--- title: "When These Journalists Tried to Review the Cybertruck, It Bricked" description: "One of America's leading automotive magazines admitted that when one of its top editors rented a Cybertruck, the car straight up bricked." date: "2024-08-23" modified: "2024-08-23" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/cybertruck-review-brick" categories: - "Advanced Transport" tags: - "cybertruck" - "Media" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # When These Journalists Tried to Review the Cybertruck, It Bricked ![One of America's leading automotive magazines admitted that when one of its top editors rented a Cybertruck, the car straight up bricked.]() *A Tesla Cybertruck electric vehicle sits parked next to a garbage truck in Los Angeles, California, on May 15, 2024. Stock markets struck record highs Wednesday after official data showed US inflation cooled slightly in April, raising hopes that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in the coming months. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) \Image: Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP / Getty Images\* ## Brick House In yet another [embarrassing bit of news]() for Tesla's Cybertruck, one of America's leading automotive magazines admitted that when one of its top editors went to rent one, the car straight up bricked. As [*Car and Driver* noted]() in its annual ranking of electric vehicles, the car got an automatic zero because it broke down on its assessors' second day renting it. "Before any Tesla loyalists complain that we aren't giving the Cybertruck its due, know that the one we rented broke on the second day, effectively parking itself with just a few hundred miles on its odometer," *C&D* executive editor KC Colwell wrote. The editor added that because the car "[did not finish]()," borrowing the Formula 1 racing term for vehicles that don't make it to the finish line, the car gets a "mission-fulfillment score of zero." ## The Girls Are Fighting The Cybertruck isn't completely cooked in the eyes of the automotive press. In [another review]() written by *s*enior editor Eric Stafford, the Cybertruck was given an 8.5 out of 10 official *C&D* score, and in the summary for that assessment the automotive journalist waxes prolific about the Tesla truck's many specs, calling it "stupendously quick" and boasting that it "looks like nothing else on the road." "The buzz-worthy Cybertruck leads with show-pony party tricks and high-tech features," the editor wrote as his final verdict on the vehicle, "but it's also a capable workhorse with a practical side." Obviously, getting a bricked Cybertruck tainted the Tesla truck's chances for *C&D* EV of the year — but it is pretty funny that there's such a huge disparity about the vehicle within the confines of one magazine's masthead. Ultimately, the magazine declared [Hyundai's 2025 model of its Ioniq 5 N]() its EV of the year. **More on Cybertrucks:** *[Tesla Fans Alarmed When Brand New Cybertrucks Arrive Filthy, Covered in Mud and Grime]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()