Automotive

Think Tesla's Cybertruck is a mess? Meet the Robotruck 1T

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Aitekx reveals the Robotruck 1T at the 2023 LA Auto Show
LA Auto Show
Aitekx lists two off-road package options, the $4K "Road Master" and $6K "Road Warrior"
Aitekx
Aitekx reveals its first vehicle, the Robotruck 1T
LA Auto Show
Not sure what else to say about those (mis)proportions
Aitekx
The Robotruck has an interesting front-end design but tumbles downhill when moving farther back
Aitekx
Aitekx reveals the Robotruck 1T at the 2023 LA Auto Show
A bit too heavy-handed on the taillights ... as well as everywhere else
The midsize Robotruck 1T does work above its pay grade with help from an expandable pickup floor
Aitekx
Aitekx will offer several different configurations and powertrain options
Aitekx
Aitekx teases a multi-hinged multipurpose tailgate as well as an expandable-length bed
Aitekx
Aitekx says it will offer many configurations, including different battery sizes, sports and off-road packages, handyman options, interior and exterior features, and AI options
Aitekx
The Robotruck 1T will use its signature features for both work and play
Aitekx
It looks like Aitekx has a sleeker taillight design in mind, which would make it more similar to the headlamps
Aitekx
Aitekx will offer butterfly-like "Hawk Doors"
Aitekx
Aitekx plans a Robotruck 1T camping package
Aitekx
Aitekx reveals the Robotruck 1T at the 2023 LA Auto Show
LA Auto Show
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Here's something we didn't expect to see at the 2023 LA Auto Show (or necessarily any show): an all-new Cybertruck-like electric pickup that somehow manages to look more strangely disjointed than the original. It's the Robotruck 1T from Silicon Valley automotive startup Aitekx. And while the truck's looks hurt the eyes even more than the garbled company name, its list of estimated specs is pretty intriguing: 550-mile (885-km) range, 3.5-second 0-60-mph (96.5 km/h) sprint, a practical 6-foot expandable pickup box ... er ...prism, and packages for every type of pickup driver, from project managers to overlanders.

Aitekx seems to be trying desperately to put together bits and pieces from several of the most noteworthy electric trucks into an offering of its own. The most obvious of those recycled bits is the Robotruck's very clear Cybertuck-derived appearance. The new debut flashes the same kind of shiny, metallic geometry-class styling as the Cybertruck, but while Tesla's vehicle is at least a cohesive design from bumper to bumper, Aitekx tries to embellish the design with more curves, character lines and volumetric surfaces ... to ill effect, to our eye.

Not sure what else to say about those (mis)proportions
Aitekx

The Robotruck reads to us like Aitekx designed an SUV cab and front-end, then smashed it onto the front of a Cybertruck-inspired pickup bed. Then maybe it attempted to blend the two disparate elements together by slapping too many thick, over-designed lines and facets on the flanks and merging the sloped bed rails into a ridiculously long roofline. The tiny glasshouse sandwiched between further destroys any possibility of aesthetic proportions or symmetry. The epsilon-lamped front-end itself has the potential to be attractive on a crossover or larger SUV, but it's too short and soft to carry that stretched hunk of sharp, raw metal trailing it.

Aitekx will offer several different configurations and powertrain options
Aitekx

Aitekx imagines the 198-in (503-cm) Robotruck as a midsize pickup that can put on full-size clothes and do some of the same tough work. To do so, it borrows from the General Motors' playbook, offering a midgate-expandable bed. The 6.1-foot-long (1.9-m) box itself is comparable to large-bed midsize trucks but expands to 9.5 feet (2.9 m) with the rear seats folded and midgate down. Drop the tailgate and total floor length jumps to 11.5 feet (3.5 m), besting the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra EVs by over half a foot (15 cm).

The Robotruck 1T will use its signature features for both work and play
Aitekx

Aitekx hasn't revealed much about the Robotruck's mechanical hardware, outside of listing plans for a single-motor RWD and dual-motor AWD. It does estimate a couple of projected specs, including a 550-mile (885-km) range that bests the extra-rosy 500-mile (805-km) prediction Tesla gave at the Cybertuck's 2019 world premiere. We'd think the company was just picking out Cybertruck specs and adding 10%, but its 3.5-second 0-60 mph (96.5 km/h) is notably slower than the Cybertruck's 2.9-second estimate.

Aitekx plans to offer the Robotruck 1T in both 188-in (478-cm) single-cab and 198-in (503-cm) double-cab variants, with options that include two off-road packages, a camping package, an AI driver-assist system, a foldable bed cover and butterfly-style "Hawk Doors." It's aiming for base prices ranging between US$45,000 for the single-cab RWD to $99,000 for the flagship AWD sports model. Reports out of LA suggest it's targeting a 2026 production launch. An eight-seat Robotruck 1V SUV is also in the company's plans.

Source: Aitekx

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17 comments
UltimaRex
I DON'T think the CT is "a mess" thank you.

The CT is the best vehicle on four wheels.
This... is not.
bobmeyerweb
This looks 10 times less bad than the Cybertruck, which looks like it was penned by a 12 year old with a ruler when he was supposed to be doing his math homework.

The CT makes the Pontiac Aztec look, well, not good, but at least practical.
WB
This thing looks like a Arden Welch Psychology ARt Project had a nuclear meltdown with the inventor of the Rorschach test. What a hot mess this truck is, can't think of a more ugly looking thing!! If you want a chick magnet, but with the poles flipped for maximum push away - this is it!!!
Christian
Hey, I think this looks pretty good. More thought out than the Cybertruck, and while I hated the CT at first, it's grown on me and looks pretty darn cool right now. This looks great.

I'm guessing they're not going for the dent-resisting steel panels and bullet-proof glass tho
usugo
too bad nobody seems willing to resuscitate the Neuron EV T-One
that is a great futuristic design
Karmudjun
Not a bad looking version of the old Ranchero or El Camino line of sedan-trucks. Of course we like the "crew cab" for family driving, and the utility of hauling things from the local lumberyard or local appliance shop. But when you argue over looks, the Tesla strangeness is just too much. The Aitekx "Robotruck 1T" is a ridiculous name, and C.C., if your style norms were universal who knows what the vehicles on the roads would look like. This Shark nosed Robotruck might catch on - faster than Tesla's truck!
Jinpa
People who want pickup trucks want vehicles that are simple and inexpensive to fix. Can you imagine what a body shop will say when you ask how much to fix these complex side and other panels? As for 0-60 in 3 seconds, that surely will turn off owners who thought they were going to get good range, because jackrabbit starts and driving over 45 mph is what owners of EVs and PHEVs have learned and are learning costs mileage. Lose 10% of range for every 10 mph over 45.
Carrying heavy stuff, or towing things, is another range saboteur.
R-NLS
Nothing appealing about this truck or Tesla CT. They both look a prepubescent conception of a a car of the future.
Busa10
Again with the negative connotation. CT a mess? Really?
You are beginning to lose me.
DavidB
LOL

It’s always funny (and a little sad) seeing boys who never grew up try to manufacture full-size versions of the weird vehicles they used to make out of LEGO.