Tesla Cybertruck's Frunk Doesn't Have Anti-Pinch Sensors, It Will Eat Your Fingers

Almost all cars now have power windows and power doors, all at the touch of a button. With many automated systems that perform mechanical functions, carmakers had to implement protective mechanisms to prevent people from getting injured. That is, to find a way to let the automated systems know when a human limb might interfere with the operation of a particular system.

A good example is the anti-pinch system of power windows, which prevents people's fingers from being crushed. Small children are especially vulnerable, as they are not always aware of moving objects. These anti-pinch systems work well enough for power windows to be trusted, but in other scenarios, they are not that good.

Take soft-close doors, for instance: tests show that the force is so big that it can crush a wooden pencil, let alone human fingers. The travel of the soft-close mechanisms is so small that there's little anti-pinch mechanisms can do to prevent injuries in this case. There are countless accidents on record, many people equaling soft-close doors with "modern-day guillotines."

Some might say the same is true about the Cybertruck's frunk, which seems to lack an adequate protection system to prevent injuries. This has become obvious during a test done a couple of days ago by Kyle Conner from Out of Spec Studios. His videos are a little on the long side, which makes some things difficult to gain traction, which is why people reacted so late to this one. In the first section of the video (linked below), we see Kyle's team testing the Cybertruck's anti-pinch system.

More specifically, the Cybertruck's frunk has no problem closing when a human hand is still in the way. Kyle tested this with carrots, but the result would be just as nasty if the frank catches your fingers. The Rivian R1T, on the other hand, correctly detects the foreign object and cancels the close command before it could hurt anyone.

One Cybertruck owner decided to test Cybertruck's anti-pinch system for himself, going to the extreme in the name of science. DblCapCrimpin shows that the power frunk does have some sort of detection system that triggers a response when an object blocks the closing of the frunk. However, it seems like it was designed to protect the closing mechanism rather than your fingers. Basically, the Cybertruck has a resistance sensor in the motors that power the frunk. If it encounters an obstacle, it will revert motion, but stick your hand on the sides, and it will not save your fingers.

The daring Cybertruck owner uses a special glove to test the feature, and, it turns out, the frunk reverts on the first try. However, when he removes the glove, the frunk locks with his hand caught on the side. If not for the deformation of the Cybertruck's hood under pressure, DblCapCrimpin's fingers could've suffered. It's safe to assume that more delicate fingers would fare much worse. Even with the glove on, he admits he wouldn't try that near the sharp corners of the frunk. Tesla is also aware of this, which is why it printed a stark warning in the Cybertruck owner's manual.