Watch The Practical Engineer Create an RC Tesla Cybertruck

Tesla’s car designs are innovative and eschew many of the conventions followed by the rest of the automotive industry, but all of their released models still look like typical cars for the most part. The upcoming Tesla Cybertruck, in contrast, has a radical and divisive design. It looks more like a prop from a low-budget sci-fi movie than a pickup truck, and that is audacious for a market segment with buyers that are already suspicious of electric vehicles. But there is no denying that it is eye-catching, which is why YouTuber The Practical Engineer built an RC car modeled after the Tesla Cybertruck.

The Tesla Cybertruck has many cool features, like bulletproof window glass and a retractable metal tonneau cover, but it’s the unusual body that has had people talking since the truck was revealed. That body is made from cold-rolled stainless steel formed into a strange faceted, almost triangular shape. It’s that unusual body that is the highlight of The Practical Engineer’s project. The body was constructed almost entirely from a single sheet of aluminum. The body was designed in CAD in order to produce the flat pattern, which was then cut out and bent into shape by a hand.

A handful of 3D-printed parts were used for the body molding and trim, and also for the mounts underneath the aluminum shell. LEDs were attached to replicate those on the actual Tesla Cybertruck. The aluminum body was then mounted on top of a typical RC car frame, which was outfitted with common (though high-end) RC car components. The LED headlights and taillights are powered by the RC car’s LiPo battery. The final step was to 3D print some covers for the RC wheels that match the odd wheels Tesla has had on the Cybertruck demo vehicles. It’s not clear how fast this RC car is, but it certainly looks quick. More importantly, it very accurately mimics the real Tesla Cybertruck.