Cybertruck's turning radius shrank via software update
Steer-by-wire and rear-wheel steering hardware enabled nearly 2 feet of improvement post-launch.
Cybertruck's wheelbase is 25% longer than the Model Y, yet the truck launched with a turning circle only 9% larger, thanks to its steer-by-wire and rear-wheel steering systems. After the initial rollout, Tesla refined the steering further through an over-the-air update that decreased the turning circle by nearly 2 feet within weeks of production start.
The improvement came after Elon Musk tested an early example and suggested the team could "make it more magical," according to a post from the Cybertruck account on X. The development team leveraged the hardware capabilities already in place to optimize performance without physical changes.
The refinement highlights a capability unique to electrically controlled steering systems: manufacturers can improve handling characteristics through software alone. Early owners report that the steering now delivers the responsive feel Musk envisioned.
"The only truck whose turning radius can improve with a software update Quoting @wmorrill3: “Cybertruck's wheelbase is 25% longer than the Model Y, but thanks to Steer-by-wire and Rear-wheel steering it launched with a turning circle only 9% larger. After Elon drove one of the first trucks, he said - The steering is great. But I think we can make it more magical. The team took that to heart and "— X · @cybertruck