Swiss are making the Tesla Cybertruck suitable for Europe.
Werk.lab and Revoltaris are working to get the Tesla Cybertruck approved in Switzerland. For this, the electric pickup needed technical modifications in several areas.
To meet approval requirements, the Cybertruck is supposed to receive a new carbon fiber front, for example.
Image: Tesla
If a car doesn’t comply with the rules, one can naturally change the rules or the car itself. In the case of the Tesla Cybertruck, Werk.lab and Revoltaris chose option two, which may be the more labor-intensive approach.
Tesla itself has not yet officially sold the Cybertruck in Europe. Nevertheless, the Swiss engineering company werk.lab and the Tesla-specialized firm Revoltaris aim to make the vehicle roadworthy and then offer it as independent importers. According to the participants, the project is now in an advanced stage. A market launch is expected in 2027, according to reports from “auto motor und sport.”
A Cybertruck All-Wheel Drive and a Cyberbeast were brought from the USA to Switzerland for this purpose. Since then, the focus has shifted less on acceleration figures and more on pedestrian protection, braking distances, lighting, and corner radii. One of the tests involved the braking system. The roughly 3.5-ton Cybertruck had to be brought to a stop from 100 km/h. According to the project officials, the vehicle passed the test with only a 0.3-second margin. If the result had been worse, the braking system would have needed to be adjusted or replaced.
Significantly larger changes were needed for pedestrian protection. The massive stainless steel front of the production vehicle turned out to be too hard for the relevant crash tests according to werk.lab. Therefore, the developers created a new front made of carbon and also modified the underlying structure. Visually, it is designed to differ as little as possible from the original.
In addition, foam was added behind the bumper to reduce the stress during a knee impact. Ironically, the part of the Cybertruck that defines its militaristic appearance had to be made softer to meet regulatory requirements.
The typically sharp edges of the body also posed problems. According to project partners, relevant outer edges must have a radius of at least 2.5 millimeters. The Cybertruck does not meet this requirement in its U.S. version. Therefore, a custom carbon edge protector was developed for the certification project and installed around the vehicle. Improvements were also needed in terms of lighting. The U.S. model lacks the side direction indicators required for certification in Europe, so additional blinkers were installed.
That sounds like a manageable list. However, it involves a series of individual testing procedures: For each test, Revoltaris said it was necessary to find testing facilities that had not evaluated a Cybertruck before. The modification so far does not prove that the Cybertruck will soon be available regularly at European Tesla outlets. Tesla itself is not involved in this project and has not announced an official European version yet.
Swiss approval is not a free pass for the EU
A Swiss approval does not automatically mean EU-wide type approval. Although many Swiss vehicle regulations are based on European and international standards, national individual or special approvals may still be required for other markets.
Revoltaris will still offer Cybertrucks starting in 2027. The models planned are the All-Wheel Drive with around 600 horsepower and the Cyberbeast with around 845 horsepower. The importer quotes around 155,000 Swiss francs (around 168,900 euros) for a used All-Wheel Drive Cybertruck with low mileage, while the Cyberbeast is expected to cost around 189,000 francs (around 205,970 euros). So, taking the route through Switzerland won’t make it a bargain. Additionally, buyers will have to compromise in terms of functionality. The integrated Tesla navigation is not available on the imported vehicles at the moment, which also means there is no automatic battery preconditioning before a fast charge stop.
Adapters for CCS and Type 2 are intended to be used for charging. There is also no Tesla factory warranty. Instead, Revoltaris plans to establish its own warranty and service offerings as well as a network for bodywork repairs. Some spare parts still need to be sourced from the United States.
Interested parties can already reserve spots. A non-binding reservation costs 175 francs (around 190 euros), while 2,000 francs (around 2,180 euros) will secure one of the first delivery spots according to the provider. Neither payment is refundable, even if the certification project ultimately fails.
In the third quarter of 2026, Tesla’s total revenue stagnated while profits dropped significantly. However, Tesla did not establish a direct connection with the lack of a European version of the Cybertruck. As such, the European Cybertruck remains a rather costly experiment for now. But it is at least an experiment with softer edges, rounded corners, and a test report that is likely longer than the instruction manual for some multi-functional pocket knives.