April, a new Cybertruck owner reported that his expensive vehicle had malfunctioned. The culprit appeared to be a simple car wash.
The driver, who said on TikTok that his dashboard screen stopped working entirely, revealed that he ran into the issue after opting to wash his car following a visit to the beach.
“The Cybertruck does not work anymore,” he said on TikTok.
@captian.ad Cybertruck not working after 2 months 3400 miles #cybertruck #tesla #problem #recall ♬ original sound – Ad
Ultimately, he was able to get the issue fixed after visiting a service technician.
The dashboard, he found out, was taking five hours to reboot instead of the two minutes it was supposed to.
8. Cyberrust
Tesla CEO Elon Musk portrayed the Cybertruck as a vehicle capable of surviving the apocalypse. But as it turns out, the Cybertruck’s had problems at times handling the basic elements.
Complaints began rolling in as far back as February when drivers began noticing rust and corrosion on the vehicle’s stainless-steel body.
A popular TikToker and Cybertruck owner, known for defending the vehicles, decided to put the claims to the test by examining his own.
Turns out, he found significant rust on the inside of his driver-side door.
Incredibly, something as simple as rain can cause serious issues for the Cybertruck.
7. Windshield wiper recall
Which it isn’t capable of handling in other ways.
In June, Tesla was forced to issue a recall for 11,688 Cybertrucks after it was discovered that, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, “excessive electrical current can cause the front windshield wiper motor controller to fail.”
One driver described the issue as “super dangerous” in a post to the Cybertruck Owners Club Forum after his wipers stopped working.
“Made it 20 miles and it started pouring raining,” the user said. “Had to sit in a Dunkin Donuts for 3.5 hours and call Tesla roadside assistance because i couldn’t see…”
6. Cybertruck lights vs. snow
Cars are, well, they should be designed for the outdoors. But not Cybertruck. Because it isn’t just rain that caused issues. The frozen form, aka snow, also led drivers to express concern.
Earlier this month, one driver noted that the vehicle’s front bumper was built in such a way that snow would completely cover its headlights.
In a video on TikTok, the driver expressed disbelief that such a glaring design flaw could have been overlooked by Tesla.
“Now, I can’t believe Tesla just didn’t think about this when they put this giant shelf in front of the lights, but if they did, it’s honestly an awful design,” he said.
@jf.okay i can’t believe #tesla ♬ original sound – Joe Fay | Tesla Videos
Not only that, many of the Cybertruck’s cameras, which allow it to, among other things, detect other vehicles, were also rendered useless due to the snow.
5. Knife-like doors
Ideally, your vehicle shouldn’t give you open wounds. But some Cybertruck owners learned the hard way that the vehicle’s sharp edges can be very dangerous.
In May, a driver revealed in a post online that he had cut his leg open when closing his Cybertruck’s driver-side door. The man, who refused his wife’s advice to go to the hospital for stitches, warned other drivers that the door’s sharp corner could cause significant injury.
“Be careful when closing your cybertruck door!” he said.
Another driver quickly chimed in to note that he too had been injured by his vehicle’s door.
“Obviously I feel stupid – but it’s at least good to know I’m not alone,” the second driver wrote.
4. Finger-crushing frunk
The Cybertruck’s front-end trunk, known as the “frunk,” is another part of the vehicle that’s caused drivers issues.
In May, a Tesla enthusiast decided to test the frunk’s sensors by attempting to close the frunk on his fingers. With most vehicles, sensors are designed to stop any door from closing if an obstruction is detected.
With the Cybertruck, however, things didn’t exactly go to plan. The Cybertruck owner’s fingers got crushed, resulting in what looked to be a painful lesson.
“As soon as it closed on my finger, I feared for my finger for a second, not gonna lie,” the vehicle’s owner said. “That’s kind of bad. And you can see my finger is shaking. It kind of locked down on it, and I was a little bit freaked out because I didn’t know how to open it up. I was kind of trapped.”
3. Cybertruck off-road disaster
As previously stated, Musk has described the Cybertruck as an impenetrable fortress designed to withstand the toughest conditions. But when drivers actually attempted to take their Cybertrucks off-road, it became readily apparent that the vehicle didn’t live up to the hype.
In a video posted to TikTok in May, a driver attempted to traverse some rocky terrain in Utah. The Cybertruck struggles to drive along a rocky road before a loud snap can be heard.
“Yeah, that just snapped,” the driver says.
@jf.okay i can’t believe #tesla ♬ original sound – Joe Fay | Tesla Videos
A famous YouTuber who attempted to put the truck through a stress test ran into similar issues and even saw his Cybertruck’s frame snap in half.
Needless to say, the vehicle doesn’t seem suited for much other than a well-maintained city street.
2. Failing brakes, accelerators, and steering
You could argue that a vehicle’s brake pedal, accelerator, and steering wheel are the most important parts of a car. And those parts are exactly what failed for numerous Cybertruck owners.
In March, a man revealed that his Cybertruck’s steering and brakes failed while traveling with his wife and toddler. The man deleted his post shortly after when countless X users mocked his attempt to defend the vehicle despite the catastrophic failure.
And in April, another driver exposed how the Cybertruck’s accelerator became stuck, causing his vehicle to rapidly increase speed. Tesla was forced to pause all deliveries of the vehicle to customers in order to fix the issue, a faulty piece that caused the pedal to be held down.
1. Musk breaks window
For the number one Cybertruck fail, we need to take it back to the beginning. This failure perfectly foreshadowed what was to come.
All the way back in November 2019, four years before it shipped, Musk unveiled the Cybertruck during a live event watched by millions. And to demonstrate how tough the vehicle was, Musk decided to throw a metal ball at the Cybertruck’s windows.
Only the window, which had already been damaged when a Tesla employee hit the door with a sledgehammer, shattered immediately. Since then, the Cybertruck’s failures have only continued.
The only question is, as they’re driven more and more, what critical breakdowns await in 2025?
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