Remember the commercials showing the GMC Hummer EV with its “crab walk” feature? Turns out, Tesla thought about giving their Cybertruck the same ability to move diagonally, but decided against it.
A Tesla engineer, Wes Morrill, chimed in on a social media post about the Hummer’s crab walk, basically saying, “Yeah, we looked into that, but it wasn’t very useful.” Apparently, they tried it out during development, but it just felt awkward and clunky, and they couldn’t think of a real-world situation where it would be beneficial.
Both the Hummer and Cybertruck can turn their rear wheels to make tight spaces easier to navigate. This is when the rear wheels turn in the opposite direction of the front wheels, which effectively shortens the turning radius. But the Hummer’s crab walk takes it a step further – all four wheels turn in the same direction, allowing the truck to move sideways like a crab, while still facing forward. Tesla, however, decided to stick with the regular rear-wheel steering for their Cybertruck.
Crab Walk: Cool Car Trick or Useless Party Piece?
The GMC Hummer EV has a feature that lets it move sideways like a crab – it’s called Crab Walk. Tesla thought about giving their Cybertruck this same ability, but after trying it out, they decided it wasn’t worth it.
A Tesla engineer said it felt awkward to use and wasn’t really helpful in real-life situations. He agreed that the Crab Walk looks cool, but it’s more of a gimmick than anything. Even the engineer who tested it out in a Hummer admitted it wasn’t very useful for things like parallel parking.
Apparently, turning the wheels just a few degrees isn’t enough to make a big difference. For it to be truly practical, the wheels would need to turn almost completely sideways – which isn’t really happening with current car technology.
There are other companies working on technology that might allow cars to scoot sideways for parking, but it seems like this might be more useful for self-driving delivery vehicles than everyday cars for now.
But here’s another way to look at it: isn’t the Cybertruck itself a bit out there? It’s a stainless-steel beast that looks like it came straight out of a sci-fi movie. Who really needs a bulletproof truck?
So, maybe practicality isn’t the top priority for Cybertruck owners. Maybe a cool party trick like Crab Walk would have fit right in with the truck’s overall vibe.
What do you think? Should Tesla have embraced the Crab Walk for the Cybertruck? Let us know in the comments!