Tesla Cybertruck Rocks Camouflage Wrap In Latest Sighting, But Why?

"Good thing we used camo, lol," Elon Musk jokingly tweeted about the photos.

Tesla Cybertruck prototype with camouflage wrap

Dan Mihalascu

By: Dan Mihalascu

Jun 14, 2023 at 11:05am ET

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In a rare development, a Tesla Cybertruck prototype has been spotted with factory camouflage for the first time ever.

The Tesla Cybertruck test vehicle fully covered by a camouflage vinyl wrap was spotted yesterday in Palo Alto, California, and the photos were uploaded on the Cybertruck Owners Club forum. This is surprising because Tesla is not a fan of using camouflage wraps on its test prototypes, and has only very rarely relied on this practice in the past.

However, it looks like the company is reconsidering its stance on camo wraps, at least as far as the Cybertruck is concerned. Car manufacturers usually wrap prototypes of their new or updated models to hide their designs, proportions, and other features that aren't known to the public yet.

Tesla hasn't adhered to this practice, instead preferring to test its new prototypes under test mules. In addition, on the rare occasion a new Tesla prototype is spotted, it's usually not wrapped in camouflage.

This latest Tesla Cybertruck spotting is exactly the opposite, though. The prototype features what appears to be desert camouflage, and we have to admit it looks cool.

Now, we're not sure why Tesla is letting a fully camouflaged Cybertruck out in the wild after the electric truck was spotted with no camouflage whatsoever many times before.

Is Tesla trying to hide some new element fitted to the Cybertruck? That doesn't seem like it. We have looked very closely at the photos, but other than the camo we couldn't find anything different on this prototype compared to earlier sightings. Elon Musk's tongue-in-cheek comment on the photos – "Good thing we used camo lol" – doesn't help us solve this mystery either.

The camo would make sense if Tesla planned to offer a factory wrap as an option for the Cybertruck, but there's no indication the automaker is considering it.

What do you think?

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That being said, the electric truck won't be painted, so wraps will likely be a popular way of customizing it. Not to mention there is a precedent as Tesla started offering in-house vehicle wrapping at its service centers in China in 2020.

Whatever the reason behind this is, there's no denying the camo-wrapped Tesla Cybertruck attracted a lot of attention. The video below that shows people staring and taking photos of the Cybertruck as it left the In-N-Out Burger drive-through proves it. Interestingly, Elon Musk tweeted that "it's a tradition" referring to the video; he didn't elaborate on that, though.