Cybertruck hits China to roaring fans as Ford patents a take on its tonneau cover

While the Cybertruck has been declared an acquired taste by many, it has a roaring fanbase in one of Tesla's most important markets - China - where it clocked 23% of sales last year. Not only that, but some of its signature features, like the 48V low-voltage architecture, could make it to the cars of other EV makers like Ford whose CEO already praised the fact that Elon Musk open-sourced its documentation.

That same Ford competitor has now patented something that looks pretty close to the sliding tonneau cover that the Cybertruck employs to seal the truck bed from the elements and greatly improve the edgy pickup's aerodynamics at higher speeds. Instead of a slanted automatic cover, however, Ford's patent depicts a partitioned one whose components rise and fall depending on the speed and truck load as a tradeoff between edge aerodynamics and cargo cover.

Ford's system looks more complicated than the Cybertruck's tonneau cover, yet it is envisioned as a bolt-on addition to existing Ford F-series truck beds, and will be made of fiberglass and polymers on aluminum frame. The potential use case scenarios could include the F-150 Lightning crew cab, too, despite that Ford already offers rolling tonneau cover options for its 5.5-foot bed.

In any case, Tesla is taking both the Cybertruck and its tonneau cover on a road show in China to demonstrate its inaugural electric pickup to the fanbase there. The Cybertruck's China tour includes 8 major cities and is already clocking major crowds that want to see and touch its unorthodox design, or marvel at the demonstration of its top-shelf specs.

There is little chance that Tesla will manage to make the edgy Cybertruck body street legal in China, said Elon Musk, but the pent-up demand is there given the curiosity with which people are forming huge lines to see the several demo units that Tesla has brought to China.