Elon Musk seems pleased that Dubai police are now driving a Cybertruck
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- Dubai is adding a Cybertruck to its fleet of luxury police vehicles.
- Elon Musk is thrilled, but the Tesla pickup is unlikely to be chasing down criminals anytime soon.
- It's unclear how effective the Cybertruck would be as a police vehicle.
Dubai has added a Cybertruck to its fleet of luxury police vehicles — much to Elon Musk's satisfaction.
Its police force said on X it now had the Tesla as part of its "tourist police" patrol fleet, posting an image of a Cybertruck in green and white livery.
"The Dubai Police General Command has added the Tesla Cybertruck, the modern electric car with a futuristic design, to its tourist police luxury patrol fleet," wrote the police force — with the Tesla CEO hailing the addition as "cool" in a reply.
The Dubai Police General Command has added the Tesla Cybertruck, the modern electric car with a futuristic design, to its tourist police luxury patrol fleet. pic.twitter.com/eubpvfjVbA
— Dubai Policeشرطة دبي (@DubaiPoliceHQ) June 16, 2024
Despite its paint job, this Cybertruck is unlikely to be taking part in high-speed car chases anytime soon.
Dubai's luxury patrol fleet, which also includes Bugattis, Lamborghinis and an Aston Martin, is mostly used as a tourist attraction, CNN reported.
It is unclear how effective a police vehicle the Cybertruck would be.
Tesla says the distinctive pickup is bulletproof, but a test by the YouTube channel JerryRigEverything showed that while it could withstand small-caliber guns, larger weapons could cause serious damage to the Cybertruck's stainless steel exterior.
The Cybertruck's offroad ability has also come under scrutiny, with videos appearing online of the 6,600 lb pickup getting stuck on a sandy beach, struggling in the snow, and having difficulty climbing a small hill.
Experts have also warned that the Cybertruck poses a risk to pedestrians, telling Business Insider the truck's rapid acceleration and stainless steel frame could turn it into a "guideless missile."
The vehicle has endured a bumpy rollout since it went on sale last November.
In April Tesla recalled all 3,878 Cybertrucks it had shipped by that point over a fault that regulators found could cause the accelerator pedal to get stuck at full throttle.
Owners have also complained about a wide variety of quality issues, including panel gaps, rust spots, and an automatically-closing frunk that has a tendency to crush people's fingers (an issue Tesla has now fixed).
More recently, several posters on a Cybertruck buyers forum have claimed that deliveries of their pickups have been delayed due to an issue with its enormous windshield wiper.
Tesla and Dubai police did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.