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YouTuber uses finger to test Cybertruck trunk sensor — and it doesn’t go well

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YouTuber uses finger to test Cybertruck trunk sensor — and it doesn’t go well

Tesla’s troubled Cybertruck flunked a safety test on its front-facing trunk — slamming shut on the finger of one driver who tested the vehicle’s hatch sensor.

Jeremy Judkins, a YouTube personality who reviews Tesla products, had his pointer finger jammed under the stainless steel “frunk” — the front storage space under the hood — resulting in a nasty indentation on his delicate digit, according to a video he posted to his 170,000 subscribers.

YouTube vlogger Jeremy Judkins had his finger jammed when the door of the Cybertruck trunk slammed down on it. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins

He was to escape more serious injury after wriggling his finger, which activated the sensor.

Elon Musk’s long-delayed and pricey Cybertruck has come under fire after Tesla last month recalled 3,878 vehicles because of a potential fatal flaw with the gas pedal.

The company had to fix an issue that caused the pedal to get stuck, causing the vehicle to accelerate unintentionally and increase the risk of a crash.

Tesla also released a safety update to the frunk after other drivers posted viral videos in recent weeks that showed the hatch crushing inanimate objects like vegetables.

Judkins tested his finger after he found that the “frunk” door was unable to detect the tip of a carrot. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins
Judkins said the “frunk” door could have severely injured his finger, which is seen above after the test. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins

Judkins decided to put the software update to the test. He found that when he put bananas, cucumbers and carrots on the edge of the compartment, the frunk’s sensor managed to detect them.

He then tried to test the sensor with the tip of the carrot, which ended up being sliced off by the frunk door.

Judkins tested whether the “frunk” door would slam down on a carrot. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins
He also tried to see whether the “frunk” door would slice a banana. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins

Judkins was then asked by YouTube viewers to test his finger. He first tried to have the lid close on his arm and his hand, but the sensor detected both limbs and the “frunk” door opened without incident.

But when he stuck his finger into the space between the “frunk” door and the compartment, the hatch pressed down hard, causing him obvious discomfort.

“I feared for my finger for a second, not gonna lie,” Judkins told his viewers.

He then showed a dark mark on his finger that indicates the spot at which the “frunk” door latched onto it.

“My finger is shaking,” Judkins said in the video.

He said the “frunk” door “kind of locked down on it and I was a little bit freaked out because I didn’t know how to open it.”

Judkins tried to get his arm stuck between the door and the compartment, but the sensor accurately detected it. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins

“I was kind of trapped,” Judkins said. “Luckily, it detected resistance and opened.”

“While your new Cybertruck does protect your banana, your finger is still at risk,” he said. “They have some work to do.”

The Post has sought comment from Tesla.

Judkins said that Wes Morrill, a lead Cybertruck engineer, told him that the reason the “frunk” door clamped down hard on his finger was that the algorithm was designed in a way so that the door pushed down hard on the third try.

Judkins also tried to see whether the sensor would detect other parts of his body, including his foot. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins
When he tested whether the sensor would pick up his front toes, he found that the door latched onto them briefly before opening. YouTube / Jeremy Judkins

According to Judkins, the sensor was programmed so that the “frunk” door applied more resistance when detecting an object the third time because it assumed it was a shopping bag that was preventing it from closing.

Judkins posted another video, this time using his toes. The frunk briefly latched shut before it reopened and he said he didn’t suffer any harm.

With Post wires

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