The Amount of Angry Looks, Middle Fingers, and People That Yell At Me While I Drive My Tesla Cybertruck Is Absolutely Insane, And the People That Are Mad At Me Are the Same Ones That Just a Year Ago Were Telling Everybody to Buy EVs To Save the Planet

This week, we found a heartbreaking post on TikTok from a Tesla Cybertruck owner. He is dismayed that whenever he drives in his Cybertruck, people hurl expletives, swerve into his lane, and act aggressively toward him. Here is some of what Tesla Cybertruck owner JF recounts:

People are screaming at me, flipping me off for driving the very vehicle that they told me to buy. So, in the matter of a year, I went from being “that side’s” best friend for doing exactly what they told me to now their worst enemy just for driving the vehicle that I was told to buy in order to save the planet.

If we may editorialize a bit here, we feel that it is quite a stretch to say that 7,000-pound, $100K cartoon trucks were ever anyone’s idea of a “planet-saving” vehicle. However, that is simply our view. Let’s list out a few comments that replied to JF’s impassioned post. We will begin with those who support JF’s position and then list out some comments explaining the viewpoint of the angry people.

• “Liberals are mentally ill.”
• “Wait till they learn about Volkswagen’s history.”
• “That’s Just sad. We love our Cybertruck, regardless of what the haters say.”
• “I’m proud of my Tesla.”
• “I wish I could afford a Cybertruck.”
• “I love it. I’m happy for you.”

Next, the position of the folks who support anger directed toward the owner of a Tesla Cybertruck.

• “YOU CAN’T BLAME THEM!”  (All caps in the comment indicating yelling)
• “Tesla cars are fine. The trucks are monstrosities and were never acceptable.”
• “It’s the Pontiac Aztec of our times.”

There were many other sarcastic comments that contained expletives that we found it difficult to edit and still provide the point, but we feel our readers get the idea. There are decidedly two sides to this situation, not just one. And some commenters said that they have had the same thing happen. For example: "My sister had to trade her Tesla Model Y because it was constantly being egged by angry people.”

Some commenters acted as if this Tesla Cybertruck owner is making up the idea of anti-Tesla driver sentiment. Torque News has reported dozens of stories of Tesla owners being screamed at and much worse, including reports of violence. If anything, the situation seems to be getting worse. It’s very easy to find video of this happening, including scores of Tesla cameras recording the cars being vandalized. 

Could this behavior, which is common to all Tesla models but seemingly more acerbic when it comes to the Cybertruck, be the reason for the Cybertruck’s stalled deliveries? We think so, but it is hard to tell. The model had a soft launch and a lot of problems before the latest Elon Musk antics turned many on the liberal side of the political spectrum against him. 

The post is relatively popular for any TikTok creator. When we viewed it, the post had nearly 50K views, about 1,400 comments almost 1,700 hearts (likes) and many shares. You can view it yourself at @jf.okay. Some of this creator’s videos have almost three million views, so it certainly is not his top post. 

We will not question the sincerity of this gentleman, based on our own observations of anti-Tesla violence. The Supercharger station closest to my home was burned, and arson is strongly suspected. Anti-Tesla activity makes local news frequently in my area of Metro Boston. 

The Cybertruck is becoming the poster child for Tesla's failure in recent times. Some commonly reported aspects of the Cybertruck include:

• Parts falling off
• Massive reservation cancellations
• Tesla “dealers” refusing to accept the Cybertruck as a trade-in. 

We feel the Cybertruck’s large size and cartoonish cyberpunk looks are also doing the truck no favors, since it begs ridicule by some who don’t like it. Coupled with the Anti-Tesla a.k.a. Anti Elon Musk activism that has swept the nation, it is hard to see how anyone could be brave enough to purchase one. 

Do you feel that this content creator is being genuine in his post, or is he being intentionally disingenuous? 

Should owners of any vehicle be subject to such abuse as he describes? Tell us in the comments section below, and note that you need not use your name as your posting identifier. 
 

John Goreham is a credentialed New England Motor Press Association member and expert vehicle tester. John completed an engineering program with a focus on electric vehicles, followed by two decades of work in high-tech, biopharma, and the automotive supply chain before becoming a news contributor. He is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE int). In addition to his eleven years of work at Torque News, John has published thousands of articles and reviews at American news outlets. He is known for offering unfiltered opinions on vehicle topics. You can connect with John on Linkedin and follow his work on his personal X channel or on our X channel. Please note that stories carrying John's by-line are never AI-generated, but he does employ grammar and punctuation software when proofreading and he also uses image generation tools. 

Image of Tesla's Cybertruck parked in Metro Boston taken by John Goreham.