Giorgetto Giugiaro is a design legend and that can make it difficult to remember that he has faced his fair share of criticism over the years. It perhaps shouldn’t come as a surprise that he is sympathetic to Tesla’s design team, and the criticism it faces today over the Cybertruck.
In fact, there is likely no one more sympathetic to the plight of the electric vehicle manufacturer’s design team than Giugiaro, since the truck is heavily inspired by his own design: the DeLorean DMC-12.
“When you step outside the norms, it’s almost always seen as a provocation,” Giugiaro told NPR. “It happens in all fields, from furniture to cooking, etc. Everyone wants to distinguish themselves; it’s a market necessity, and the Cybertruck will surely be successful, I’m sure of it. I’m convinced it will find its admirers.”
Read: DeLorean And Cybertruck Are Brothers From Another Father
That doesn’t necessarily mean that the designer finds the truck pretty, though. “I don’t want to judge the Cybertruck as beautiful or ugly,” he explained, but added that it “has its admirers who want a vehicle to stand out.” And appealing to a niche may be a savvy move on Tesla’s part.
Research from Cox Automotive published earlier this year found that pickup buyers will continue to be brand-loyal, even as electric models enter the scene. That suggests that the Cybertruck would not have been more likely to succeed if it had been more traditional, so appealing to people who aren’t satisfied with the existing truck market makes sense.
Just because a vehicle finds its niche doesn’t mean that all its faults can be forgiven. It’s easy to forget that the DeLorean was only a success in hindsight, failing to find enough customers to survive because of a variety of issues. It’s especially important for Tesla to remember that, because a lot of the criticisms leveled against the Cybertruck were also held against the DMC-12.
In its day, reviewers complained that the DeLorean had to be cleaned constantly because its stainless steel body showed every fingerprint, that those body panels were misaligned, the performance was underwhelming, and that the interior quality left a lot to be desired. Most of the same complaints have dogged the Tesla.
Tesla does appear to be trying its hardest to solve these issues, though. Production was delayed by years, and Musk sent stern emails to the company warning against manufacturing imperfections. The question, then, is whether the Cybertruck finds its admirers and then falters, or is good enough to win more over.
