Fan Says the Reason People Don’t Understand Tesla’s Cybertruck Is That It’s Art, Not a Tool And Those With a Negative Emotional Reaction Don’t Get It

Torque News takes the comments under our stories very seriously. We always appreciate the comments, and we often answer them if they are in the form of a question. Sometimes we expand the conversation in the comments section by replying. However, one comment was so unique and insightful that we felt it deserved to be explored more deeply. Under Tinsae Aregay’s story titled “A Tesla Cybertruck Owner Says, “Compared to My Previous Ford, GMC & Chevy Trucks, The Cybertruck Has Been Significantly More Reliable,” Torque News reader/commenter, Ross said the following:

The Cybertruck is art. Some people get it, some don't. It definitely brings out emotions, and that is what art is supposed to do. This art also drives itself, is faster, more comfortable, and more durable than anything else in its class.

When I read this insightful comment, it gave me pause. Have I been thinking about the failed Tesla Cybertruck all wrong? As a recovering engineer, I tend to initially look at vehicles in the context of the segment in which they reside, the duties that they can perform, and how they accomplish the usual goals for similar vehicles. Have I been using all the wrong metrics to judge the Cybertruck? Is Cybertruck actually a billionaire's art project?

Cybertruck’s Design
Clearly, Elon Musk had his input on the Cybertruck’s design, which is nothing like the successful Model Y, the successful Model 3, and the groundbreaking Model S. All three of those cars have the Tesla “design language” in spades. They are slick, styled for both beauty and aerodynamic efficiency, and to some degree, form followed function. When the Cybertruck came along, it had a cyberpunk theme. Cyberpunk is a look and vibe that embodies a futuristic post-modern society, usually associated with science fiction. Medium has a great overview of what cyberpunk means to those who live the life, and attributes its beginnings to the works of William Gibson and his novel Neuromancer. My own view is that the movie Blade Runner was the embodiment of the cyberpunk movement. Having seen every version of it dozens of times, and having read the book Bladerunner more than once, my take is that there is almost no overlap between them, but of course it’s really the book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep that Blade Runner the movie was inspired by, not the book named The Bladerunner by Alan E. Nourse, which has a different story line.

Cyberpunk is one of those “I know it when I see it” type of things. Sharp angular lines. Metallic coloration. Mandatory metallic patina, which those not in the know would likely call “rust.”

Cybertruck as Art In the Technology Sense
In the context of Cybertruck as technological art, rather than strictly styling, Ross, the commenter, has hit on something. He says, “The art also drives itself.” Let’s hit the brakes hard here, shift to hover, and think about the vehicles in the Blade Runner movies. Angular, self-driving. Patina is the definitive coloration. I’m in no mood to be sued for copyright infringement, so please use your browser or AI tool of choice to call up images of the Blade Runner movie vehicles. The Cybertruck does not have the forward-flung wheels, but its main theme is straight up Blade Runner.

Comments By Folks Who Don’t Get the Cybertruck’s Art 
In another story Torque News published, also written by Tinsae, we have a commenter who epitomizes someone who just doesn’t get the modern Cybertruck themes. Warren commented, “Don’t buy an overpriced Tesla! They are some of the ugliest vehicles on the road. I stick with older vehicles, 30 yrs old to be exact. Simplicity, and no issues.” With all due respect to Warren, who offers a valid opinion, we must point out that we don't think Elon Musk ever intended the Cybertruck to appeal to folks who want a design that looks thirty years old.

A second commenter named Tom offered, “I think the cyber truck is a ridiculous-looking automobile if you can call it that. It reminds me of something from a child's Hot Wheels collection. One of the ugliest contraptions on the road. In my opinion, just a piece of junk with wheels. Ugh, ugh, ugly.”

As a person who looks at modern art, scratches his head and thinks, “My third grader could do that,” I understand the comments made by Tom and Warren. I may even share that opinion. However, this story debates whether the Cybertruck is a postmodern dystopian cyberpunk art object rather than a conventionally styled pickup truck. Honestly, the negative comments by folks who want a 1990 F-150 reinforce the argument that the Cybertuck is actually an art project, not a cookie-cutter pickup.

Elon Musk On the Cybertruck as Art
I’m not pretending that this story is some sort of revelation by me alone, sitting in 2026, reading Torque News comments. Elon Musk made it clear years ago that he instructed his design minions to “...make a futuristic battle tank — something that looks like it could come out of Blade Runner or Aliens or something like that but was also highly functional.”

Musk also said that he understood that the Cybertruck design might fail. Companies with guts take risks, fail, and then pivot. Do you remember the Apple Newton? How about the Pippin? Round Mouse? G4 Cube?  Musk said of the Cybertruck possibly not succeeding if folks didn’t grok that design language, “I wasn't super worried about (the design) because if it turns out nobody wants to buy a weird-looking truck, we'll build a normal truck, no problem.”

Has the Time Come For Tesla’s “Normal Truck?”
Now that Tesla has demonstrated abject failure financially, building out capacity for 10X the sales of the extremely low-volume Cybertruck, will he shift gears and build an electric replica of the F-150 and Silverado? Not if he’s smart. Those trucks have been built and rejected by the U.S. market. The Lightning is canceled, and the GM trucks are selling at lower volumes than the Cybertruck.

What’s your take? Is the Cybertruck a pickup truck or art? Was it meant for folks like your grandad to use when he needs to head into town for provisions, or was it intended for young, urban, wealthy twenty-somethings to parade around in, pretending they are Rick Deckard hunting skin jobs?  Tell us in the comments below. 
 

John Goreham is the Vice President of the New England Motor Press Association and an 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 fourteen 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. John employs grammar and punctuation software when proofreading, and he sometimes uses image generation tools. 

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