Blog Musk Says Cybertruck Doors Will Open Automatically

Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk said Thursday that the production version of the Cybertruck will not include door handles.

The concept vehicle that debuted in November 2019 was built with door handles, however Musk says the doors on the production version will open automatically.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1415735896448540673

Musk previously said there would be slight revisions to the truck before production. There was speculation that Tesla might slightly shrink the overall proportions, but it seems the truck will be as hulking as the prototype. Musk recently said the vehicle will be “almost exactly” the same as the prototype.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1411172276188319745

Tesla is currently working to finish the construction of a new factory near Austin, Texas that will be the home of Cybertruck production. The first deliveries of the Cybertruck are expected to start later this year.

 

[hill]

I had a door actuator go bad on my Model X driver's side. There was NO WAY to exit the vehicle on that side. I had to wait two weeks to get a SC appointment, and in that time, I had to climb out over the console and out the passenger's side door. It wasn't safe at all. I would prefer manual door latches to motorized door actuators, and I would not buy a car that relied on a computer in order to open the door at all.

what do they say? rtfm? ok in practice, many don't. this is why numbskulls crash on autopilot. Fail to read important stuff. In any event, & after i DID rtm ... and then i PRACTICE ... one can quickly pop the door speaker cover off .... and WHADAYA know ... a manual, humanpowered, just like ol fashion window rollup cranks ... a lever that you simply pull, if in an accident ... loss of all power etc.
and the door is open.
no way?
yes way

.

 

[hridge2020]

 

[Dan_Foster]

After more thought, I don't like this "automatic opening" idea. For a car, perhaps it's cool: You leave your house, walk to your car, and it opens for you. You leave your office and you walk to your car, and it opens for you.

For (pickup) truck, the scenarios are more nuanced: At a job site, you are constantly walking near the truck - loading or unloading the bed, walking past either driver or passenger door etc. I can see it getting annoying having the door pop open constantly. Perhaps there's an option to turn that off, but it's equally annoying to have to use your phone to open the door when you need to. Key fob with a button is a requirement so I can open the door at a job-site when I need to, without gloves, or having to pull my phone out in harsh environments just to enter the vehicle.
I'm "OK" with no handles, that's cool - just make the logic work in a "work" environment with little to no reliance on a smartphone.
But how will passengers open their doors? It is a 4 door after all, the truck will need to know who is going to enter the vehicle without any electronic tags on the passengers. Camera's can help identify, but not read minds(yet).

Tesla has positioned the CyberTruck as a boulevard eye stopper rather than a truck for real work: imagine yoke steering and on-screen ‘shifting’ on a fresh dirt job site; a farm; snow ploughing. It could have been the most useful truck ever, but Elon has lost the plot.

 

[texas_star_TM3]

Tesla has positioned the CyberTruck as a boulevard eye stopper rather than a truck for real work: imagine yoke steering and on-screen ‘shifting’ on a fresh dirt job site; a farm; snow ploughing. It could have been the most useful truck ever, but Elon has lost the plot.

not only that... no door handles / on screen "shifting" via touchscreen / yoke etc are all no-gos for a work truck when you wear gloves or want to back into a trailer

 

[Suns_PSD]

Only an idiot would buy an EV for plowing or farm work. Come on.

The CT is for well to do Surburbanites to haul the jet ski, take the family on a ski trip, and generally run around in. And to be frank that is the primary market even for today's F250! Trucks are the Griswold Family Truckster of the modern era.

On the other topics, the F150 looks like an electric razor and has for decades. Still, they created an amazing EV truck for the money if the dealers were out of the equation.

Love the idea of auto release doors and no handles on the CT, but that would certainly result in needless deaths. Heck, old dudes occasionally die in Corvettes with their electric door handles and they have a mechanical emergency pull on the floorboard, door handles outside, and perfectly breakable windows.

 

[texas_star_TM3]

Only an idiot would buy an EV for plowing or farm work. Come on.

The CT is for well to do Surburbanites to haul the jet ski, take the family on a ski trip, and generally run around in. And to be frank that is the primary market even for today's F250! Trucks are the Griswold Family Truckster of the modern era.

On the other topics, the F150 looks like an electric razor and has for decades. Still, they created an amazing EV truck for the money if the dealers were out of the equation.

Love the idea of auto release doors and no handles on the CT, but that would certainly result in needless deaths. Heck, old dudes occasionally die in Corvettes with their electric door handles and they have a mechanical emergency pull on the floorboard, door handles outside, and perfectly breakable windows.

no door handles/ bulletproof glass and bulletproof stainless steel panels on the CT will be truly fun for emergency workers trying to get a person out of a crashed vehicle if the "automatic door opening" feature doesnt work.

 

[Dan_Foster]

Only an idiot would buy an EV for plowing or farm work. Come on.

Electric tractors are rapidly gaining ground for farm use; vineyards are leading the charge. Grapes are a sensitive crop; diesel soot ruins fine wine and Champagne. Electric commercial mowers are fantastic—our church just bought a big one for our cemetery manager—the mowing crew freaking loves loves it. It runs cool all day, no fumes, minimal noise, 1/3 operating cost, minimal maintenance, barely any down time. Fleet managers will quickly embrace Tesla Semi for the significant cost per mile savings. Electric is the way forward for much commercial work.

As for snow plowing, a heavy, torquey, silent, stainless steel pickup truck with-all-wheel-drive with low fueling and maintenance costs and no gears to shift would be ideal for residential plowing contractors (that is, until they’re forced to swipe the screen to change direction, and make hundreds of tight maneuvers with a yoke—but those are the only dealbreakers.)

 

[ThomasD]

How many hours of run time do you get with the battery commercial mowers? Are you able to charge the battery on the go? Can you charge the battery from an inverter hooked up to the vehicle? The only issues I see with the Electric Truck Snowplowing is range with an 8ft plow on the front with the framework attached. Plowing for many hours where charging may not be possible. Snowplows with the attachments weigh between 400 to 700 lbs. You will have those airbags pumped up. Now add a salt spreader in the bed.

 

[Darmie]

what do they say? rtfm? ok in practice, many don't. this is why numbskulls crash on autopilot. Fail to read important stuff. In any event, & after i DID rtm ... and then i PRACTICE ... one can quickly pop the door speaker cover off .... and WHADAYA know ... a manual, humanpowered, just like ol fashion window rollup cranks ... a lever that you simply pull, if in an accident ... loss of all power etc.
and the door is open.
no way?
yes way

.

Depends on the year model but as stated in our manual, should be able to just pull the inside door handle.

Newer models have a lift handle forward of the window switches as in the M3 or MY.

 

[Dan_Foster]

Depends on the year model but as stated in our manual, should be able to just pull the inside door handle.
View attachment 816427
Newer models have a lift handle forward of the window switches as in the M3 or MY.

There’s still concern about emergency responders attempting entry from outside the vehicle, to rescue a crash victim who may be unconscious or otherwise incapable of opening the door from inside.

 

[texas_star_TM3]

There’s still concern about emergency responders attempting entry from outside the vehicle, to rescue a crash victim who may be unconscious or otherwise incapable of opening the door from inside.

big time. reminds of the horrible German high speed train crash in the late 90s when rescuers had an incredibly hard time cutting open the extremely smooth and re-enforced train surfaces and breaking the windows. if the Cybertruck door panels in fact defeat 9mm pistol rounds and the windows cant be smashed by a heavy steel ball... how in the world are you going to cut into the door or smash the window to extract someone?

 

[ThomasD]

Get the Plasma cutter out

 

[TarmacSurfer]

Or have a “rescue” release similar to aircraft.

 

[SO16]

Only an idiot would buy an EV for plowing or farm work. Come on.

An EV would be GREAT for plowing since no transmission and high torque. And most likely would have enough range to last the day.

 

[ThomasD]

There is a guy who plows snow with a Model Y. He put a receiver blade on it and plows in reverse. You could always plow in reverse with the Rivian
Can you plow with a Rivian

Its front end will not sustain a snow plow; its 16-inch center touchscreen should not get wet and won't respond to input from gloved fingers; and its stiff, not-very-adjustable seats lack the comfort of the premium work rigs that double as offices and conference rooms for contractors on the move.

 

[ThomasD]

Whether or not the setup on this Model Y could handle a lot snow and push snow over a berm is to be seen.

 

[coleAK]

Tesla has solved the ice buildup issue. Was happening with the model 3s I believe, the handles and charger door. I think they started warming those areas up.

My model x never had an issue, but I always warm up the car. Even with heavy snow and ice, I warm it up for awhile and it's almost always mostly melted by the time I get in.

After 8 winters with my s and 4 winters in my 3. The ice/door handles has never been improved. There is no way enough heat gets from the inside through the door trim, window mechanisms, and door panel enough to effect the thermal mass that is the door handle. The 3 is exponentially better then the s as it does not have the (pointless) motorized handles. That said all my vehicles here in Alaska have freezing issues in the winter. My biggest concern with the CT is if it dosn’t have door handles what will I be able to pull on when it is frozen?

 

[coleAK]

There is a guy who plows snow with a Model Y. He put a receiver blade on it and plows in reverse. You could always plow in reverse with the Rivian
Can you plow with a Rivian

Its front end will not sustain a snow plow; its 16-inch center touchscreen should not get wet and won't respond to input from gloved fingers; and its stiff, not-very-adjustable seats lack the comfort of the premium work rigs that double as offices and conference rooms for contractors on the move.
View attachment 817415

Wow he can plow 2-3”…. Plowing trashes 1/2 tons, you are basically ramming a wall over and over. Most plow trucks up here are at least 3/4 ton with most 1 ton+ or Caterpillars. There is no way any of these (X/Y/rivian/CT,…) unibody cars/trucks will last under the abuse of plowing.

 

[strider]

How many hours of run time do you get with the battery commercial mowers? Are you able to charge the battery on the go? Can you charge the battery from an inverter hooked up to the vehicle?

I bought a Mean Green ZTR ~5 years ago. It has the small/default battery and can mow my 2.5 acres in one charge. The newer ones have much larger batteries. They have since been purchased by DR Power/Generac, have abandoned the residential market, and only sell commercial now.

You can charge the battery on the go but most ICE inverters are 120V. The F-150 Lightning (and I assume the CT will as well) has a 240V-30A plug in the bed which would be fantastic for charging the mower between jobs.

Or have a “rescue” release similar to aircraft.

This release is an effective safety feature in that it allows anyone to open the aircraft from the outside without tools. The problem with this is theft. On aircraft there is typically a pin that you can install from the inside that blocks the outside lever from moving but you have to remove it prior to every flight and reinstall it to secure. Not that big of a deal on an aircraft but would be very annoying in a car (think running errands and being in and out of the car a bunch of times.

 

[Dan_Foster]

After 8 winters with my s and 4 winters in my 3. The ice/door handles has never been improved. There is no way enough heat gets from the inside through the door trim, window mechanisms, and door panel enough to effect the thermal mass that is the door handle. The 3 is exponentially better then the s as it does not have the (pointless) motorized handles. That said all my vehicles here in Alaska have freezing issues in the winter. My biggest concern with the CT is if it dosn’t have door handles what will I be able to pull on when it is frozen?

On many occasions, a frozen handle on my S has forced me to climb over seats to push the stuck door open from the inside. Silicone hydrophobic ‘snowblower’ spray helps to prevent the windows from sticking shut, but, though I usually remember to preheat for a long while before digging out, my Tesla is still the most prone to door/handle/window icing problems of any vehicle I’ve ever owned.

Musk loves to break basically every convention, but many of them survived because they work very well, e.g.: round steering wheels, door handles, stalks, horn button on center, etc.