After years of delays, Tesla's long-awaited Cybertruck may finally be ready to launch in September. While the company has yet to provide many specific details about the electric truck, the Tesla-loving drone operators of the world are hard at work capturing what footage they can.
A recent video from YouTuber Joe Tegtmeyer, recorded on August 16 at the Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, shows a Cybertruck starting at a Tesla Supercharger station, cruising down a street, and executing a U-turn before returning to an indoor section of the facility.
It is the U-turn that has sparked the interest of Tesla enthusiasts on the internet, as the footage apparently displays an impressive turning radius for a vehicle of its size, thanks to its rear-wheel steering.
"A typical local road in the U.S. has a width between 9-12 feet, according to the Federal Highway Administration," wrote InsideEVs, "so if we were to guess, we'd say the Cybertruck's turning circle is about 35 feet, considering the separator that divides the road is approximately 5 feet wide."
According to the site, that's an even tighter turning radius than a GMC Hummer EV, which is also equipped with rear-wheel steering but has a turning diameter of 38 feet. A turning diameter of under 40 feet is generally considered impressive for a pickup truck, as they are not prized for their maneuverability.
Although InsideEVs' calculations are not official and make use of a few assumptions to fill in the blanks, a turning diameter that small would put the Cybertruck in select company when it comes to cars of its type.
This type of capability may convince more pickup truck drivers to switch over from their traditional gas-powered trucks — one of the most egregious types of vehicles polluting on the road. According to a December 2022 report from the Congressional Budget Office: "The most popular size car in 2020 emitted 0.60 pounds of CO2 per vehicle mile, whereas one category of large pickup trucks built in that year had average emissions that were nearly twice that amount — 1.18 pounds of CO2 per vehicle mile."
The more of those vehicles that are replaced with electric-powered vehicles, the better for the planet.
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