Tesla Pickup teaser pick shows that the Pickup is a stepped down Tesla Semi

Early on Musk said why not just do a mini version of the Semi to make the pick up.
Then he started talking about Blade Runner. If you look at the early Tesla Semis the ones that had cladding over the back wheel wells and look at angles at the top of the cladding over the wheel wells. Then look at the back lights on those early photos and look at the style of the lights as lines and then look at the angles on the corners you'll see essentially a version the pick up bed that approximates the look of the area where the drive wheels on the Semi tractor are. And that is also the blade runner look. At this point we have to take him serious they are going to release a mini semi with the the roof cowl off which we've already seen. It may be missing a pair or motors and an axle or not but that is what they are doing. For Semi you need a class 8 license and this Pickup would already be capable of pulling a good bit more than a ICE Semi, but it wan't be rated for the same and that will come down to brakes and tires and suspension being different.

But you have to see the genius of this. Aside from the 4 wheel steer, they are already done with the pickup and should be able to start taking orders soon as the Semi orders reservations have started already. What this is, is a step down of the Semi the way the Model Y was a step up of the Model 3. So its true the back end is Blade Runner but the front is Halo Warthog-ish. This means Tesla is a lot further along with its full vehicle line up than expected.

 

Presumably they keep the back axle placement from the semi removing the mid axle. The range too indicates pass over from the Semi. Guessing they may need to shave about 10-15 inches off the fairing free cab height to fit through 8 ft garage doors if that's a concern (I think it is). The space that now bridges the gap to the semi's trailer box will easily flesh out the cab to fit 6 people plus. Guessing the missing mid motors and axle will create a second frunk but not sure if it goes in the bed or in the cab.

Guessing the material that looks like glass in the teaser pic will split in the middle folding up to form the side walls of the bed for hauling loads and that attached inner sliding doors might slide up and over to form a roof if needed. And in the back, in place of a tail gate a pull out and slid up section might form a sealed enclosure. Might need to another such section next to the cab to seal as flexion might be an issue for a tight enclosure. The temptation for Tesla might be to keep from fully automating this- probably easier than falcon wing doors and surely that experience would help. Wonder if they can do a water tight enclosure. Guessing they may be tempted to do a ramp that can be stowed or automated but that might be pushing it- easy add on or after market though. They may also have to create a saddle option that finesses the bed doors and they may need a material that will stand up to people not wanting to open the side doors and also fold out clips if people just want to bungie on to want amounts to a flat bed with the doors closed. Expect the fold out side walls would give about 3.25 ft of bed depth and the frunk might run half the length of the bed and add another 16 inches of depth- presuming they shifted the pack forward. Maybe not because there will be will be 4 wheel drive and 4 wheel steer meaning the front axle has a motor and with its slight weight increment, but presumably the 2/5 increment of space opened but the smaller variant of the semi pack will go in a bed frunk unless its more valuable in the cab where the cab already has more depth and is already enclosed.

An alternative to a lot of this might be to have fence like roll outs from the back of the cab, but in practice that might be less elegant and eat into cab space which should be massive, already providing a lot of enclosed space.

Seems possible Tesla may still do 4 motors but move a set of motors to the front axles. Seems unlikely- that's going in a Rivian direction but Tesla already seems to have independent torque adjustment to each wheel with a motor per axle- maybe a special performance variant of the truck (?) would have to integrate two motors into the planned 4 wheel steering system. One thing it seems we know assuming two motors only, one for each axle is that Model 3 motors can pull 150,000 lbs each, what limits them may be tire traction and the size of the cabling to the motors and the amount of power supplied. A single model 3 motor is adequate for full Class 8 80,000lbs loads. Again radically demonstrating the electric advantages. And of course in an actual semi even if you put 3 extra motors in for acceleration and helping with traffic etc., even carrying the weight of 3 extra motors most of the time you're running on much less than the capacity of one model 3 motor. Interesting to see if the pick-up can use the mega charger.

Base model of Semi costs $150K. Guessing dropping a couple motors and a couple tires and going with less expensive suspension and breaking components and a bit less material for the cab and the frame will drop the cost quite a bit. The pack for 300 miles in the base semi will probably go 600 miles or more given no trailer and and only a fraction of its load in the pick-up. Tesla won't be playing the stupid price puffing games that Ford plays over suspension components (it doesn't have the same type of idiot profit requirements dividends etc. to pass on fossil fuel subsides(theft) to parasites) But there will be added costs for 4 wheel steer and the bed system. I expect the price range to be 70K-100K but also that it will decimate the Ford and GM on trucks. Tesla should be able to build the pick up on the same type of line set up. Can't wait to see it beating Ford Mustangs at the track pulling fully loaded horse trailers. Probably beat the ICE Mustang at the track with 3 Mustangs piled on onto the back.

 

Go look at the back end of the early Semi prototypes, the one that covered over the back wheel wheels. You'll see the same angles and the same line lights. When you put that into context with things Musk has tweeted (doing a mini semi) and (how huge the pick up will be) and what they just did with the Model Y vs 3 and the need to put a hard smack down on ICE without a ton of production capacity coming on super quick you see this is exactly what will produce maximum impact. And in the Summer they can show the final Semi and a Pick Up in the same state of finish as the Model Y prototype. Given the Pick-up is a Semi knock off and given that aero dynamics still really matter nothing would have stopped them from doing this concurrently. The only tricky thing announced for the Pick up is the 4 wheel steer. The rest is feature minus exercises and cost cutting. They won't don't want Rivian did because that's simply not impressive enough in terms of the spec smack down and where they would be on numbers. GM and Ford have essentially left the class 8 segment and what they do have full of fluffy pricing that Tesla can cut through with just 2 models in a couple trims each if that. People that would spend at the low end of the full size truck market will either hold off on buying again when they see a Tesla truck or get in line and place an order for the Tesla.

I don't see the need for Tesla to do a micro bus or a small vehicle, its tic, toc-ed through about 7 real vehicles that make the needed impact. Maybe Tesla will do a cargo drone like the one Amazon and Toyota are working on (though that one can also haul people.) Maybe that is all tha will be left in a decade. But for now they have it all. And they get most of the credit for it just by fully conceived prototypes and finished specs.