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Tesla CEO Elon Musk has unveiled an electric pickup truck and quad bike at an event in Los Angeles.
The Tesla Cybertruck and ATV are the sixth and seventh models built by the electric car company and feature high-performance specs, including a 0-60mph time of just 2.9 seconds for the truck.
“Trucks have been the same for like 100 years,” Mr Musk said. “We need something different and we need sustainable energy now. To solve sustainable energy we have to have a pickup truck.”
The unveiling comes seven years after the Tesla CEO outlined his vision of building a “sweet” electric truck “with crazy torque, dynamic air suspension” that “corners like its on rails”.
During the unveiling he described it as resembling “an armoured personnel carrier from the future”.
Elon Musk unveiled the Tesla Cybertruck at an event in California (Tesla) It comes with six seats and features armoured glass and ultra-strong panels that are made of the same alloys found on spacecraft.
Unlike traditional pickup trucks, the Tesla Cybertruck is built with an exoskeleton design made possible through not needing a fuel engine. Tesla said it had entered “a new class of strength, speed and versatility – only possible with an all-electric design”.
To demonstrate the toughness of the Cybertruck, Mr Musk encouraged people to hit the vehicle with sledgehammers. He also showed a video of the truck resisting bullets shot from a 9mm gun.
Gadget and tech news: In picturesShow all 25 1 /25Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy.
Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter
Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at California’s Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100
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Apple
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PA
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AFP/Getty
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EPA
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Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore
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Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore
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Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea
Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty
Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea
Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty
Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company
Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty
Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea
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Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi
Rex
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During a demonstration of the window’s strength, a ball bearing was able to crack the glass, meaning Mr Musk had to finish the presentation in front of two smashed windows . “Room for improvement,” he joked.
Other specs of the futuristic-looking vehicle include a 250-mile range 3,400kg of towing capacity and self-driving capabilities.
In two separate video demonstrations, the Tesla Cybertruck was able out-accelerate a Porsche 911 and out-tow a Ford F-150 pick-up truck.
It comes with the official tagline: “Better utility than a truck with more performance than a sports car.”
The Tesla Cybertruck features a futuristic design – and futuristic specs (Tesla) The Cybertruck comes in three versions: a single motor RWD, a dual motor AWD and a tri motor AWD.
Mr Musk unveiled the electric quadbike ATV right at the end of the event, though few details were given.
It fits in the bed of the Cybertruck and is able to charge directly from the Cybertruck’s battery.
The Tesla quadbike can be carried on the back of the Cybertruck (Tesla) No release date has been set for the Tesla Cybertruck but it is expected to debut in late 2021 or early 2022.
Pre-orders have already opened , with the cheapest model starting at a price of $39,900.
The most expensive version – the tri motor AWD with self-driving capabilities – costs $76,900.
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