You Won't Believe What the Tesla Cybertruck Designer Keeps in His Garage!

      Jay Leno's Garage via YouTube

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      The average car enthusiast might not recognize Franz von Holzhausen’s name, but they definitely know his contributions. In fact, billions worldwide do—seriously—since he serves as the senior design executive at Tesla. His leadership shaped the designs of the Model S, Model X, Model Y, and yes, even the Cybertruck. However, his garage hosts more than just electric vehicles.

      Recently, Mr. von Holzhausen visited Jay Leno’s Garage to showcase his pride and joy: a 400-horsepower Pontiac Solstice powered by an LS2 V8. I doubt anyone could have guessed that this car was part of his collection, but it becomes clearer when you find out he designed it as well. The backstory is quite fascinating; it began as a secret project assigned by Bob Lutz.

      Lutz issued an internal challenge to the designers at General Motors, asking for ideas to help rejuvenate the struggling Pontiac brand around the mid-2000s. Von Holzhausen’s sketch was selected from the submissions, and he drew inspiration from classic race cars he observed at Laguna Seca.

      Now, the Solstice was originally manufactured only with four-cylinder engines: the base engine was a naturally aspirated 2.4-liter, while later GXP versions featured a 260-hp turbo 2.0-liter. However, this particular car had its original four-cylinder engine replaced with a powerful aluminum 6.0-liter V8 that sounds incredible.

      Mallet Performance Cars performed the engine swap, and as evident, the North Carolina shop excels in such conversions. GM vehicles are Mallet’s expertise, and they have completed numerous similar modifications. The LS2 engine remains largely untouched aside from some welcome exhaust upgrades.

      Aside from the engine change, von Holzhausen has made only a few adjustments to the car. He fitted a staggered set of wheels, with 19-inch wheels in front and 20-inch wheels in back, to better align with his original Solstice design. The five-speed manual transmission is still the stock option, although I’ve seen these transmissions handle significantly greater power in other projects.

      While I’m not suggesting this makes up for any perceived flaws with the Cybertruck, it does give me some reassurance knowing that the designer has excellent taste in vehicles otherwise. My friend Peter is passionate about the Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky platform, and rightfully so. I’ve never owned one, but they seem like an enjoyable ride—especially with a Corvette’s heart underneath.