Tesla’s pickup may be a bit too futuristic — and vulnerable to missiles and bullets
By ET Bureau | Updated:
As with all things Tesla — the US automotive and energy company, not, alas, Nikola, the Serbian-American inventor — whatever it does, becomes news. So what if the much-awaited electric pickup truck, unveiled by Tesla CEO Elon Musk in California on Thursday, didn’t quite live up to the gigawatted-up expectations. One has come to expect Musk and Tesla to be synonymous with ‘futuristic’. But the ‘Cybertruck’ may have ended up being a bit too out of sync with drivers and car-owners living in the present.
The metallic alloy-built trapezoid-on-wheels looks more like a vehicle fit for the likes of Judge Dredd and RoboCop (read: sombre, unsmiling personages in future law and order agencies known for their talent to quell riots in dystopic conditions) than something you can load your tools and poultry at the back of the truck and drive away, even in a Hollywood version of a farm land.
To make matters worse, billed as being ‘unbreakable’, the truck’s metal glass windows broke when, during the demo, a metal ball was thrown at them. That’s the equivalent of finding the girl in the magician’s act having her body ending up actually sawn in half. Not quite comforting, especially when the Cybertruck has been advertised as being literally bulletproof (as opposed to metaphorically?). Which, in the US, can, indeed, be a matter of concern.
Tesla Roadster or CityAirbus: What Will You Ride To Work?
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Your ride to the office or even a pleasure trip will be faster, higher and more energy efficient.
Your ride to the office or even a pleasure trip will be faster, higher and more energy efficient.
It is a multi-passenger, autonomously piloted electric flying car concept that can takeoff and land vertically (VTOL).
CityAirbus is designed to carry up to four passengers over congested megacities to places like airports or train stations in a fast and environment-friendly way.
Its integrated drive train includes eight propellers that deliver exceptional torque-to-weight ratio. Its first flight is scheduled for the end of the year.
It is a multi-passenger, autonomously piloted electric flying car concept that can takeoff and land vertically (VTOL). CityAirbus is designed to carry up to four passengers over congested megacities ..
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Hoverbikes are coming to take motorbikes off the roads.
You can ride the Malloy Hoverbike or make it fly autonomously, deliver aid, transport people and equipment over buildings, rivers and mountains.
It has a payload capacity of 130 kg, can reach an altitude of 9,000 feet and can fly at a speed of more than 100 knots, or about 185 kmph.
Hoverbikes are coming to take motorbikes off the roads. You can ride the Malloy Hoverbike or make it fly autonomously, deliver aid, transport people and equipment over buildings, rivers and mountains..
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Get ready to fly off like a superhero in a new breed of solo flying machines.
If the jet-powered carbon fibre wings invented by Swiss aviator Yves Rossy go commercial, you will soon be able to fly through the skies.
Powered by four miniature jet engines, this wing unit can hit speeds of up to 300 kmph.
Get ready to fly off like a superhero in a new breed of solo flying machines. If the jet-powered carbon fibre wings invented by Swiss aviator Yves Rossy go commercial, you will soon be able to fly th..
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The passenger version of Egan Airships’s Plimp (Model J) can carry up to eight passengers and cruise at a speed of 100 kmph.
The unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) can manoeuvre and move quickly like fixed-wing aircraft, hover and vertically take off and land like a helicopter.
It uses partial lift by helium, which is not flammable, and partial lift by its rotational wings. Turn the engines off and the Plimp gently floats back to the ground.
The passenger version of Egan Airships’s Plimp (Model J) can carry up to eight passengers and cruise at a speed of 100 kmph. The unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) can manoeuvre and move quickly like fi..
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The future of sailing is not going to be dependent on wind or fossil fuels.
An e-power catamaran, Silent 55, promises an unlimited range on the high seas.
It is powered by solar energy and can cruise up to 100 nautical miles a day.
Inside, you can watch TV, run air-conditioning and produce up to 2,000 litres of drinking water per day.
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Apart from its record-setting acceleration, the Roadster has a range of 997 km with one charge and a maximum speed of 420 kmph.
It stores a removable glass roof in the trunk for an open-air, convertible driving experience.
(Text: Rajarshi Bhattacharjee)
Autonomous cars are on the horizon, but none can beat the 2020 Tesla Roadster, which can go from zero to 96.5 kmph in 1.9 seconds. Apart from its record-setting acceleration, the Roadster has a range..
