YouTuber Dennis Wang documents cross-country road trip in Tesla Cybertruck

YouTuber Dennis Wang has become one of the first people to document a cross-country road trip in the much-hyped Tesla Cybertruck, just weeks after the first vehicles were shipped to customers.

Wang, who runs the YouTube channel DennisCW, which focuses on Tesla, told Business Insider that he wanted to put the Cybertruck through its paces, and overall, he enjoyed the ride. However, he did run into some issues along the way, including difficulties with charging and a glitch in Tesla’s infotainment system.

Range concerns

One of the main concerns Wang had was the Cybertruck’s range. The Foundation Series version of the truck has an estimated range of 320 miles on its all-wheel drive option. However, Wang said that at times it felt like that range was cut in half. The pair stopped 12 times during the 1,340-mile trip, which rounds out to just over 110 miles between charges, and Wang said they stopped every one to two hours to recharge. While the pair took turns driving straight through the night, the stops turned what could have been a 20-hour road trip into a 27-hour one.

Wang attributes the inefficiencies in range to the cooler temperatures in Texas and his tendency to speed. He said he’s seen improved range since driving the car in California’s more temperate climate. He also said that closing the tonneau, the cover that spans the back of the truck, helped improve the Cybertruck’s range.

A spokesperson for Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.

Wang isn’t the first to point out some potential issues in the Cybertruck’s estimated range. Last week, “Out of Spec Reviews” performed an unofficial highway range test on a Cybertruck Foundation Series vehicle that showed the vehicle clocked in at just 254 miles of range when driven from a full charge until the battery died, only about 80% of its estimated range. Wang, on the other hand, said he tended to charge the vehicle from a 10-30% range up to a 70-80% charge.

Many factors can impact an electric car’s range, including tires, weight load, speed, and cold weather conditions. A 2023 study from Recurrent Auto cited by Bloomberg found that many EVs lost about 30% of their range in temperatures below freezing.

Charging challenges

Another challenge Wang encountered was charging the Cybertruck. When he stopped to use Tesla’s Superchargers, many didn’t appear to be designed with the Cybertruck’s larger size in mind.

“You had to back up as far as possible to the parking stop for the cable to reach, and sometimes the cable was barely long enough to plug into the car,” he said.

Infotainment system glitch

The Cybertruck’s infotainment system also gave Wang some trouble. About 12 hours into the trip, the screen went black. The YouTuber said the screen still appeared to be responsive when they tapped on it, but was no longer backlit so the two men had to rely on the Tesla app to control some of the vehicle’s features.

The infotainment system did light back up after they arrived at their destination and turned the truck off for several hours.

“It was annoying, but we could still function,” Wang said.

Overall impressions

Despite the hiccups along the way, Wang enjoyed the experience overall, especially the spacious cabin and comfort of the vehicle.

“It’s a fantastic truck,” Wang said. The interior and build quality are definitely one of Tesla’s best. It makes me really excited for what future Teslas will look like.

Wang’s video of his cross-country trip in the Cybertruck is sure to give Tesla fans a lot to talk about. The video has already been viewed over 1 million times and has received over 10,000 likes. It’s clear that there is a lot of interest in the Cybertruck, and Wang’s video is a great way to get a closer look at the truck and see what it’s like to take it on a long road trip