Chinese carmaker unveils fake Tesla Cybertruck
- China’s Dongfeng, which built the counterfeit EV, sells more than 2 million cars annually
- The concept truck features a full-length rear LED to convey messages to other motorists
- READ MORE: Cybertruck Brake Failure Nearly Cost New EV Owner’s Life
One of China’s ‘Big Four’ automakers has unveiled a new all-electric ‘concept’ truck, and it looks eerily similar to Tesla’s iconic, yet controversial Cybertruck.
With the working title “2024 Concept Pickup,” the Chinese knockoff Cybertruck would likely have a much lower price than Tesla’s luxury vehicle, based on China’s billions in electric vehicle (EV) subsidies.
The model shown this week at the 2024 Beijing Auto Show featured a pop-out tent over a mattress in the cargo bed, protected by a heavier but more rounded silver metal casing, plus a full-length rear LED that passes on messages to passers-by. motorists.
This fierce new competition comes as Tesla has issued a sweeping recall for more than 4,000 Cybertrucks – citing safety issues with the EV’s accelerator pedal cover, which owners discovered can slip off and get caught on the carpet.
The flaw has been discovered to lock Cybertruck’s pedals in place, causing the futuristic, stainless steel behemoth to spin out of control at top speed.
With the working title “2024 Concept Pickup,” the Chinese knockoff Cybertruck (above) would likely have a much lower price than Tesla’s luxury car, based on China’s billions in electric vehicle (EV) subsidies.
The model shown this week at the 2024 Beijing Auto Show featured a pop-out tent over a mattress in the cargo bed, protected by a heavier but more rounded silver metal casing, plus a full-length rear LED that passes on messages to passers-by. motorists
Above, a look at the LED lights on the back of the ‘concept’ truck – greeting everyone with ‘Hello, Beijing’
Wuhan-based Dongfeng, which built the Cybertruck-like concept EV, is being sold 2 million cars a year, mainly through partnerships with foreign automakers, including Japanese owner Honda and Nissan, and France-based Peugeot.
Like Tesla’s Cybertruck, Dongfeng’s concept truck has a blunt, wedge-shaped or ‘sledgehammer’ design, a steep blunt nose at the front and a cargo box above the rear wheels.
Although China is currently Tesla’s largest market outside the United States, the company’s billionaire owner Elon Musk has noted that this ‘very difficult‘ to get his novel Cybertruck ‘road legal’ in the Asian country.
However, the interior of the Cybertruck knockoff of the Dongfeng remains a mystery.
Unlike the rest of the communist state carmaker’s lineup at the Beijing fair, Dongfeng’s “concept” truck was cordoned off so visitors couldn’t peek through the windows or open the doors.