A spy shot has
surfaced online that may show an early prototype of Tesla’s upcoming
all-electric pickup truck. A Reddit user posted this single image online,
showing a large car transporter in Eastern Ohio carrying a bunch of Tesla Model
3s finished in grey and one painted white. Sitting at the rear of the
transporter is a mystery pickup truck covered in a white sheet. The pickup in
question may not seem identifiable, yet some eagle-eyed observers suggest that
beneath the white sheet is a Roush F-150.
What would a
Roush-tuned Ford F-150 be doing on a car transporter filled with Teslas you
ask? Well, it is possible that this isn’t actually an F-150 and that Tesla is
testing its upcoming pickup truck under the skin of an F-150. Fellow electric car
manufacturer Rivian revealed that this is exactly what it has been doing to
secretly test the Rivian R1T.
However, it is
impossible to know for sure what exactly this pickup truck is doing on a
transporter loaded with Tesla Model 3s. The Drive notes that the Transportation
Research Center is located just a few hours away from where the truck was
spotted and is used as a testing ground for forthcoming vehicles. The National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Vehicle Research and Test Center laboratory
is also located at the same site.
One aspect of the
pickup truck – which would be odd if it did feature an all-electric powertrain
– are the dual tailpipes exiting from the side of the pickup’s rear. EV
prototypes have been known to feature fake exhausts in the past, but not Tesla
test mules. In the end, what makes the vehicle’s presence on the transporter
all the more curious is that an old teaser image released of the Tesla pickup
suggested that it would be much larger than an F-150.
