Yahoo Finance ‘Oh my f****** god’: Elon Musk unveils ‘crazy bulletproof truck’ that is immediately smashed up by metal ball
Nine years after outlining his plan for a "Tesla super truck with crazy torque, dynamic air suspension" that "corners like it's on rails," Elon Musk has revealed the Cybertruck. But while the vehicle may live up to the hype, the unveiling didn’t go quite to plan.
Described as "an armoured personal carrier from the future," Mr Musk decided to demonstrate the electric truck's toughness during the launch event in California.
First he encouraged people to use sledgehammers to strike the ultra-strong door panels, which are made of the same alloys found on spacecraft. There was barely a dent.
A video demonstration then showed the lack of damage caused by bullets. "It is literally bulletproof to a 9mm handgun," he said. "That's how strong the skin is."
Finally, it was time to show off the strength of the armoured glass used in the windows. He invited someone to throw a small metal ball at the window, claiming it would not even crack. It immediately smashed.
"Oh my f****** god," Mr Musk exclaimed. "Well, maybe that was a little too hard. It didn't go through, so that's a plus... room for improvement."
A second attempt on another window also smashed the glass, meaning the Tesla CEO had to finish the presentation standing in front of the semi-destroyed vehicle.
The rest of the Cybertruck's unveiling went relatively smoothly, with impressive videos showing the electric pickup out-accelerating a Porsche 911 and out-towing a Ford F-150 truck - living up to its official tagline: “Better utility than a truck with more performance than a sports car.”
Pre-orders have opened for Tesla's latest vehicle, which starts at $39,900 for the most basic model, though there is no word yet on when it will be released.
It is unlikely to be before 2022, giving Mr Musk plenty of time to reinforce the windows.
