'Oh My F**king God': Elon Musk Stunned As Windows Crack On His 'Bulletproof' Cybertruck
The often surprising Elon Musk was stunned himself Thursday when two windows cracked during a demonstration of his futuristic, all-electric Cybertruck — which had been pitched as “bulletproof” and practically indestructible.
Longtime Tesla lead designer Franz von Holzhausen, following Musk’s orders, threw a small metal ball at the pickup’s driver-side window — and cracked it quite spectacularly after the vehicle’s unveiling in the Los Angeles area.
What do we know about Elon Musk's wild-looking vehicle so far? It can reach 60mph in 2.9 seconds, it’s 231.7 inches long, tows 7,500 pounds and… that “shatterproof” glass might not be as sturdy as promised #Cybertruck pic.twitter.com/TvynvYBH9U
— CNET (@CNET) November 22, 2019
“Oh my fucking God,” Musk erupted as the audience gasped. “Maybe that was a little too hard.”
So von Holzhausen tried again, this time more softly lobbing a metal ball at a rear passenger window — and cracked it as well. There’s a “little room for improvement,” Musk quipped.
The stainless-steel angular vehicle inspired by the film “Blade Runner” “doesn’t look like anything else,” Musk boasted before the mishap. He explained in a tweet Friday that the window stunt had gone well in rehearsals.
We threw same steel ball at same window several times right before event & didn’t even scratch the glass!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 22, 2019
Before the glass mishap von Holzhausen had pounded on the body of the truck with a mallet and failed to dent it.
Actual photo of us replacing the #Cybertruck windows pic.twitter.com/ywtuhZL9wa
— Safelite AutoGlass® (@safelite) November 22, 2019
Some on Twitter suspected that the shattered glass may have been a very successful publicity stunt. In any case, analyst Gene Munster of Loup Ventures told Bloomberg: “It’s classic Tesla. It’s poetic. I applaud the company for taking risks: This was not a boring presentation.”
Musk’s tastes have so far struck a chord with consumers. But his popular cars have also suffered glitches, including with the company’s touted autopilot system and links to accidents.
The Cybertruck will retail starting at $39,900. The reception on Twitter was a bit mixed. But “scores of customers” have already put down $100 deposits for the truck, which won’t be manufactured until late 2021 — at the earliest, according to Bloomberg.
Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang tweeted Friday that the “world needed a Cybertruck without knowing it.”
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The world needed a Cybertruck without knowing it.
— Andrew Yang🧢 (@AndrewYang) November 22, 2019
This is my next Storm Chasing vehicle -#Tesla #Cybertruck pic.twitter.com/Q5rNuY6GF4
— Jeff Piotrowski (@Jeff_Piotrowski) November 22, 2019
I just preordered a Tesla Cybertruck because the 8 year old in me just couldn't resist! I can't wait to drive this thing around Dallas and be an indestructible living meme. #Cybertruck pic.twitter.com/lLQ9XmN98E
— Drift0r (@Drift0r) November 22, 2019
30 years ago, I helped build (and drove) the MIT solar car for a race across America. This article covers that as well as my take on this week’s unveiling of the Tesla truck!https://t.co/r0HtYzTlaG
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) November 22, 2019
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.