Known for their all-electric, high-tech, and self-driving capabilities, Teslas might not be the first choice you'd think of for off-roading. One trending YouTube video from Celessence (@Celessence) from October, though, sought to find out whether the Tesla Cybertruck's off-road capabilities can handle the rocky boulders of Nevada's Mojave Desert.
Celessence said in the video's description: "We've taken the Cybertruck onto dirt roads/forest trails for canyons, caves, and for mountain bike shuttles — it performed wonderfully, and even more gracefully than most trucks and SUVs — but can it do Rocky Gap??"
This video shows the Cybertruck — matched up against a Jeep Rubicon, with a guest appearance from a Ford Bronco — gracefully climbing over smaller rocks and navigating tight turns to account for its full length (223.74 inches).
While crawling up a challenging boulder hill, the Cybertruck lost a plastic wheel fairing, which the Cybertruck Do It Yourself guide suggests you remove before driving on rocks or surfaces with low ground clearance to avoid damage.
One commenter noted: "You're supposed to remove those plastic aero pieces when going off-road."
It was probably an honest mistake, and the damage wasn't substantial.
What's impressive, though, was the performance of the Cybertruck while navigating extremely rugged terrains previously dominated by gas-guzzling, off-road-capable vehicles such as Jeep Rubicons, Ford Broncos, and Toyota 4Runners.
The Cybertruck made it all the way through, with a little navigational assistance from an off-roader named "Shaggy," and despite some tense moments, it seemed to leave the Celessence crew impressed.
"So which one won?" one commenter asked. "I think CyberTruck because it can also self-drive long distances to other locations & save lots of money on gas!"
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This is quite the contrast to the image that comes to mind of electric vehicles running out of charge and their owners standing idly by. With improved iterations and more capable tech, EVs are not the unpredictable cars they were once thought to be.
Tesla's Cybertruck boasts up to 325 miles of all-wheel drive on a full charge and up to 136 miles recovered from just 15 minutes of Supercharging. Tesla's Model Y claims to provide even more — up to 337 miles of driving.
Earlier this year, Tesla reduced prices on many of their EVs — including Models Y, X, and S — to help them qualify for the federal EV incentives (up to $7,500) from the Inflation Reduction Act. The legislation was, in part, designed to encourage more widespread adoption of energy-efficient purchases such as EVs.
As it turns out, electric vehicles can be affordable and just as capable as gas-powered ones.
"I'd take Cybertruck over the [Jeep and Bronco] hands-down. It has so much more interior room and comfort, it's so much quieter to ride in, especially in nature, and it has front cameras and some pretty amazing off-road options that can be switched at the touch of a button," one commenter wrote under the video. "Anything else just looks super outdated."
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