Cybertruck Copycat? Dongfeng’s Concept Car Stirs Up Controversy at Beijing Auto Show

A concept car resembling Cybertruck
Unveiled at Beijing International Automobile Exhibition
Sparks mockery online

Dongfeng concept car sparked controversy over cybertruck plagiarism.

The 2024 Beijing International Automobile Exhibition, Auto China, opened in China on April 25. Hyundai and Kia seem to be putting a lot of effort into the Chinese market and this motor show, sending more than 1,000 executives and employees to it. Since it is being held in China, Chinese automakers actively participate and try to prove their competitiveness.

A somewhat embarrassing situation occurred at this motor show, which attracted the attention of peworldwideworld. This is because controversy arose over whether the car’s design car, presented by China’s Dongfeng, was a plagiarism of the Tesla Cybertruck.

Tesla Cybertruck

One of the top three automakers
An embarrassment in front of the world

Dongfeng is an automobile manufacturing company directly owned by the Chinese government. It is considered one of China’s three largest automobile manufacturers, along with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) and FAW. 2003 Dongfeng Yueda Kia was established through a joint venture with Kia but broke up in 2021. In recent years, Dongfeng has been well-known in the industry as it has partnerships with Renault, Honda, and Nissan.

Dongfeng presented a concept car that looks exactly like the Cybertruck at this year’s Beijing International Automotive Exhibition. The concept car was reported in foreign media and became controversial in the U.S.. As it was a concept car, the focus was on the overall design, which further aggravated the controversy. The electric concept car unveiled by Dongfeng showed elements reminiscent of the Cybertruck, such as a body made of metal panels and a sloping roof line.

Tesla Cybertruck

The Angular Design is Identical
Even the Taillight Shape is Similar

In addition, the vertically falling front line, angled parting line, and horizontal lamp line elements extending long along the front are similar to the Cybertruck. The light strip is engraved with the phrase HELLO BEIJING. The roof line was flattened to differentiate it from the angular elements of the Cybertruck, but it was difficult to avoid criticism for copying the design.

The straight roof line leading to the rear and the rear part, which falls close to a right angle, look like they were taken directly from the Cybertruck. In the case of the tail lamp, although additional details were added to extend to the side, it is still a thin horizontal shape that runs across the tailgate. An arch shape was chosen for the thick cladding at the bottom instead of the Cybertruck’s angular design.

Called the “ugliest car ever seen”

Meanwhile, Dongfeng’s concept car became a hot topic, spreading to Reddit, the largest online community in the U.S. In response, American netizens reacted, such as: “China is stealing all American research and ideas.” “It looks like they copied the Cybertruck and smoothed the sharp angles.” “It’s even uglier.” “I thought they couldn’t make a vehicle worse than the Cybertruck,” etc.