Probably the most-delayed new automotive mannequin in recent times could also be lastly getting near manufacturing. Over the weekend, Tesla confirmed off the primary pre-production mannequin of its upcoming Cybertruck electrical pickup.

The mannequin appeared in a publish on Twitter, the social media platform owned by Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

First Cybertruck constructed at Giga Texas! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/ODRhHVsd0t

— Tesla (@Tesla) July 15, 2023

Making out the truck within the picture is difficult, as it’s surrounded by a whole bunch of manufacturing facility staff in high-visibility vests and white laborious hats. Textual content within the tweet broadcasts, “First Cybertruck constructed at Giga Texas!” Giga is the nickname Tesla makes use of for its “gigafactories,” that are… factories.

What Is the Cybertruck?

The Cybertruck is an astoundingly distinctive pickup with a number of new applied sciences that make manufacturing difficult. It resembles no different manufacturing truck we’re conscious of.

The Cybertruck is a squat pentagon of brutalist traces and naked, unpainted sheet metallic. Musk has stated the truck takes inspiration from the film “Blade Runner,” not from what works for Ford or Chevrolet.

The corporate has boasted of spectacular efficiency — as much as 14,000 kilos of towing capability and a zero-to-60 time of underneath 3 seconds. These figures presumably apply to the 3-motor model. Single- and dual-motor editions are additionally deliberate.

The corporate initially promised a beginning value underneath $40,000. However a number of years of brutal inflation numbers have hit since. Musk has since admitted that that value gained’t be attainable. However that’s not stunning – rival Ford’s F-150 Lightning electrical truck briefly carried an identical price ticket however prices practically $10,000 extra for the time being, even after an enormous value lower that takes impact at this time.

Does This Imply They’re Coming Quickly?

The truck is probably going not a last manufacturing mannequin headed for a buyer’s driveway. Musk promised truck deliveries someday in 2024 in his most up-to-date timing replace.

As a substitute, it’s most likely a pre-production mannequin. Pre-production automobiles are used to check the deliberate meeting course of and for last testing and tuning earlier than a manufacturing facility begins sequence manufacturing for patrons. That course of can take lower than a yr.

However the Cybetruck’s distinctive construct course of means it’s laborious to estimate how lengthy it’ll take for Tesla to go from one pre-production mannequin to dozens of manufacturing fashions per day. The truck’s chrome steel physique is a structural “exoskeleton” – a design course of not used on any present automotive. So Tesla is pioneering new manufacturing facility strategies with this one, making it laborious to pin down a begin date for manufacturing.