DeLorean Designer Shares His Thoughts on the Cybertruck's Design

November 21, 2023

By Kevin Armstrong

The Delorean DMC-12 next to Tesla's Cybertruck

BladeBronson

Tesla is on the brink of a significant milestone, with its Cybertruck delivery event set for November 30. This event is drawing parallels to a pivotal moment in car design history, specifically to the work of Giorgetto Giugiaro, an 85-year-old Italian legend in the automotive world. Giugiaro's influential designs include the Lotus Esprit, BMW M1, and the iconic DeLorean DMC-12, made famous by Back to the Future.

Giugiaro's Insights on Tesla's Design Choices

Giugiaro shared his perspective on Tesla's bold design choices in an email exchange with NPR. "When you step outside the norms, it's almost always seen as a provocation. It happens in all fields, from furniture to cooking, etc. Everyone wants to distinguish themselves; it's a market necessity," Giugiaro stated. His insight underscores the importance of innovation in a competitive market, a philosophy that Tesla seems to have embraced with the Cybertruck. Giugiaro further added, "The Cybertruck will surely be successful; I'm sure of it. I'm convinced it will find its admirers."

The Cybertruck's journey echoes the DeLorean's experience from the 1980s. Both vehicles faced skepticism and criticism for their unconventional designs, particularly for their angular shapes and the propensity of their stainless steel bodies to showcase smudges and fingerprints. Despite these criticisms, the DeLorean DMC-12 carved a unique niche, symbolizing automotive innovation and pop culture fame.

The 'Origami' Influence and Cybertruck's Design

Giugiaro's design philosophy, which he refers to as "origami," has significantly influenced the Cybertruck (Cybertruck dimensions). This style, characterized by sharp, straight lines and wedge shapes, was a radical departure from traditional automotive design when it first appeared in the 1970s.

This approach, reminiscent of modern architectural elements, was pioneered by Giugiaro in the 1970s and became a hallmark of his design aesthetic. The Maserati Boomerang concept car and the Volkswagen Golf Mk1 are prime examples of this style, reflecting the influence of Japanese origami in automotive design." The Cybertruck's design, with its sharp angles and distinct silhouette, echoes this philosophy.

Parallels Between Cybertruck and DeLorean

The Cybertruck, much like the DeLorean, has faced its share of critiques. Issues like misaligned stainless steel panels and questionable interior choices have been reported, mirroring the challenges the DMC-12 encountered decades ago. The DeLorean was criticized for its stainless steel body that showed every fingerprint and required constant cleaning, as well as for the quality of its construction, with reports of doors that didn't fit properly and interior components that frequently fell off.

Despite these challenges, the DeLorean DMC-12 achieved iconic status, partly due to its feature in "Back to the Future," the public's fascination with John DeLorean's personal story, and Giugiaro's reputation as one of the most influential car designers of the 20th century. This history serves as a reminder that initial public reception doesn't always indicate a design's ultimate place in history.

Giugiaro's perspective on the Cybertruck is neutral yet optimistic. "I don't want to judge the Cybertruck as beautiful or ugly. It certainly has its admirers who want a vehicle to stand out." This sentiment echoes the broader theme in automotive design and innovation: groundbreaking designs often face initial skepticism but can ultimately redefine the aesthetic norms of their era.

Rivian to Add Google Cast and Native YouTube App, Will Tesla Respond?

May 17, 2024

By Not a Tesla App Staff

Coming to Rivian vehicles over a software update is Google Cast and YouTube support, which will allow for seamless, high-quality content streaming to Rivian vehicles.

This is a big step forward for Rivian’s software integration, especially compared to Tesla, which has yet to integrate native apps or release the long-rumored Tesla native app store.

Google Cast

Google Cast is Google’s version of Apple AirPlay which is supported in a variety of audio and video streaming apps such as Netflix, Disney+, YouTube, and more. By using a supported app, a user will be able to cast content directly to Rivian’s main 15.6” center screen.

Like Casting to a TV or Smart Device at home, this will allow you to play, pause, or skip back and forth using the vehicle’s touchscreen. Google Casting automatically pauses when the vehicle shifts into Drive.

Native YouTube App

Alongside Google Cast, Rivian is also bringing a native YouTube app to vehicles, enabling users to access YouTube’s video and music library from anywhere with a data connection. These features will be integrated right into Rivian’s vehicle operating system, which means they will receive regular software updates, and not be reliant on browser-based capabilities.

Similar to casting content, YouTube content will also automatically pause when the vehicle is shifted into Drive.

Tesla Equivalents

For the time being, there is no way to AirPlay or Cast video from a phone or tablet to Tesla’s front or rear screens. However, for some apps such as YouTube, you can send the video URL to the vehicle and have it open the YouTube app to that video.

To do this, open the YouTube app and find a video. Once you’d like to share it with the vehicle you can tap on share. You’ll then need to share it with the Tesla app which will then send it to your vehicle. On iPhones this requires you to scroll to the right and tap on More, which brings up the native sharing screen and has the Tesla app.

However, this is far more limited than including AirPlay or Google Cast support which will work for practically and video, even personal videos in your photo library.

Elon Musk mentioned back in 2016 that Tesla would add mirroring of phone apps to the center screen, but that has yet to materialize. More recently Musk mentioned a native X App coming to Tesla vehicles.

Tesla Theater

Tesla Theater allows users to stream videos from various platforms, including YouTube, but these are web-based applications, with no native applications available. This leaves some marked limitations on usability.

Tesla most recently announced in their 2024.14 update that the browser will be able to be expanded to full-screen mode when parked, enabling more access to streaming services on the web. Meanwhile, Google Cast and Apple Airplay continue to remain highly requested features.

Tesla FSD V12.4 - Features and Release Date

May 16, 2024

By Not a Tesla App Staff

The greatly anticipated FSD v12.4 is around the corner, with Elon Musk mentioning that it will be going to employees this weekend, with limited external testers next week.

Several significant improvements are coming with V12.4, which is being compared to the leap in performance that was previously seen between V12 and V11.

Improved Comfort and Reduced Interventions

There are quite a few improvements expected with V12.4, which Musk has said will be focused on user comfort by reducing hard accelerations and sudden braking. According to Musk, FSD v12.4 is also expected to have a 5-10x improvement in time between user interventions, which means that Tesla is rapidly approaching its goal for the Robotaxi announcement on August 8, 2024.

Steering Wheel Nag Removal

FSD V12.4 is expected to eliminate the steering wheel nag, as Musk confirmed its removal last week. The camera-based driver monitoring system will be taking over, providing a hands-free experience. These improvements will most likely benefit owners who have cabin cameras with infrared lights the most, while Tesla may continue to use steering wheel nag as a fallback mechanism.

Driverless Autopark

The second key feature that may be included in v12.4 will be Banish Autopark, previously known as Reverse Summon, allowing you to choose a parking spot, exit the vehicle and have the car park itself. Whether this feature makes it in v12.4 is yet to be seen, but Musk has mentioned that parking without a driver is coming soon.

Automatically Seek Parking Spot at Destination

Finally, your Tesla will now traverse a parking lot and automatically enter Autopark mode when arriving at a destination, according to a post from Musk.

Eligibility and Branch

Tesla recently added FSD v12.3.6 to the 2024.14 branch with updates 2024.14.5 and 2024.14.6. This makes it very likely that Tesla’s next FSD version will also be based on 2024.14, meaning that it will be available to any vehicle on 2024.14.x.

For users on update 2024.3.25, this means that they’ll receive all of the features included in updates 2024.8 and 2024.14, which should make it a massive update.

Release Date

Musk has mentioned that FSD V12.4 is going out to employee vehicles for internal testing this weekend, with external testing starting next week. The rollouts typically go slower than predicted but looks like we may see this begin shipping to customers by the end of the month.