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Comment by EA-3167 | Hacker News Reader

I always assumed Tesla was aiming less at people who use a truck for work, and more at people who use a truck as a sort of status symbol.

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Well, speaking as a Texan, that is most truck owners.

But I dont think most F150 buyers would be caught dead in a cybertruck.

What about the electric flavor of the F150? Is that acceptable for Texans? I don't mean any snark, I am legitimately curious as to how it's seen / been received?

Not in Texas but among my more conservative family members the ability of it to act as a backup battery during power outages makes up for the fact that it's electric. That's a huge deal. They're usually living in a more rural place where winter storms can knock out electricity for days.

Like all off texas with its shitty power grid?

TBH I have not seen electric F150s around DFW or southern Florida, though I have seen more than one Rivian.

A certain demographic would never buy an electric F150 over a manly, lifted, smoke belching ICE truck. They would aggressively cut off an electric F150 if they saw one.

But most truck drivers I see are not like that... They're just nice people who like a nice truck. Maybe it will take some time to catch on, but I don't think theres an electric truck stigma among AHEM sane drivers.

EDIT: And to be clear, the Cybertruck is unbuyable because its an exotic, expensive, outrageous rolling spaceship, not because its electric.

Which to be fair is the majority of the current US pickup truck market.

And the majority of the new car market (including electrics!)

Yes modern pickup trucks are not useful for most work, or would be more useful in other forms. I note near me that most landscapers use older smaller Toyota trucks which are easier to reach into the bed without getting in it. Most work vehicles printed with a logo are vans, which don’t expose their cargo to the elements (or theft).

These trucks do have utility for hauling trailers, but as far as I am concerned most modern pick-up trucks are emotional support vehicles.

Beat-up Toyota T100s are still the landscaper vehicle of choice out west.

Large trucks that are taller can still be useful for tossing bikes and recreational toys in the back, but they are a pain for loading/unloading unless you're a very tall person. Oddly enough I did a ton of home renovation with my first-gen Honda Pilot because you could easily slide a 4x8ft piece of plywood/drywall into the back and close the tailgate. Perfect height for unloading and comes with a built-in cover for rainy trips.

That said, having a truck bed with a liner is really handy for muddy/dirty tools, gravel, organic matter, chemicals, and other stuff that you don't want smelling up your car. I definitely didn't toss that stuff into the back of the Pilot.

I just don't understand why these people don't get it, and why they insist on buying the vehicle that is least well suited for their business. /s

"... most modern pick-up trucks are emotional support vehicles"

Nicely summarized!

The CT is definitely a lifestyle truck. But it's damn near the size of a superduty, which is kind of big for a lifestyle truck. Not that there aren't a good number of people using superduties for that, but still.

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