Tesla Cybertruck getting four-wheel steering, according to Elon Musk

It was November 2019 when Tesla unveiled the Cybertruck, and even though the concept is approaching its second anniversary, the production version has yet to be revealed. Head honcho Elon Musk has said it will be out by the end of the year, but mass production won’t kick off until 2022. In an update posted on Twitter about the status of the much-hyped electric pickup, the 50-year-old businessman revealed a couple of tidbits.

For starters, the concept’s radical look will be essentially carried over for the production version: “Friday afternoons are usually Tesla design studio time. Cybertruck will be almost exactly what was shown.” The Palo Alto-based EV company had planned to show a revised version of the 2019 concept before the start of production, but with the road-going model now said to look the same, that might not happen anymore.

Elon Musk went on to say the production-ready Cybertruck will employ all-wheel steering: “We’re adding rear-wheel steering, so it can do tight turns and maneuver with high agility.” It’s likely a direct response to the CrabWalk system developed by General Motors for the upcoming GMC Hummer EV.

Bear in mind four-wheel steering is far from being cutting-edge tech as the Honda Prelude had it back in the 1980s. 4WS has evolved tremendously since then, with the Hummer’s system able to steer the front and rear wheels in unison at up to 10 degrees. The latest-generation Mercedes S-Class can also turn the rear wheels up to 10 degrees in the opposite direction to the front wheels.

Some would argue four-wheel steering is a gimmick, but when a vehicle is as large as a GMC Hummer EV or a Tesla Cybertruck, maneuvering these mastodonts on tight city streets can be quite difficult. The feature could also prove to be useful in an off-road environment or getting in and out of a parking spot, so it does have a legitimate application in real-life scenarios.

Source: Elon Musk / Twitter