Cybertruck reviewer says a sponsor didn't want to be featured in his video with the vehicle

• The YouTuber reviewer Zack Nelson said he's considering selling his Cybertruck.
• He said a sponsor declined to be in his review because it didn't want to appear with the Cybertruck.
• Nelson said he doesn't want to seem supportive of Elon Musk's controversial statements online.

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A YouTuber said a sponsor bowed out of participating in one of his videos about the Cybertruck over concerns about being associated with the vehicle.

The tech influencer Zack Nelson has been making YouTube videos for about 14 years — and the Cybertruck has become a "fairly important" part of his business, he told Business Insider.

After driving 13,000 miles with it, Nelson made a review video of the Cybertruck as a work truck and shared three things he loves and hates about it.

He praised its bullet-resistant exterior, steer-by-wire driving system, and eye-catching design.

But after incorporating a sponsored ad read and sending a preview of the video to the brand, Nelson said the brand didn't want to be featured alongside the Cybertruck at this time.

BI verified that the brand sent an email declining to participate in the video, citing its concern about being associated with any Cybertruck content.

The brand's response was understandable, Nelson said in his video review, and "speaks volumes to the polarization of the Cybertruck." Nelson told BI the brand said it'd previously had negative experiences related to being associated with Cybertruck content. The company expressed interest in working with the YouTuber on other videos in the future, he added.

Nelson said in his Cybertruck review video that when Elon Musk writes controversial posts on X, such as offering to impregnate Taylor Swift or asking why no one assassinated Kamala Harris, it can also impact the YouTuber's business.

Nelson has a wheelchair-manufacturing company that he funds with revenue from his YouTube channel. That company uses four vehicles, and each of them displays his logo.

"Those kinds of statements are not normal, and at the moment, with my business slapped on the side, it looks like I support those kinds of takes — which I most definitely do not," Nelson told his audience in the video.

Nelson told BI that "it's not just those two comments" from Musk that he mentioned in his video. As Musk has become increasingly political, he said it's difficult to "separate his very unique creation from his very unique political stance."

Nelson told BI that he's happy to make YouTube videos about "controversial stuff all day long." However, he wants to protect his wheelchair business, which he started about five years ago.

"I have the YouTube side of things, where any exposure is good exposure," Nelson said. "But then I have the wheelchair side of things, where negative exposure does hurt the business."

Nelson told BI that he owns every other Tesla model and had never received negative reactions to the non-Cybertruck vehicles. While driving the electric pickup, however, he said he's encountered instances of truck drivers "rolling coal" on him — where they pull up beside him, hit their accelerator, and cover the vehicle in a cloud of black smoke.

Other Cybertruck drivers previously told BI they experienced similarly negative interactions while driving the vehicle, including getting flipped off. Some also reported getting cut off on the road or cursed at.

Nelson is considering selling his Cybertruck and replacing it with a 2025 Silverado EV or a Rivian. Nelson told BI that the "the polarization factor is a really big deal, but it's not like the whole deal." In the video, he said the vehicle has poor visibility in snowy or rainy weather. Nelson lives in Utah where snow is common, and he said it can "accumulate" on the headlight. He also said the headlight can shine directly onto snowflakes as they fall creating a "Star Wars warp-speed effect."

The Cybertruck has sold well since its launch, becoming something of a status symbol for celebrities.

The auto-industry tracker Cox Automotive estimates Tesla sold 17,000 of the electric pickup in the third quarter, making it the third-best-selling electric vehicle in the US — behind only the 3 and Y models.