Musk Fanboys Melt Down After Ralph Nader-Founded Car Safety Group Trashes Cybertruck
But the Cybertruck, Brooks adds, adds two uniquely troubling factors to this equation: First is the “ultra-hard, cold-rolled stainless steel” exterior, which the center reasons “is much less forgiving than other modern vehicles.” Referring to Musk’s flashy demonstrations of the truck’s toughness, Brooks says: “The Cybertruck can stop a bullet and Joe Rogan‘s arrow, but what happens when it strikes a human body? Less yield and more energy transfer resulting in enhanced injuries is the most likely answer.”
By Miles Klee
December 9, 2023
Only a select few people who pre-ordered Tesla‘s long-delayed Cybertruck have received one so far – it helps to be Jay Leno, apparently – but fans of the futuristic vehicle have already convinced themselves it’s a flawless product, and another triumph for Elon Musk. And they’re just a tad defensive when someone suggests otherwise.
On Thursday, the Center for Auto Safety took a swipe at the divisive truck in a tweet joking that anyone who drives one is insecure about their “manhood” and was “picked last in gym.” The nonprofit consumer advocacy organization also asserted that the Cybertruck will be “dangerous to everyone else on the road.”
While the post didn’t specify why the truck could pose a particular hazard, other car safety experts have said that its stiff, stainless-steel panels could contribute to additional damage in collisions with pedestrians, cyclists, and other vehicles. (At the Cybertruck delivery event last month, Musk told prospective owners, “If you have an argument with another car, you will win.”) The truck is currently not available in the European Union due in part to regulatory issues, and a Tesla vice president has confirmed it’s unlikely to ever be sold in that market.
Yet none of these concerns have afflicted Musk’s army of blue-check loyalists on X (formerly Twitter), who also don’t seem to realize that the Center for Auto Safety, founded in 1970 by activist Ralph Nader, and Consumers Union (now Consumers Report), has been instrumental in the recall of millions of defective vehicles and parts in the past half-century.
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