(Photo : Wikimedia Commons/Phillip Pessar)
Tesla's Cybertruck is plagued with various problems, prompting the automobile company to delay deliveries and pickups. A former employee shared her take on the issue.
Cybertruck Issues Could Be Linked To Previous Problems Observed in Model S
Engineer Cristina Balan used to work for Tesla. However, she is currently in a legal battle with its CEO and her former boss, Elon Musk. According to Balan, she came forward after she noticed gas and brake pedal safety issues on Model S a decade ago. After learning that Cybertruck is also having issues related to the pedal getting stuck, prompting the car to accelerate to top speed, she speculated that the issue could be related to the problems she had already noticed years ago.
"After I left, it got worse," she said. "I have quite a few people that are right now in Tesla. They brought some serious safety issues to my attention."
The gas pedal on a new Cybertruck is having issues that new owners called a "deathtrap." In the clips shared on social media, the pedal cover can slip off the accelerator and become tangled in the carpet, locking it in place and causing the vehicle to accelerate to its maximum speed.
As a senior computer-aided design (CAD) engineer, Balan began working for Tesla at its Fremont, California, facility in 2010. She is currently suing the company in federal court, claiming that Tesla is retaliating against her for trying to fix a potentially fatal flaw in the Model S.
According to Balan, poorly constructed floor mats had a propensity to coil under the brake pedals of the all-electric Tesla sedan, making it impossible for drivers to reduce speed. This is similar to the current problem that causes Cybertruck pedals to jam into maximum speed. Per Balan, Tesla said it would fix the issue.
Balan, however, fears that other Tesla employees may be discouraged from coming out on Cybertruck due to her own protracted and now highly publicized legal battle with the company, which spans a decade and involves litigation for both wrongful termination and slander.
"People, good engineers, they are afraid to say something is wrong," Balan said of future whistleblowers like her. "Because they know that they will go on the same track I was."
Balan sued Tesla after she raised safety concerns about its design flaw, which could affect the car's braking system2014. However, the management allegedly turned hostile and she eventually lost her job.
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Tesla Customers Receive Texts About Cybertruck
Tesla clients who are excited to receive the $80,000 Cybertruck electric vehicle (EV) have to wait for the arrival of their new car. Many claimed to have received letters from Tesla and car dealerships advising them of the cancellation of their scheduled delivery and pickup time. Additionally, according to some of the correspondence, shipments wouldn't begin until after April 20.
One customer was told that they had to reschedule the pickup date until a portion of the car needed to be replaced was fixed. When the customer asked for an estimated turnaround time, the dealer responded that they did not have a verified ETA and it might take up to 10 days before the car would be ready for pickup.
Dan Ives, managing director of Wedbush Securities in New York, wasn't certain, though, whether the issue would be resolved quickly. According to him, they don't think the problem will be fixed in the upcoming weeks.
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