UPDATE: The original poster has clarified on X their post was a joke and the valet was not driving at the time of the accident. The headline has been corrected, and the original story is below.
A Tesla Cybertruck has been involved in an accident, and it wasn’t even with the registered owner behind the wheel. A valet at a luxurious Beverly Hills hotel appears to have lost control of a brand new Cybertruck over the weekend, with it ending up smashed up and sitting on a concrete curb underneath the sign for the iconic hotel.
We have seen numerous incidents in the past of valets crashing Tesla vehicles. Sometimes the accidents are minor, but most of the time there is significant damage, and happen as a result of the valet driver either being unaware of the technology in Tesla vehicles, or taking advantage of the situation to go for a joy ride.
To avoid these kinds of scenarios from occurring, Tesla does have a ‘Valet Mode.’ With this driver profile turned on certain features are restricted to protect the owner’s privacy, like having the glove box locked, no access to the home and work settings in navigation, and more. But perhaps most importantly the top speed is limited to 113km/h (70mph) and maximum acceleration and power are limited.
In the latest example of why this feature is useful, a valet at the Beverly Hill Hotel valet has crashed a brand new Cybertruck, according to X user @jackdidthatt, who shared pictures of his friend’s Cybertruck sitting on top of a high concrete curb underneath the sign for the iconic hotel.
@elonmusk the beverly hills hotel valet just crashed my friends brand new cybertruck outside pulling it around!! Can you help out in getting another?? pic.twitter.com/aEHIk2iudq
— J$LATT (@jackdidthatt) March 4, 2024
While it is difficult to tell how much damage the Cybertruck sustained from this angle, another angle of the accident shared by @greggertruck shows it is substantial. In this image we can see the right front wheel of the Cybertruck laying on the grass after being completely ripped off in the accident.
We don’t know the exact cause of the accident, but based on previous incidents involving valet drivers, this one was likely the result of someone wanting to have a little too much fun with someone else’s car. Or as Elon Musk pointed out on X, it could be that the valet driver “wasn’t expecting so much acceleration” from a pickup truck.
Based on Jack’s comments on the post, and the damage we can see from the second picture, it would not be surprising to see this Cybertruck written off. If it does, the new owner will likely have to wait a long time to get another Cybertruck. Or if they don’t care about money, they could spend nearly three times what they paid originally to buy one from a Porsche dealership in Orlando.
