New Tesla Cybertruck prototype has been seen with mirrors and what looks to be rear-wheel steering

 

Tesla seems to be testing with the turn radius of the electric pickup truck, maybe using rear-wheel steering.

Since Tesla introduced the vehicle in 2019, we haven't seen much progress on Cybertruck.

The electric pickup truck was expected to be released this year, but it has now been postponed until late 2022.

Given the delay, we would expect to see Cybertruck prototypes being tested on public roads, similar to the Ford F150 Lightning and Rivian R1T trucks that have been observed in the last year, but Cybertruck prototype sightings have been few.

Tesla has sent a Cybertruck to a few events, including New York and the Gigafactory in Texas, but we were never able to confirm that more than one prototype was there.

Now, a new sighting of a Tesla Cybertruck offers us hope that the company is working on a new prototype.

Jesse Sandoval observed the Cybertruck a few hours from the Fremont factory last week at Castle Airport in central California.

Because of the low resolution, it's difficult to extract much information from the clip, but one thing is certain: the car has side mirrors.

Previous sightings of the Cybertruck reported that the prototype missing side mirrors.

Tesla has been lobbying for the ability to replace side mirrors with cameras in order to increase aerodynamic performance, which improves economy and range.

If Tesla were to launch the Cybertruck right now, it would require side mirrors, indicating that the vehicle is nearing completion.

Furthermore, it appears that Tesla is testing the truck's turning radius at the start of the video, as it appears to be doing a very small turn.

We can't confirm it because of the video's low resolution, but it's possible the car has rear-wheel steering.

Tesla is likely to upgrade the Cybertruck for the production version, with rear-wheel steering being one of the most significant changes.

Elon Musk announced earlier this summer that the Tesla Cybertruck will have four-wheel steering, allowing for characteristics similar to the Hummer EV's "Crab mode."

It will allow for "tight rotations and handling with high agility," according to Musk.

Other electric vehicles, such as the Mercedes-Benz EQS, have lately been introduced with rear steering.