Elon Musk said the Tesla Cybertruck was bulletproof. And then smashed its windows to pieces with a baseball bat and a metal ball on the night of the official unveiling in November 2019. It couldn’t withstand those "weapons," but can it withstand an arrow?
The logical answer in the case of a normal car would be a definite "NO." But since nothing is normal about the Cybertruck, that stainless steel bodywork might be able to be intact at the end of such an experience.
Last month, a Tesla Cybertruck prototype was spotted driving on a highway in California, sporting dozens of bullet marks on the driver’s side. Since we saw nothing about an attack involving a Cybertruck on the news, it is safe to assume that the prototype had undergone some shooting testing.
Furthermore, Elon Musk explained on former Twitter/current X that the vehicle had successufully undergone some "Al Capone-style bulletproof testing from a Tommy Gun." Tommy is actually a Thompson submachine gun from the 1920s, widely used by the interwar gangsters of the era.
The news on the shooting test prompted the host of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast to ask Elon Musk if the Cybertruck would be able to withstand an attack from a hunting bow.
Rogan showed up with his 90-pound compound bow that shoots 525-grain arrows at 300 feet per second (205 mph) for the test. The two of them made a bet on $1, as Musk let Rogan shoot the arrow at his own Cybertruck, the one he arrived in at the studio.
Rogan fired the arrow from close range, hoping to pierce the body of the vehicle. But all the arrow did was leave a small dent in the rear door. Nothing to write home about. But the tip of the arrow, though, got pretty deformed. "So, we just shot an arrow into it, and it barely scratched it. It was probably moving 275 feet a second, that was a 545 grain arrow, that’s impressive. It just destroyed the broad head, and then the arrow blew apart. Amazing!" Rogan said.
During the podcast, Elon Musk revealed that Tesla will show a video of the Cybertruck under the attack of a Tommy Gun, a 45-millimeter shotgun, and a 9-millimeter gun emptied on the side of the pickup truck. The video will be shown at the November 30 handover event, when the first Cybertrucks will be handed over to their owners.
Tesla's CEO admitted that the windows of the EV are not bulletproof as standard, because that would make them too thick and impossible to roll up and down. But they can be bulletproofed if the owners want it. It is unclear if Tesla can do this or it should be the responsibility of vehicle armoring companies.
Google News