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Futuristic Ford ‘F-E50’ concept proves the age of the Tesla Cybertruck is here

(Credit: Glen George)

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The Tesla Cybertruck’s design may be controversial due to its unapologetically futuristic Cyberpunk elements, but even after its eventful unveiling, speculations were abounding among the EV community that the radical pickup truck may end up being the first of a new breed of vehicles. A recently shared futuristic take on Ford’s best-selling truck, the F-150, shows that this may soon be the case. Like it or not, it seems like the Age of the Cybertruck is coming, and there’s little that can be done to stop it. 

California-based vehicle designer Glen George recently shared his take on what an all-electric version of the F-150 could look like. Aptly dubbed as the “Ford F-E50,” the concept depicts a vehicle that carries a lot of the F-150’s trademark elements while showcasing the potential features inherent in an all-electric design. Up front lies a traditional F-150 Raptor grille, as well as the “Ford” badge in big, bold letters. Even the rear of the F-E50 concept carries the traditional tail lights of the F-150. 

(Credit: Glen George)

A sketch of the F-E50 concept’s features shows that the vehicle will have several functions that optimize the pickup’s all-electric nature. Among these is a spacious cabin thanks to the lack of an internal combustion engine as well as dedicated features for camping and transporting items like bikes. There’s even a fridge on the grille. Interestingly enough, the windshield of the F-E50 also slopes down smoothly into the hood, just like the Cybertruck.  

Overall, the Ford F-E50 concept shows elements that look similar to the Cybertruck’s XY design. This was despite the designer not listing the Cybertruck in the Ford F-E50 concept’s reference cars. Instead, cars cited for the design included the all-electric Lordstown Endurance, the Neuron T/ONE, and the electric/hydrogen Nikola Badger. Ford Authority, for its part, noted that despite the F-E150’s unique design, the concept remains more palatable than the Tesla Cybertruck. 

(Credit: Tesla Cybertruck/Instagram)

“Like it or not, this Ford EV truck looks much more palatable than the Tesla Cybertruck, that’s for sure. And it’s also designed to be quite useful, with features including a mini-fridge drawer that extends from the front end, a bed-mounted pop-up camper, and an integrated bike rack inside the bed,” the publication noted. 

Ford intends to release an all-electric version of the F-150 in the next few years, though the company has alluded to the vehicle utilizing the traditional pickup look. However, as the auto market transitions into a new age of car designs where efficiency and practicality are top priorities, radical vehicles like the Tesla Cybertruck may become the norm. When this happens, it would not be surprising if Ford ends up releasing its own XY-themed pickup as well. Perhaps even one that looks somewhat similar to George’s F-E50 concept.  

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Check out Glen George’s concept images of his Ford F-E50 creation here

Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Tesla Semi enters new Pilot Program with interesting challenge

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Credit: PTI

The Tesla Semi is entering a new Pilot Program with Paper Transport, LLC (PTI), a Wisconsin-based transportation provider. The company will test the Semi’s Long Range configuration through “dedicated operations within the Chicago market.”

Chicago presents an interesting challenge for the Semi, as it will be a colder-weather climate that will test the Semi’s ability to operate in lower temperatures and in potentially large accumulations of snow. This is something Tesla has been testing with the Semi in Alaska and even in Northern California during the colder months, but Chicago will present a truly tough midwestern winter.

Tesla Semi spotted on journey home after winter performance testing

PTI says it is using the Semi to evaluate its strategy of reducing transportation emissions while maintaining performance, reliability, and cost efficiency. These are major arguments for the Semi being introduced into new fleets.

CEO of PTI Tyler Ellison said:

“PTI has been a leader in sustainable transportation solutions for over 15 years. We take a consultative approach to helping customers identify and implement the right transportation solution for their network. Our partnership with Tesla expands our portfolio alongside renewable natural gas and intermodal, giving customers more ways to reduce Scope 3 emissions without compromising service or economics.”

PTI is far from the first company to adopt the Semi within a fleet, as Tesla entered strategic agreements with PepsiCo. and its subsidiary Frito-Lay for a Pilot Program that extended throughout the California region.

Tesla has let companies like those utilize the Semi to determine whether it would be suitable for their operations. Additionally, Tesla gets valuable information regarding the Semi’s performance, knowing what to improve and what is ideal for companies that will utilize the all-electric truck for regional and nationwide logistics.

PTI plans to utilize the Long Range configuration, which is priced at $290,000 and features a range of approximately 500 miles, a three-motor powertrain, up to 800 kW of drive power, and consumption of just 1.7 kWh per mile.

Tesla Semi pricing revealed after company uncovers trim levels

VP of Maintenance at PTI, Bryan Ellen, added:

“We are excited to partner with Tesla, leveraging their ever-evolving technology. We are bullish in our estimation of the parallels available between our dedicated model and the efficiency of their fully electric Class 8 tractor. We anticipate a growing synergy between our businesses as we work to facilitate this sustainable solution for our customers.”

PTI has logged more than 87 million miles using sources like compressed and renewable gas, but now is looking to take it a step further with fully electric operations.

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Tesla is building a wheelchair-accessible Robotaxi

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A beautiful spring landscape at SoFi Stadium with lush green palm trees and plants with powerful clouds at sunset in Inglewood California USA. (Credit: Tesla)

Tesla revealed on Monday that it is building a new autonomous vehicle at Gigafactory Texas, its plant just outside of the City of Austin. This particular vehicle will be geared toward those who are in need of a wheelchair-accessible car that would require no human driver for operation.

According to a new report from Wired, Tesla’s Senior Policy Advisor, India Herdman, told members of the Washington D.C. City Council on Monday:

“We are in development for a purpose-built, wheelchair-accessible autonomous vehicle. We know that paratransit can be very difficult, and people who are confined to wheelchairs permanently should still be able to move around freely, so that is an active product being built by Tesla in Texas.”

This builds upon what CEO Elon Musk said last year on X, which confirmed the company was working on accessible rides within its Robotaxi platform, which currently is confined to the Model Y.

Tesla is also developing the Cybercab, which started employee rides last week. However, this vehicle is not necessarily geared toward wheelchair accessibility.

That leaves a major gap in the autonomous ride-sharing program that Tesla is attempting to build; the company has been pretty clear that it does not want to complicate its manufacturing lines by bringing in a wide array of body styles.

However, it seems necessary to have something larger that could help transport people to appointments when they cannot drive. For wheelchair accessibility, the Robovan, which was unveiled at the “We, Robot” event in October 2024, seems to be the most ideal solution:

Tesla unveils the Robovan at ‘We, Robot’ event

Herdman did not indicate whether she was referring to the Robovan or if Tesla is building yet another body style that is geared toward full autonomy but also caters to the handicapped.

Tesla might need to develop something specifically for the handicapped in order to align with the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prevents discrimination against people with disabilities in transportation services. Uber was hit with a lawsuit late last year for “refusing to reasonably modify its policies, practices, or procedures where necessary to avoid discriminating against riders with disabilities.”

Tesla would obviously like to avoid this.

It will be interesting to see what Tesla will do with this project, and whether it will introduce something new to the market or just continue with the Robovan.

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Tesla weirdly confirms Cybercab employee rides, a huge milestone

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla weirdly confirmed that its steering wheel-less and pedal-less Cybercab vehicle is now in the process of giving employees rides, a huge milestone for the vehicle program.

But the entire thing was super strange. On Friday, Tesla released a video stating that there was “Cool news from Giga Texas” and that employees were now taking rides in Cybercabs that have no manual controls. The units seen on public roads are engineering vehicles that have manual controls inside, a necessity as Tesla moved through the testing phase.

However, Tesla removed the video and reposted it shortly after with a more vague title. It seems like the employee rides are still going, but the video was adjusted slightly. The initial upload showed employees doing things like watching movies and adjusting the climate, but these snippets were removed in the second upload.

Both images below were uploaded with the first video, but were removed after Tesla re-uploaded the announcement. These are not available in the second upload

tesla cybercab with no manual controls showing a movie with two employees inside

Credit: Tesla

tesla cybercab with no manual controls showing a movie with two employees inside

Credit: Tesla

Nevertheless, the announcement from Tesla is that the Cybercab is operating with employees inside who can control the vehicle’s audio, video, climate, and destination settings through their smartphone app.

Tesla has already been testing Cybercab engineering units, but last month, it was able to self-certify for SAE Level 4, which would enable unsupervised self-driving in Texas. The company is moving toward that, and the plans have always been to launch Cybercab rides this year.

The Cybercab is potentially looked at as the next generation of Tesla’s mobility leg. For the past 15 years, the company has been known as somewhat of an automaker, among many other things. However, these passenger vehicles that Tesla has manufactured are now moving into a new realm, as they will eventually drive themselves with no supervision thanks to the Full Self-Driving suite.

Tesla flexes how it will help the blind with Cybercab

The Cybercab is just the next step of that: a true vehicle developed for the sole purpose of ride-hailing. It has no human controls, it has only two seats, and it will get passengers from Point A to Point B with no awkward driver, no need for manual inputs, and with no stress.

Tesla is moving forward with other developments related to the Cybercab project as well. However, the big announcement will come when Tesla finally announces that it is launching Cybercab rides to the general public, something that it plans to launch either late this year or early 2027.

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