The Tesla Cybertruck looks like nothing else on the road, but it’s not just polarizing in looks. It’s faced controversy since it was first announced, and that’s only intensified since deliveries started late last year. The Cybertruck has already been in the news for rust and wild error messages. Now, it seems like it’s got a new thirst for blood.
The news comes to us from the Cybertruck Owner’s Club, a forum for owners of Tesla’s first pickup. There, owner CyberWade wrote to warn others about the perils posed by the vehicle’s stainless steel door panels.
“I parked on an incline, exited the truck and as I was closing the door I manage to clip the very corner of the door against my leg,” said CyberWade. “When I got home the wife said I needed to go get stitches, so I did.” No kidding—the gory photo accompanying the post was quite something. Scroll on if you dare.
man goes to hospital after Cybertruck door cuts gash in his leg pic.twitter.com/XJqQCh9S8A
— a little peanut ???? (@youwouldntpost) May 5, 2024
The resulting gash is quite something; it looks to be almost a half-inch deep. CyberWade took full responsibility for the incident but still felt the need to share with other Cybertruck owners so that they could avoid a similar fate.
In any case, it didn’t hurt his love for Tesla product one jot. “I still love the truck!” his post exclaims.
I’ve had similar incidents myself, where I’ve heavily clipped the edge of a door with my shin. However, at best, I’ve received a small surface scratch or a minor bruise. I’ve never had to seek expert medical help to put my flesh back together.
The responses from the forum are enlightening. “This beast has some sharp angles,” said Nobell32. “I cut my finger while washing the car.” He notes it was a “lesson learned” and that he’ll be more careful around the edges in future. Meanwhile, others expected Tesla to solve the issue for customers. “Tesla needs to find a way to round the edges on the SS [stainless steel] cause not everyone is going to take it on the chin,” said Alpine. “There could be lawsuits coming.”
Cyberman gets the strangest comment award, however. “Don’t take this wrong, dude, but it kinda looks like a vagine on your leg.” I’m not going to correct his spelling because I don’t want to touch that comment with a ten-foot pole.
It’s hard to say at a glance whether the Cybertruck’s design played a major role here. The edge of the door is a touch pointier than some other vehicles. The Cybertruck’s elevated ride height also puts the edge of the door at a more dangerous height. You certainly wouldn’t want a toddler to run into it, for example. Regardless, this isn’t outright a major problem for the Cybertruck.
However, other parts of the vehicle are proving sharp enough to cause problems. “Also take note of the speaker grill,” says flamaest on the forum. “My CT speaker grill is metal and I have skinned my knee to bleeding twice. It’s like a cheese grater.”
Other owners have taken matters into their own hands. Kevin Erickson took to YouTube to show how he’s been sanding and deburring the edges of various panels. He found that the panels had sharp spots on several edges, including where one’s hands would often grab the door.
In a more shocking test, EverydayChris was able to cut vegetables using the stainless steel panels. One edge was able to slice straight through a hot dog.
I don’t have to tell you that this is unusual. I can’t name any other automaker currently selling a car in the US that you have to sand the sharp edges off yourself. Hilariously, in a report on this issue back in December last year, American Cars and Racing noted that “the U.S. doesn’t have regulations regarding this type of design issue.” That’s probably because most automakers try to design cars that won’t cut you.
Traditionally, most other cars have rolled edges that eliminate a lot of these problems. Otherwise, manufacturers insist on deburring steps to clean things up prior to delivery. The raw nature of the Cybertruck’s panels, combined with a lack of extra processing steps, are clearly causing some issues here.
In any case, if you’re buying a shiny metal car that looks like it could cut you, it probably can. Take the time to rectify the problem, lest you slice your hand open and spill blood all over your outfit. Otherwise, when you walk in to your restaurant reservation, you’ll likely get snark from the waiter. “Ah, I see you drove the Cybertruck tonight, sir.”
Image credits: Tesla
Come on! If this was some third world shut box, then sure, burred edges sharp corners, lack of attention to detail is completely understandable but this absolute monstrosity (which is what it is) costs over $100k and they can’t even be bothered to ensure that it doesn’t maim the customers? Surely Tesla is just taking the piss at this point. They can’t even fit a friggin accelerator pedal properly. But to spend this gargantuan amount of money on this thing and have to sand the bloody edges so you don’t cut your hand when you wash it, you’ve got to have friggin rocks in your head to think this is a good car. Sure it’s fast, sure it’s capable, I’m sure it looks absolutely stunning (I haven’t seen one in the flesh because we put our steering wheels on the correct side of car where I live) but this is just not acceptable and to sit there and say “oh it’s my fault” is actually worse than apples “you are holding the phone wrong” debacle. This is really really expensive, you wouldn’t accept that if a builder left your bannister in such a state that you got splinters every time you came downstairs even if the builder was the best one ever!
I’m of the exact same mind. I don’t care if you personally think it’s cool, but at least admit it’s not special enough to earn this reverence that people won’t even extend to each other.
Working yourself into paroxysm to compensate for its’ glaring deficiencies degrades the cool factor more. Let it be and let people make their own judgements.
Even the Mirage and Versa have rolled or rounded edges. Hell, even the Changli doesn’t seem to have raw machined edges where hands go. Not even bothering to deburr is ridiculous at any price point.
TBF, I wouldn’t want most toddlers to run into the corner of any open car door.
It’s not surprising to me that the people who are buying this thing are the sort to insist that no, really, it’s their fault the truck hurt them, not the truck’s fault, the truck is still cool.
I cut my leg/foot on the exhaust on my 1992 s10. I still loved that truck so I can understand.
“You knew darn well I was a snake before you took me in.”
Al Wilson-1968
Coincidentally (or maybe not), ten feet is quite a bit shorter than the nearest distance Cyberman has ever been to an actual human… um, “vagine.”
I’m not going to correct his spelling because I don’t want to touch that comment with a ten-foot pole.
According to the Kazakh Ministry of Information that is the correct spelling.
What a fool…Cyberjunk…how delusional do you have to be to spend actual $ on the ugliest piece of junk ever made, it hurts you and you still say “oh, I still like it” You’re basically saying you’re the biggest dummy in the world=EV fanatics
I knew I had seen or heard the word vagine before and sure enough it is a word first used widely in the first by Borat movie by Borat himself. On Urban Dictionary it has a definition that predates Borat going back to 2002. So I would say that wasn’t really a spelling error but a Borat fan.
From the big to the small, how many examples of the relative toothlessness of US safety regulatory enforcement is Tesla going to provide? I’d be damn tempted to bring it up as an election issue.
When I was 10 years old, I had just returned with my mom from the store where she had bought me a toy monster truck. I immediately got out and started playing with it in the driveway. In my rush to try it out, I left the car door open behind me and forgot about it. She called me to come in and as I turned and stood, I caught that corner with my chest. It sliced me from sternum to (almost) nipple. It was nowhere near as deep as this and didn’t require stitches. It was, however, deep enough to leave a battle scar across my chest that, in my 10 year old brain, looked really freaking cool. Maybe not as cool as having a vagina on your leg though.
Musk, tomorrow: “Of COURSE people are getting cut on Cybertrucks. That stainless steel is folded 300 times during forging. It can cut through a Sherman tank.”
Owning a Cybertruck seems more and more like being stuck in an abusive relationship.
If the Cybertruck was a person it would be the villain in a Lifetime movie
Only because of how much people freak out when you drive by. It’s going to relax over time, but it’s kinda dangerous right now.
More in the “he gave me stitches but I still love him you don’t understand” way.
Not so far, but I haven’t had it long.
If the owner were to admit that this truck is garbage to own, they would be admitting that their the majority of their personality is based on a lie. Not sure they’re ready for that just yet.
Hmm, now what other example in America does that recall?
It’s a witch hunt you mother fuckers! And I did not screw that fat pig with the horse face…
Bet Musk doesn’t believe in Tetanus shots either, but he will.
I’ve detailed 100+ cars, and not once have I ever been cut that badly on anything. I’ve definitely had my share of scrapes and small cuts from sharpish edges, primarily in areas where most people would never be digging around (and where filth accumulates). And maybe the occasional scrape against a pointy lower edge of a door…but I’ve never even come close to needing stitches.
This would be class-action lawsuit territory for any other manufacturer. It may be anyway the first time a dickhead CT owner parks someone in and they get cut trying to squeeze into the gap. Normal people aren’t going to just apologize and go on preaching Elon’s gospel when they get hurt by a badly designed consumer product.