Tesla Cybertruck Goes Through Crash Tests; First Deliveries Around the Corner

August 21, 2023

By Not a Tesla App Staff

These Cybertrucks appear to have gone through crash testing

@greggertruck

It looks like the Tesla Cybertruck has completed some crash tests and is on track to obtain its crashworthiness rating. At least a dozen Cybertrucks were spotted earlier on trailers across the US, prompting speculation about where they could be heading. On Friday, part of the mystery was solved as two crash-tested Cybertruck pickups were seen on a trailer in Hayward, California.

During the second-quarter earnings call, Elon Musk confirmed that he expects the first Tesla Cybertrucks to be delivered during an event in the third quarter. We're now in the second half of the quarter, and people are eagerly waiting for Tesla to prove Elon Musk wasn't bluffing. We're optimistic that the Cybertruck will get to the first customers on time, even if this means these customers are Tesla employees.

The Cybertruck has been in the news a lot more often in the past week, showing that things are moving fast. People watching Giga Texas noticed that the outbound lot was bustling with Cybertruck activity. At least nine pickup trucks have been seen on the lot, while several units were hauled on trailers out of the factory. Some of them have been headed to California, while others have been tracked as far as Ohio. Given this late stage in the Cybertruck development, these movements were attributed to Tesla sending the pickups to testing facilities for crashworthiness and efficiency ratings.

The NHTSA operates the Vehicle Research and Test Center (VRTC) in East Liberty, Ohio, where it conducts crash and fuel efficiency tests. Spotting the Cybertrucks in the area gives us a good hint at what Tesla is up to. It's safe to assume the Cybertruck will have an NHTSA crash rating next year when the volume production will be in full swing.

The pickups sent to California shared the same fate, only at Tesla's own crash test facility in Fremont. This was confirmed when two crash-tested Cybertrucks were seen in Hayward, California. Although the trucks were covered, it's obvious that the damage was minimal, fueling the speculation about the outstanding safety that Tesla packed into the Cybertruck. Given other Tesla models' stellar safety test results, expectations are high that the Cybertruck will also make a good impression. Most expect it to become the safest pickup truck on the market, regardless of size.

Things appear to be better for the Cybertrucks flown to New Zealand for winter tests. According to most recent news, at least two of them have left the South Hemisphere Proving Grounds (SHPG) testing facility, presumably on their way back to the US. This shows that Tesla is wrapping up the testing season for the Cybertruck, which pretty much confirms that deliveries couldn't be that far.

To pour more gas into the fire, a Tesla employee whose reports have been proven accurate in the past revealed on X that employee Cybertruck deliveries are imminent. Based on his words, "the company is soliciting the interest of those to take early delivery." Both dual- and three-motor configurations are reportedly available, which is good news for reservation holders. We'd take this with a grain of salt, though, considering that pricing and specifications are still unknown.

Here’s TWO crash tested Cybertrucks ?
Look close and you see the crash tape as well as damage/ missing pieces!
These were in Hayward, CA. pic.twitter.com/BemTlmCw3G
— Greggertruck (@greggertruck) August 18, 2023

Tesla Increases Price of Model S; Starts Offering Free Lifetime Supercharging

December 14, 2024

By Karan Singh

Not a Tesla App

For the first time in quite a while, Tesla has increased the price of one of its vehicle offerings. The Model S Long Range and the Model S Plaid have both received a hefty price increase. However, not all is bad - as Tesla also added a new benefit for buyers.

Price Increase

The price increase for the Model S is $5,000 - currently only in the United States. This price increase will likely impact other markets, including Canada, in the coming days.

The Model S Long Range now starts at $79,990, while the Model S Plaid now starts at $94,990. The Model S and Model X now have the same starting price. Interestingly, that’s also the same pricing point for the Cybertruck AWD and Cyberbeast Trimotor non-Foundation Series.

The vehicle configuration does not appear to have changed, so the new pricing is simply an increase rather than the addition or removal of features. Tesla previously cut the price of the Model S and Model X by 15% in 2023, so this could simply be an adjustment to ensure that the vehicle pricing stays in line with inflation and other factors.

Free Lifetime Supercharging

For those on the fence about ordering a Model S, Tesla has brought back Free Lifetime Supercharging when you order a new Model S on or after December 13, 2024. As always, Free Lifetime Supercharging is restricted to the buyer’s Tesla account and to that specific vehicle. It cannot be transferred to another vehicle or another owner after ownership transfer. It’s worth noting, that it also doesn’t exclude the owner from receiving Supercharger idle fees or congestion fees. There is currently no end date for this promotion.

There are currently no changes to the Model X, neither a price increase nor the addition of Lifetime Superchargering. However, when Tesla makes changes to one of their premium vehicles, it usually affects the other one as well. So be on the lookout for potential changes to the Model X offering in the coming days.

We’ve seen Tesla value Lifetime Supercharging at $5,000, so this falls in line with the price increase we’re seeing. It’s possible that Tesla will begin to bring back Lifetime Supercharging as a perk for buying into their more premium Model S and Model X cars, or this could be another temporary promotion to get buyers who are on the fence to go ahead and make their purchase while this promotion lasts.

Tesla’s Optimus Robot Learns to Walk Without Vision [VIDEO]

December 13, 2024

By Karan Singh

Optimus Falls - but catches itself!

Not a Tesla App

Tesla recently showed off a demo of Optimus, its humanoid robot, walking around in moderately challenging terrain—not on a flat surface but on dirt and slopes. These things can be difficult for a humanoid robot, especially during the training cycle.

Daily walks help clear your mind pic.twitter.com/dUsW58trS6
— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) December 9, 2024

A Look Behind the Curtain

Most interestingly, Milan Kovac, VP of Engineering for Optimus, clarified what it takes to get Optimus to this stage. Let’s break down what he said.

Optimus is Blind

Optimus is getting seriously good at walking now - it can keep its balance over uneven ground - even while walking blind. Tesla is currently using just the sensors, all powered by a neural net running on the embedded computer.

Essentially, Tesla is building Optimus from the ground up, relying on as much additional data as possible while it trains vision. This is similar to how they train FSD on vehicles, using LiDAR rigs to validate the vision system’s accuracy. While Optimus doesn’t have LiDAR, it relies on all those other sensors on board, many of which will likely become simplified as vision takes over as the primary sensor.

Today, Optimus is walking blind, but it’s able to react almost instantly to changes in the terrain underneath it, even if it falls or slips.

What’s Next?

Next up, Tesla AI will be adding vision to Optimus - helping complete the neural net. Remember, Optimus runs on the same overall AI stack as FSD - in fact, Optimus uses an FSD computer and an offshoot of the FSD stack for vision-based tasks.

Milan mentions they’re planning on adding vision to help the robot plan ahead and improve its walking gait. While the zombie shuffle is iconic and a little bit amusing, getting humanoid robots to walk like humans is actually difficult.

There’s plenty more, too - including better responsiveness to velocity and direction commands and learning to fall and stand back up. Falling while protecting yourself to minimize damage is something natural to humans - but not exactly natural to something like a robot. Training it to do so is essential in keeping the robot, the environment around it, and the people it is interacting with safe.

We’re excited to see what’s coming with Optimus next because it is already getting started in some fashion in Tesla’s factories.