Tesla's new Cybertruck smashed during demo

[TheAdamist]

Automotive windows have been a solved problem and commodity for a while. I don't really understand the point of this demonstration, except for two possibilities:

1. They're gaslighting the Tesla faithful with "super strong" windows that are just normal. Or

2. Demonstrating they are still wasting tons of r&d dollars on non-problems and ought to bring in an adult who can design and manufacture commodity things efficiently.

[modernerd]

3. It's a PR stunt.

It invites people who don't care much for Tesla or the vehicle itself to share the video, it softens the seriousness and tension of a launch, and it helps to humanise the brand and the presenter.

[_carl_jung]

If all it takes is "an adult who can design and manufacture commodity things efficiently", it should be pretty easy to set up some competition for Tesla with a team of competent "adults", right?

[joekrill]

"...have been a solved problem and commodity for a while"

So there's absolutely no room for improvement? Should we just move on from everything that we've deemed "a solved problem and commodity"?

Another possibility: they want to foster an image of a product designed to last, with very little maintenance cost. I'm not suggesting car windows are a maintenance cost, by the way - just that it adds to the overall image of reliability.

Additionally, I'm not sure where you draw the line at what are "non-problems" and what exactly is and is not "wasting tons of r&d dollars". Or, as others have suggested, what constitutes a "PR stunt". Is it wasting time and resource to select Tesla-specific paints, interior designs, wheel designs? After all, every other car has those. They are "solved problems" - just do whatever the other guys are doing!

[zubiaur]

They have close ties with AGP a company that specializes in high tech glass, the model X windshield is one of the most complex in the industry. AGP also specializes in bullet resistant glass and use many of their techniques in regular glass as well. I believe what musk said, they threw wrenches, a kitchen sink, just about Avery thing and it didn’t break. A metal ball is probably the worst case scenario. A solid ball will be very heavy, but even worse, there is only ONE point of contact. All the kinematic energy has to be stopped at ONE incredibly small point. What is the area of contact? It’s infinitesimally small! Even a bullet would have more contact area, and suffer plastic deformation. A metal sphere? Worst case scenario.

[lolc]

3. They buy phone screen protectors on Amazon and stick them on the windows to make them stronger.

[friendlybus]

Elon sounded hurt for real. I think it just happened. They went on banging on car doors with sledgehammers that went fine, it was just one piece as part of the show around the same theme that it's a strong car.

[diffeomorphism]

Sure, but they explicitly advertised to not go for the commodity version but more durable/damage resistant ones.

This is not really very new tech (bullet proof glass for VIPs, bank transporters etc.) but also not a commodity.

> I don't really understand the point

Congrats, you are not the target market. It is a demonstration of a feature some people want (though these peoples are wrong to want this according to your authoritative judgement).

[koonsolo]

Those windows are not normal. As far as I know, front windows always stay together when they break, and side windows scatter to little pieces.

I understand why you would make the front window super strong. But the side windows, why can't they not scatter like in all the other cars?

[tomlong]

I think maybe the target audience for this is people with old trucks not people who know about Teslas

[Ecco]

Conspiracy theory: that incident was on purpose to generate massive PR.

Argument: seriously, how hard would it be to rehearse that thing so that it does not happen live twice?

[Someone]

They could have rehearsed too often.

For example, Duralex drinking glasses, which are made from tempered glass, dropped on a hard floor have a habit of bouncing once and exploding on the second impact (cause: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spontaneous_glass_breakage. Classical example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Rupert's_drop)

These windows could have a similar weakness, being fine on x huge impacts, to shatter on a relatively weak later impact.

[bob1029]

I actually believe this is probably the case. Watching MKBHD's ride on YT indicated they replaced the glass prior to riding the press around, so they probably had this planned in advanced to some extent.

I don't think anyone should have realistic expectations of the outer layer of glass not shattering. That is why there are multiple layers. If you threw a big metal ball really hard at the president's limo, it would likely crack the outer layer as well in similar ways. What fundamentally controls the strength of armored glass is how many layers you have.

[phkahler]

The truck needs a better GPU so they can increase the polygon count.

[de_watcher]

Poly count is low so our roads won't lag.

[foxyv]

It's to increase safety. If other drivers are using bad graphics cards they won't lag and crash into you.

[kube-system]

Pretty much all cars in the US are implementing laminated side glass to comply with FMVSS 226 occupant ejection mitigation requirements.

They just figured out an interesting way to demonstrate a feature that nearly every car sold in the US since 2017 already has.

[rootusrootus]

I haven't yet seen a car on the road with anything other than tempered side glass.

[ToFab123]

Reminds me of BillG presenting Windows 98 on live TV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKy9fV_zX_o

[brentonator]

They also hit the door with a sledgehammer as hard as they could and didn't dent it. The video for that is pretty amazing.

[berberous]

It looked to me like the guy was clearly not swinging his hardest.

[fenwick67]

You mean like this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L91_K-s4pMM

[csomar]

Imo, this is not the problem. The glass passed the test when it was not fixated on the car. (assuming the glass used on the freefall test is the same used in the car).

The freefall test height is pretty significant, so either: 1. They were not using the same glass and lying on the freefall test or 2. They mistakenly put another glass type on the demo car. Which is a really bad mistake for the guys staging the demo.

I expect Tesla to give clarifications as well as put the tech specs for their glass.

[thysultan]

Or the non-fixed glass was fixated on a flat surface that might have absorbed much of the energy or the tester is the fastest baseball pitcher in history.

[NetBeck]

I thought the way they handled a failed demo was cool. Most companies would have rolled the product off stage or put something in front of it, but Elon rolled with the punches and continued the presentation with two shattered windows. It lowers the probability the truck was hardened or altered for a better presentation.

[Insanity]

He did look a bit shaken up by it. As if he was less concentrated on the presentation after the incident.

Apart from that, I do think he handled it quite well. Best to laugh it off and not make a big deal.

[ianai]

Title is a little dramatic. Saying they smashed the truck when the window glass broke when it shouldn’t have but everything else was the same is inaccurate.

[lazyjones]

Perhaps they did it on purpose as a marketing gag.

[Traster]

It's honestly amazing how debased our society has become where even outright fucks are excused as "Oh well maybe they're just so clever that their success looks indistinguishable from a normal person failing"

[isoprophlex]

Yeah. Any press coverage is good press coverage with this thing.

The thing is so outlandish, like something Philip k Dick dreamt up, you'll either love it or hate it. The outcome seems determined by your taste, to me it is not influenced by what happened in the demo.

As an aside... What a fucking cool car.

[pgt]

It's possible. Peter Thiel has called Elon Musk, "the master marketer."

[tyingq]

Guessing they tested before the live shot, which worked, but weakened the glass. Though the back window gives too, so maybe not.

[xtracto]

It happens, and it happens more than anyone would like to admit. Remembered me about https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LfNQOOr9aR8

[exabrial]

With a design like that they're going to completely miss their target audience: the F150 buyers of America.

[new_realist]

The whole reveal was such a shitshow that I doubt this was a PR stunt. It’s just par for the course for Tesla.

[agumonkey]

AFAIK Ford did a similar thing with hemp based plastic car body.

[abhiminator]

This incident should be a good argument against making live product demos (particularly those that test product 'ruggedness'), especially for a brand new/untested class of product.

I'd rather let the broader 'tech reviewers' community test it out for themselves once the product launches to public -- that'll certainly look more authentic and less staged.

[libertine]

This is a minor detail in a full event.

The worst case scenario he made a fool out of himself on that moment, which is something he is most definitely used to.

The best case scenario he will get a lot of PR, even haters will be talking about the Cybertruck.

If there are products that deserve live product demos are these that break the mold and leave people scratching their heads.

If you left it to tech reviewers they would probably bitch about the design. When what happened was a truck with an odd design that at first leaves you uncomfortable but by the end of the event you've grown to like it.