Tesla Cybertruck Is Finished “From A Design Perspective," Chief Designer Says

Franz von Holzhausen also hinted that the production of Tesla’s electric truck might begin in mid-2023.

2019 Tesla Cybertruck Prototype (Petersen Automotive Museum)

Iulian Dnistran

By: Iulian Dnistran

Jan 16, 2023 at 4:43am ET

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Tesla’s Chief Vehicle Designer, Franz von Holzhausen, recently said in a podcast that the much-anticipated Cybertruck is basically ready for production, but in typical Tesla fashion, stopped short of offering concrete facts.

As a guest on Ryan McCaffrey’s podcast Ride the Lightning, the man famous for breaking the unbreakable armor glass was asked if the company’s electric pickup was ready “from a design perspective”, to which von Holzhausen answered, “Yeah. Basically, yes.”

The statement comes three years after Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the angular-shaped EV and after several delays in production due to supply chain issues caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic.

As noted by Teslarati, the podcast’s host mentioned the rumors surrounding the start of production, trying to get a confirmation for the mid-2023 estimation that’s floating around on the internet. Tesla’s Chief Designer didn’t deny or confirm the information, saying that the company doesn’t have a “pencils down” mentality with vehicle design, meaning that Tesla could make changes to the design of a car whenever it feels there’s a need for it.

Gallery: Tesla Cybertruck

Tesla Cybertruck

“We work consistently through the entire process, and we’re constantly working on every detail, and the refinement of that,” von Holzhausen said on the podcast. “And we learn things through the engineering phases and the manufacturing development phases that we can improve on, and so we do,” he added.

Tesla’s lead designer also half-heartedly confirmed that the upcoming Cybertruck might come with the controversial yoke steering wheel as standard, saying that it “makes sense,” but the company hasn’t confirmed this and it’s unclear if it will ever offer any information on this matter before the truck gets to reservation holders.

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Tesla previously offered the yoke steering wheel as standard on the Model S Plaid and Model X Plaid, but it recently introduced a conventional round steering wheel as a no-cost option for new cars ordered on its website. So while the yoke looks cool, it seems the American EV maker listened to those who said that it’s impractical, especially when you need to do a lot of maneuvers in tight spaces.

Hints of Tesla’s intentions of starting production on the Cybertruck were spotted several times, with photos and delivery notes of the 9,000-ton Giga Press from IDRA making its way to the car company’s Texas factory earlier this year.