A Tesla Cybercab robotaxi prototype spotted in the wild demonstrates how its butterfly doors work. A short video shows us how to open the door because there are no door handles on the vehicle.
Tesla chose to use butterfly doors for its smaller Cybercab / Model 2 autonomous EV platform. Before the Cybercab, such a type of doors were only seen on supercars like Ferraris and Lamborghinis. Tesla has integrated them into its most affordable car in the lineup.
At the Cybercab unveiling event on 10th October 2024, Elon Musk rode the vehicle to the stage. The live stream of the event showed him entering the vehicle, and the door closed automatically.
Cybercab prototypes are currently under testing by Tesla employees. This specific prototype was spotted in the wild around Austin, Texas.
Tesla is gradually moving to handle-less doors for its future vehicles. Cybertruck also does not have traditional door handles. The automaker has given two buttons on the B and C pillars to open the doors electromechanically (video demo here).
However, there is no visible button on the two-door Cybercab’s rear pillar or window. The person entering the Cybercab, however, did press something on the pillar/window.
After looking at it closely, it appears that the person scanned his finger or performed a swipe. Next-gen Tesla Roadster prototypes feature a swipe-down function to open the doors of the vehicle. Tesla might have integrated that idea into the Cybercab.
It looks like the door either closes automatically once the seat is occupied or there is a digital button on the center touchscreen to close it. Because as soon as the rider sat in, the butterfly door closed automatically.
Cybercab Panel Gaps and Build Quality
Historically, Tesla has been notorious for panel gaps and some build quality issues in its vehicles. However, the electric automaker has improved build quality and finish in recent years.
The video of the Cybercab sighting in the wild (above) also revealed some panel gaps and misalignments. These faults immediately caught the attention of Tesla critics on social media.
However, since this is just a prototype vehicle, panel gaps and build quality issues should be expected. Tesla will iron out these quality issues on production versions of the Cybercab robotaxi vehicles.
Tesla hasn’t started production of the Cybercab yet, but crash safety testing of multiple Cybercab prototypes was performed at Giga Texas in late December.
Tesla is planning to start the production of the Cybercab robotaxi prototypes at Giga Texas in 2026. However, delays should be expected as this is an entirely new platform and new tooling, machinery, and robots are needed to begin production.
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Featured image: Zack (@BLKMDL3 via X).
Note: This article was published earlier on Tesla Oracle. Author: Iqtidar Ali.