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Cars are never just cars. They are memory machines, steel and glass wrapped around moments in our lives that refuse to fade.
Sometimes the stories they carry are loud and reckless, the kind made of road trips, races, and first cars bought with scraped-together money. And sometimes, the stories are heartbreakers. In a Tesla owners’ Facebook group this week, one story rose above the usual chatter of charging tips and paint protection debates. It was about a father, his son, and a truck that became something far greater than transportation.
“My name is Brett, and I bought my first Tesla (Y for my wife) in May. We loved it so much that we decided to buy a Cybertruck in June.
I’ve always been an internal-combustion engine kinda guy, but on June 6, 2020, our youngest son (9 years old) died as a result of open-air carbon monoxide toxicity from riding in our boat. It wasn’t the boat’s fault- it was running according to manufacturer and government specs… it was just that “negligible” risk that’s always written in the fine print. Never did we ever think that it would happen to us.
We made the move to electric vehicles this year because it didn’t feel right to advocate for CO safety and to still drive around in CO-producing vehicles.
I just got the truck back from being wrapped. Please be kind- this project has significant meaning. Our son, Andy, loved Minecraft. On the day we lost him, he’d wanted to stay home and continue to build his online Minecraft world. This wrap is a nod to his love of Minecraft. We named the Cybertruck “Steve,” and the Minecraft figure on the rear panels is an image recreation of the Minecraft figure that we had made to represent Andy on his urn.
He also loved llamas, and for his last birthday that we spent with him, his final gift was a herd of his very own llamas. We used a white llama, just like the real llama we got for him, and the stuffed llama he carried around with him everywhere. The enderpearls on the front quarter panels have HB 2010 on them… HB 2010 is the law that was passed in Oklahoma in 2023, in honor of his life and loss, Andy’s Law. The license plate displays Andy’s lifelong nickname- LILDUDE.
We chose the enderman background because the enderman is passive unless attacked, which is kind of a reflection of how we feel about ourselves, especially when it comes to advocating for CO risks. Water damages the enderman, and water (Lake Eufaula in Oklahoma) was where Andy left us.
Endermen are also from the end dimension, which is something we connect to the afterlife and Heaven, and our son’s home. The black/grey pattern is also a reflection of our grief. The enderpearl is the color of water, the color of Andy’s eyes.
I think I’ve covered everything. This truck is more than just a Cybertruck. It’s a reflection of our love for our son and the magnitude of the loss we’ve felt after his life was cut short. It’s our past, our present, and our future, and we think that Andy would’ve loved this.”
What Brett shared was not just a description of a vehicle wrap. It was a memoir, written across the angular panels of stainless steel, suffused with grief and remembrance. It told the story of a nine-year-old boy who loved Minecraft and llamas, and parents determined to carry his memory forward. The post silenced the group for a moment. Then the responses began to appear. “Brett, this stopped me in my tracks,” wrote Brian Boyd, another Cybertruck owner and father.
Tesla Cybertruck Cyberbeast Horsepower and 0-60 Time
- The Cyberbeast model has a staggering 834 horsepower, rocketing from 0-60 mph in a mere 2.6 seconds.
- Offers an EPA-estimated range of up to 325 miles for the AWD model and 320 miles for the Cyberbeast.
- Capable of towing up to 11,000 pounds, making it a formidable workhorse.
- Features a radical stainless-steel exoskeleton, giving it a unique, futuristic, and polarizing appearance.
He said he would show the images to his own son, a Minecraft fan, connecting one child’s legacy to another family’s daily life. Another owner, Darryl Orr, called it the best post he had ever seen in the group, and for once, such praise did not feel exaggerated.
The Cybertruck, often polarizing in its design and symbolism, suddenly found its truest purpose in this context. It was no longer a subject of debate but a canvas. Brett named it “Steve,” after Minecraft’s player character, and filled its surfaces with imagery that told Andy’s story.
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Maisie Anne Garcia Maramot, another group member, summed up what many felt with her comment: “Aww. I bet Andy is smiling from above for sure!” It was brief, but captured the way a machine had become something more, carrying the essence of a boy who never had the chance to build his world to completion.
Tesla Cybertruck And a Family Legacy
Brett himself later explained,
“Our world without our son is broken, but our hope is that when we do what we can in his honor, we build the legacy he didn’t get to build on his own, and with that, he continues to be with us always.”
There is a symmetry in Brett’s shift from internal combustion to electric. It was not born from fascination with torque figures or the promise of low maintenance. It was born from tragedy.
The silent risk of carbon monoxide claimed his son, and the family could not reconcile the contradiction of advocating for safety while continuing to drive vehicles that produced the very gas that had devastated their lives. Choosing Tesla became a principle, a vow that every mile would reflect the lessons carved by loss.
Tesla Cybertruck Air Suspension Features
- With an adjustable air suspension providing up to 17 inches of ground clearance and a steer-by-wire system, it is built for rugged terrain.
- A minimalist interior is dominated by a massive 18.5-inch center touchscreen, controlling most vehicle functions.
- The 121-cubic-foot cargo bed with a retractable tonneau cover offers ample and secure storage.
- Utilizes Tesla’s extensive Supercharger network, adding up to 136 miles of range in just 15 minutes.
This story reminds us that automobiles are never neutral objects. They carry fingerprints of their owners’ lives, the scars of loss, and the joys of memory. Sometimes they are project cars in garages, or trucks covered in bumper stickers, or, in this case, a Cybertruck named Steve carrying the image of a boy who loved Minecraft. These machines outlive their technical details and become emblems of who we are and what we choose to remember.
Brett’s Cybertruck is both a monument and a vehicle. It rolls on electric power, free of the gas that took Andy’s life, but heavy with meaning that no torque rating or efficiency figure could capture. It tells a story of grief and devotion, of a boy who should still be here, and of a family determined that his memory will remain.
And somewhere beyond our understanding, if such things are possible, Andy may be looking down at his father driving a real-world Minecraft creation, smiling at the sight of llamas and enderpearls glinting in the sun.
Image Sources: Tesla Media Center
Noah Washington is an automotive journalist based in Atlanta, Georgia. He enjoys covering the latest news in the automotive industry and conducting reviews on the latest cars. He has been in the automotive industry since 15 years old and has been featured in prominent automotive news sites. You can reach him on X and LinkedIn for tips and to follow his automotive coverage.
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Source: torquenews.com
