Stainless steel DeLorean designer Giorgetto Giugiaro says Cybertruck will 'surely be successful'

DeLorean designer Giorgetto Giugiaro weighed in on Tesla’s Cybertruck. FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images and Barrett-Jackson via Getty Images

Giorgetto Giugiaro said he wouldn’t judge whether the Cybertruck was “beautiful or ugly.”
The DeLorean designer said the truck will find success, despite criticism of its looks.
Tesla has set a delivery event for the Cybertruck for November 30.

DeLorean designer Giorgetto Giugiaro weighed in on Tesla’s highly-anticipated Cybertruck.

“I don’t want to judge the Cybertruck as beautiful or ugly,” Giugiaro told NPR in an interview published Tuesday. “It certainly has its admirers who want a vehicle to stand out.”

Since Elon Musk first announced that Tesla would make an electric pickup truck, the vehicle has faced a slew of criticism: From nitpicky fans pointing out gaps in the panels, smudges on the doors, and its humongous windshield wiper, to experts (and even Musk himself) warning it may be difficult to mass produce.

Nonetheless, Giugiaro, known for designing luxury cars for Alfa Romeo, BMW, and Ferrari, told NPR he thinks the Cybertruck will find its market.

“When you step outside the norms, it’s almost always seen as a provocation,” Giugiaro told NPR over email. “It happens in all fields, from furniture to cooking, etc. Everyone wants to distinguish themselves; it’s a market necessity, and the Cybertruck will surely be successful, I’m sure of it. I’m convinced it will find its admirers.”

Despite criticism, the Cybertruck does not appear to be lacking in enthusiasts. Tesla has over 2 million preorders for the vehicle, according to a September tally by Electrek.

Giugiaro told NPR that the Cybertruck was at least partially inspired by cars that had an “origami” design. In a recent biography on Musk, Walter Isaacson wrote that the Cybertruck’s design was inspired by the DeLorean, which appears in “Back to the Future,” as well as James Bond’s Lotus Esprit 1 Series submarine car from the 1977 film “The Spy Who Loved Me.”

Giugiaro did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

NPR also compared some of the Cybertruck’s reviews to those made about the DeLorean in the ’80s, including jabs on its stainless steel body and panel alignment. The Cybertruck is the first stainless steel vehicle to be made since the DeLorean.

While the DeLorean has become something of a cult classic. It faced a series of production issues, and despite early enthusiasm from prospective buyers, the company only produced about 9,000 of the vehicles, according to MotorTrend.

Tesla has set its delivery event for the Cybertruck for November 30 after two years of delays.