Police Force May Add Cybertruck, One of the Most American-Made Vehicles to Its Fleet

The Cybertruck could make a great police vehicle due to its acceleration, durability and efficiency

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Tesla's Cybertruck, now recognized as one of the most American-made vehicles, is catching the eye of law enforcement. This should not be a surprise considering some of the highlight videos of the vehicle during the delivery event. You have to admit RoboCop stepping out of a Cybertruck would look pretty natural.

Texas Police Department Considering the Cybertruck

Rosenberg, about two hours away from Giga, Texas, is considering upgrading their police vehicle fleet. The police department posted a picture of one of their vehicle beside a Cybertruck and wrote: What do you think @elonmusk… will the Cybertruck make an excellent police vehicle? It’s still hard to find new vehicles to replenish our older police units. Should we make the change in 2024? Of course, Musk responded with the 100% emoji.

Spotted out in the wild.

What do you think @elonmusk… will the #Cybertruck make a good police vehicle? It’s still hard to find new vehicles to replenish our older police units. Should we make the change in 2024? pic.twitter.com/WRlZWiSSK7

— Rosenberg Police (@RosenbergPolice) January 2, 2024

It’s already well documented that Cybertruck can withstand bullets and arrows, go faster than many top-end sports cars, and has offroad capabilities and lots of storage space. This stainless steel beast aligns perfectly with the demanding requirements of modern policing. Its adoption by police forces would be a forward-thinking move, signaling a shift towards more sustainable, efficient, and locally sourced equipment in law enforcement.

Transitioning to electric vehicles like the Cybertruck poses particular challenges for police departments, including initial costs. However, forces across North America have been adding Model Ys to their fleet, recognizing the long-term benefits - such as lower operational costs, reduced carbon footprint, and support for the American economy. Another snag in the plan would be the waiting list; it’s already over a million, and with production pegged at 200,000 to 250,000 a year, it will be long before police fleets can be turned over to Cybertrucks. It’s possible they can work around this with a special deal with Tesla for Foundation series trucks.

A Symbol of American Resilience and Innovation

Adopting the Cybertruck would be evidence of the technological advancements of American manufacturing and a significant morale booster, demonstrating faith in national capabilities and innovation. It represents a fusion of cutting-edge technology and a commitment to sustainable practices, showcasing a new direction in public service vehicle procurement.

Cybertruck’s Monroney sticker states that 65% of its components are US/Canadian-made. This puts Cybertruck far ahead of most other pickup trucks that may pop to mind as American-made products.

This intense focus on domestic manufacturing is not just about creating superior vehicles but also about energizing the American economy and job market. Tesla's approach, emphasizing local sourcing and production, sets a new standard in the automotive sector, particularly for government and public service use.

The consideration of Tesla's Cybertruck by the Rosenberg Police Department and potentially other law enforcement agencies marks a pivotal moment in the integration of American manufacturing and public service. This move could set a trend for different departments, heralding a future where sustainability, performance, and national pride are critical factors in selecting vehicles for law enforcement.

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Tesla Vision-Based Monitoring Appears to be Live in Europe [VIDEO]

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With Tesla software update 2024.32.6, users on X have begun reporting a big difference in how Tesla’s Autopilot detects attention. While Tesla’s latest FSD versions in North America support vision-based attention monitoring when the cabin is well lit, the feature has yet to be officially released outside of the region or apply to Autopilot.

On FSD updates in North America, Tesla now only uses steering wheel torque on vehicles that don’t include a cabin camera or when the camera can’t see the driver properly.

Vision-Based Attention Monitoring

VBAM, or Vision-Based Attention Monitoring, was introduced to Full Self-Driving in FSD update V12.4 and subsequently rolled out wide to North American users on update V12.5.4.

However, it now seems that Europeans with update 2024.32.6 may be experiencing some form of vision-based monitoring as well. While the green dot of VBAM isn’t shown next to the Autopilot icon, users are noticing that they no longer need to apply resistance to the wheel while using Navigate on Autopilot.

Meanwhile, for regular Autopilot, nudges are still required – but users are reporting that simply having your hands on the steering wheel is now enough, and you no longer need to apply pressure to the wheel. It looks like Tesla may be using the cabin camera to monitor whether the user’s hands are on the steering wheel instead of detecting torque on the wheel.

In addition, while using Navigate on Autopilot, the driver no longer needs to apply torque to the wheel in order to accept a lane change. This has been one of the largest regulatory obstacles for Tesla to tackle and is partially what prevented FSD from rolling out in Europe in the first place.

In the EU, any autonomous vehicle actions, including changing lanes, had to be approved by the driver. This means the driver would need to nudge the steering wheel to accept lane changes or have the vehicle take an exit while on Navigate on Autopilot. This EU requirement was recently lifted, and this change to Navigate on Autopilot is a distinct sign that FSD could be around the corner for Europe.

We’re excited to see if Tesla hits its original timeline of Q1 2025 for FSD's release outside of North America. With these changes to VBAM and regulatory changes in the European Union, the goal finally appears to be in sight.

Video

A Tesla owner has recently posted a video that shows the new behavior in Europe.

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Tesla’s Robotaxi Event – What to Expect

Image released by Tesla

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Tesla’s Robotaxi event—We, Robot—is right around the corner. It takes place this Thursday, October 10th. Invites for the event were recently sent out in batches to those who won the shareholder raffle, and those who RSVP will receive their tickets 2-3 days before the event.

And it’ll be happening in none other than Hollywood, Los Angeles. The event will take place at the Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. Studios, a massive 110-acre location that includes large sets prepared for all sorts of movies and TV shows.

So, let’s take a minute to take stock of what we know about the event, and what we can expect.

What We Know

We know the event is taking place in and around Discovery Inc. Studios, as Tesla has been intensively gathering FSD data in the area around the studio before the event. In addition to that, some camouflaged Robotaxi prototypes have been seen driving around the actual Studio grounds.

What’s interesting is that Tesla has been intensively gathering data throughout San Francisco, Los Angeles, and the Bay Area – including certain destinations like the Tesla Diner in Hollywood. We saw Robotaxi Mules – vehicles equipped with cameras in places we expect the Robotaxi to have them – running the routes in these areas, gathering data ahead of time to train the FSD model.

We’ve also seen some official – and some fan – renderings of what we expect Cybercab – the Robotaxi – to look like. On top of all that, we’ve seen the patents for Robotaxi Sanitization and, most excitingly – wireless EV charging!

With all that, we have some of our own expectations for the event.

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What We Expect

There’s a lot of speculation about the Robotaxi, and lots of hints that Tesla has dropped over time. We expect Tesla to deliver a small, two-door sedan with two seats. The car is expected to have four wheels, although there was some speculation of three wheels at one point. It’ll likely include a good amount of trunk space for luggage as well. Based on camouflaged vehicles, sneak peeks Tesla has shared, and the Robotaxi mules, we expect the vehicle to be quite a bit smaller, although the body styling appears to be similar to a Model 3.

Tesla’s focus will likely be on autonomy and cheap production, so don’t expect large screens, rotating seats, tables, etc, in the vehicle. It’ll likely include a single screen in the middle like the Model 3. The UI for the vehicle will likely be very similar to production vehicles today but simplified since you won’t be able to control some aspects. There may also be new modules that will display important customer information front and center, such as their ETA and fare price.

We’re not sure how much Tesla will talk about FSD hardware at the event, as they won’t want customers to feel like they’re being left out, but we expect the Robotaxi to include Tesla’s upcoming Hardware 5 FSD suite or a completely different hardware that focuses on redundancy and safeguards that will be crucial to operate an autonomous fleet.

A concept of what the UI in the Robotaxi may look like

@dkrasniy

One of the key things we expect at the event is the opportunity for attendees to experience Robotaxi, along with the entire Tesla experience from start to finish. The event will probably start with a keynote address from Elon Musk and Ashok Elluswamy – the directors of the upcoming show.

It will likely progress to a virtual demonstration of Robotaxi – including how Tesla’s upcoming Robotaxi summoning will work via the Robotaxi app, and then a quick showing of some other information at the keynote. We’ll also find out whether or not Tesla will initially launch their Robotaxi network with Tesla-owned Robotaxis, customer-owned Robotaxis, or customer-supervised vehicles.

Hopefully, Tesla also showcases a few more things – including that wireless EV charging, and potentially some other things that have been behind the curtain.

The final and most exciting portion of the event will be when users get the opportunity to be hands-on with the Robotaxi. Hopefully, they’ll get access to the interface from their Tesla app and be able to summon a Robotaxi and have it take them somewhere on the studio grounds. This time will also serve as a chance for people to get up close and personal with Robotaxi, poke around and see any unique features of the vehicle. We still have a lot to learn about the vehicle.

Of course, these are just our expectations of the event. For all we know, it could turn out to be the same, but in reverse.

For those who have been lucky enough to receive a ticket, please let us know if you have a +1. We’d love to be able to cover the event in person and experience Robotaxi ourselves.

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