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stephencanon

What sort of engineering standards are these Cybertrucks built to?

Oh, very rigorous engineering standards. The wheels aren't supposed to fall off for a start.

janderson215

Can’t be made out of cardboard either.

The Front Fell Off: https://youtu.be/3m5qxZm_JqM?si=DprOulmmDK-H76LX

ClikeX

I saw the title of the post, and I knew somebody would have referenced it.

ryanschaefer

We’ve taken it *outside* the environment

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Leonard_of_Q

Same standards as e.g.

2026

Audi Q8 e-tron:

"Popular electric car recalled due to brake pedal problem" [1]

A problem with a "screw connection" (unclear whether this is a mounting screw or it serves some other purpose) can cause the brake pedal to malfunction.

or, in 2024

Audi Q4 e-tron, Volkswagen ID.3, ID.4, ID.5 and ID.7:

"Dangerous error in popular electric cars: brakes can cease functioning" [2]

It says that the ABS pump could drop off which would cause brake fluid to leak out which in turn causes the brakes to cease functioning.

[1] https://carup.se/popular-elbil-aterkallas-for-fel-pa-bromspe... (Swedish)

[2] https://nyheter24.se/nyheter/motor/1296418-farliga-felet-i-p... (Swedish)

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raverbashing

> Audi Q4 e-tron, Volkswagen ID.3, ID.4, ID.5 and ID.7:

> "Dangerous error in popular electric cars: brakes can cease functioning" [2]

> It says that the ABS pump could drop off

Using a mechanical ABS in an electric car might be part of the problem

formerly_proven

As opposed to thoughts and prayers-based ABS?

HarHarVeryFunny

Well, the wheels may fall off, the body panels may fall off (weak glue), but the rest of it is OK right? Well, apart from the bulletproof glass?

So worst case you're rolling down the road on a chassis with no body panels, except you're not really rolling if the wheels fall off.

Hmm.. good job we're not letting in those cheap Chinese EV's and sticking to this top quality homemade stuff.

ChoGGi

And the hitch might fall off when towing over a pot hole.

dramm

Rush of Australians to the comments section.

mentalgear

> What sort of engineering standards are these Cybertrucks built to?

'Vibe-Engineering'

jeffwask

The original vibe engineering

Robdel12

Cheap ass studs, not surprised. Don’t tow with a cybertruck either, you can literally total it by ripping the frame out with the hitch.

It’s the most poorly engineered “truck” there is. Can’t tow. Can’t haul (stupid bed design). It’s just a glorified pavement machine.

culi

It doesn't even use steel for the frame. It's an aluminum cast. I didn't even know that was legal for trucks. It basically guarantees that these things have an expiration date. I honestly can't believe these are legal to sell

mingus88

It is a vanity project helmed by a terminally online manchild who wanted cyberpunk blade runner vibes.

Go look back at the original concept art. The actual delivered vehicle dimensions are totally different, so he didn’t even succeed at that part. They couldn’t build what he wanted. It’s way more boxy and looks like shit on the road.

And lol at 173 total affected vehicles. What a failure.

cucumber3732842

Eh. It's "fine" when you realize that it's not really an F150 competitor. It's the top end of the Ford Maverick, Honda Ridgeline, etc, market segment. But they have to market it like the former because that's what consumers want to hear.

Doxin

[dead]

mrcwinn

Wow, that would be wild to see. Where can I see a Cybertruck owner "literally ripping the frame out with the hitch?"

FuriouslyAdrift

culi

whistlindiesel also discovered this. it's honestly terrifying that these are legal to sell as "trucks" and people believe they can safely tow with them. Aluminum will only get weaker over time and is guaranteed to eventually break unlike steel

magiclaw

Jerry has one of the worst cases of TDS (Tesla Derangement Syndrome). In his video he applies 10,000 lbs of downward force directly on the hitch point before it breaks, and then says that it "is far too close to the 11,000 pound towing capacity. Yikes." He's a smart guy, he knows downward pressure at the hitch point (tongue weight) is a much different rating than towing capacity. Tongue weight is usually estimated at 10-15% of towing capacity, so 1100-1650 lbs. The cybertruck clearly exceeded expectations here.

mrcwinn

Thanks, that is absolutely crazy!

loandbehold

Watch WhistlinDiesel cybertruck video.

Robdel12

And if you hate WD, here’s another with them bouncing the skid steer on the actual trucks hitch haha before the cybertruck fails 2k before its advertise rating https://youtube.com/shorts/9yLzs5SzaxQ?si=nXElRpuLY_l-DbB4

jm4

Oh, man. I remember that one. He absolutely destroyed that truck. What’s notable about that video is that the other trucks handled the abuse dramatically better than the cybertruck. He was determined to break every single vehicle in ways they would never actually be used, but it was laughable how bad the cybertruck was. If I remember correctly, he made the wheels fall off and had to get it repaired in the middle of the “test”. I think the Ford was still running at the end.

washingupliquid

[flagged]

alooPotato

Dang you nailed my profile perfect.

I bought one and its the best car I've ever had. Event though I was never a "truck" buyer it checked off all my needs: - space for wife, car seats + another adult when needed - haul around my kids, 4 bikes, skis, camping gear, etc. - drives itself - we do a ton of road trips - luxury - electric, tired of going to gas stations

Wasn't another car on the market that checked those boxes.

Have you ever driven one? They are amazing to drive.

xerox13ster

[flagged]

Robdel12

Literally everything you listed can be done with any SUV.

avgDev

How is the Cybertruck luxury? The electric motors feel nice....but the car is so far from luxury. Have you ever been in an S class? A 7 series?

Literally most SUVs will tick most of these boxes at a significant discount.

10xDev

>Wasn't another car on the market that checked those boxes.

Outside of "drives itself", I fail to see how much of what you described is unique. Seems very ordinary.

stasomatic

The only ones I see in my zip code in Miami-Dade/Broward are (mostly) Russians who aspire to a Kardashian tank, a.k.a G-Wagon. The other ones are wrapped in "re-fi your mortgage" type of nastiness. I am terrified when I am next to one in a car or on a bike (because I know "my people").

I am not a Tesla the car hater, if only this monstrosity wasn't all sharp angles, otherwise to each their own.

malfist

And the fact that your purchase is supporting a guy that literally threw two nazi salutes at an inauguration? Is that facsist alignment a feature or a bug for your "best car you've ever had"?

selectodude

F150 Lightning checked all those boxes and also isn’t a complete piece of shit that sheds parts on the road.

gamblor956

A Cybertruck cannot physically fit 4 bikes, and the truck bed is not long enough to fit skis or snowboards.

When I go biking and snowboarding with my idiot friend that owns a Cybertruck, we have to use my Outback to haul the gear because it won't fit in his lemon.

throwawaytea

It was never meant for construction workers. It was meant for the owners of small construction companies. I used to work for a swimming pool contractor. He didn't own a shovel. He made $600k a year. So did his plumber best friend. And his buddy that did concrete work. I actually also worked on their small time NASCAR team, since they had so much money to burn. The cyber truck is perfect for them.

Robdel12

I race cars, I have never seen one at the track, they’re a toy.

But you’re exactly right. They’re for the polished shoes folks, not the steel toes

gamblor956

A NASCAR franchise team license is $30 million, and the annual operating cost is $10 million or more (emphasis on the "or more"). If your buddies have a NASCAR team their money didn't come from their day jobs, and the CT is definitely the right truck for people born with silver spoons.

hvs

In Minnesota they tend to be (or were) owned by companies in the construction / maintenance industry and plastered with full body advertisements for said services (not actually used by construction workers).

Rebelgecko

The Cybertruck is over 3 tons, so it's eligible for some specific tax rules that let businesses take the full depreciation immediately instead of over time. Same reason a lot of businesses used to buy Hummers and slap a decal on the side. Idk why we're incentivizing big ass vehicles that put more wear & tear on roads, but it is what it is.

tusimi

"All 173 of the RWD Cybertrucks sold by Tesla are being recalled"

173...

vablings

The RWD model was only for sale briefly after launch. I don't know why you would ever want a pure RWD electric truck

alexjplant

With the weight of the batteries in back it might be fine. The issue with RWD trucks with traditional drivetrains is the lack of traction owing to all of the weight being over the non-drive wheels. Driving my F-150 in the snow or rain was always dicey because of this.

That being said I wouldn't touch a Tesla with a barge pole for reasons numerous.

cogman10

Batteries and the engine. The engine sits in line with the wheels rather than being under the hood of the car. That puts all the weight right next to the driving tires.

But agree, cybertruck is a really silly purchase for numerous reasons. The only reason you'd buy it is to signal your support for Elon. It's a very bad vehicle.

bluGill

2wd is just fine if you keep a load of firewood in back all winter.

kgermino

I don't see why it would be an issue in most cases. Obviously you'd want AWD for proper off-roading, but for just driving around on streets it should be fine. My EV van is RWD and it's totally fine in everything I've dealt with - including deep snow - and I really only even noticed when trying to parallel park on ice.

rpdillon

This has been a question the Slate team has been trying to answer. They claim the weight distribution being more even front-to-back (batteries offsetting motor, I presume), but I don't know whether I believe them. I was interested in a Slate, but the changes at the company lately (new CEO from McKinsey, rather than an engineer), along with decisions like RWD, and the anemic acceleration (0-60 in 8 seconds) gives me pause.

mingus88

I don’t know how the slate is designed but I have a rivian

The battery pack is by far heavier than the motors. In the r1 they are also positioned with the wheels (quad) or front/back (dual) so weight distribution is great.

If the slate has a single motor and is RWD then I would assume the weight might be biased toward the rear where the drive unit is powering the rear wheels. Either way the motor is relatively small compared to ICE trucks and that’s where you want the weight anyway for a RWD vehicle.

Am I mistaken?

wesleyd

Oh man, I love that we live in a world where an eight second 0-60 is considered anemic! For a truck!

(Not digging at you, I feel the same way you do. I just think it’s weird and amazing!)

neogodless

Wait until you find out how many gas and diesel powered trucks are RWD!

At least in the U.S. below a certain ~longitude~ latitude it's quite common.

wil421

Autotrader says there are 246,000 used trucks for sale nationwide with AWD/4WD and 38,000 with rear wheel drive. For new it’s 429,000 AWD/4WD vs 51,000 for rear wheel.

Volume wise it’s of course Texas with Wyoming, Montana, and North Dakota having the largest ownership share.

discors

    > neogodless: <snip> At least in the U.S. below a certain longitude is quite common.
Latitude.

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mohamedkoubaa

Collectors item

wat10000

I probably wouldn't buy a truck, but it's at least a possibility that I'd get one for hauling materials and towing around town. If I did, I'd prefer a RWD model just to save a little money. I find the modern obsession with AWD a bit baffling. AWD doesn't help you stop in bad weather, so it feels like an illusory advantage there. RWD can be "interesting" compared to FWD, but modern traction control on an electric drivetrain should make it a non-issue. (In practice, I can abuse the accelerator on my non-truck RWD Teslas pretty badly without any issues with losing traction.)

cheschire

When was the last time you drove on an unplowed road with only rear wheel drive?

Unpowered wheels become uni-directional skis, regardless of their ability to turn left and right.

sunshinesnacks

> AWD doesn't help you stop in bad weather

I frequently think about this when weather gets bad! I already have AWB (all wheel braking?). Seems like AWD could make it too easy to get in a situation where my AWB isn’t sufficient to stop

dec0dedab0de

I've never driven an AWD, but having a 4x4 in a snow storm is wonderful. Waking up and driving through the pile of snow from the plow to go to wawa before I even think about shoveling is an absolute luxury. Plus, driving on the beach is pretty fun too.

creaturemachine

You get better regenerative braking performance out of FWD or AWD. Since typically the front brakes do most of the work, it makes sense to have that energy go into the motor rather than friction braking.

gangstead

I didn't even realize there was a RWD model. The website shows 3 options for sale and they are all AWD.

xiphias2

I don't understand the problem, my new car had like 8 recalls in 2 years for problems that might happen, it's just normal

nullstyle

Your car had a recall because the wheels might fall off? Which one?

1970-01-01

redwall_hp

Specifically, this only affected red-edged premium alloy rims that were OEM made but not installed unless you bought them separately. Not an engineering issue with the vehicle so much as those rims may have had a manufacturing defect in certain batches.

The overly cautious recall announcement was promptly clarified to owners by dealerships, and impacted a small subset. (I have a Civic.)

flutas

[flagged]

GJim

> According to Claude

Please don't do this.

Quote an authoritative source. Not some AI bot known for ~~hallucinating~~ bullshitting.

hoppyhoppy2

Posting AI-generated comments is against HN's guidelines.

jpalawaga

That I can't tell whether "the wheels coming off," is literal or figurative when it comes to Tesla is an indictment about their product quality at this point.

What a disaster. I don't really know anyone who is voluntarily buying Teslas when there are so many other viable options in an increasingly crowded marketplace.

bluGill

I see a lot of them on the road so somebody must be buying them.

I don't know why, I buy trucks to haul stuff. (and I really wish there was an affordable truck to haul stuff with - everything I can find is 12+ years old and showing age)

Octoth0rpe

> I see a lot of them on the road so somebody must be buying them.

Two counterpoints: for all the opinionated criticisms, the cybertruck is at least quite noticeable, and thusly you may think that they are a higher proportion of trucks than they really are.

Also, you're far more likely to see them drive around in certain locales due to the cost, so that may introduce additional biases.

redwall_hp

They're the new tax fraud vehicle, replacing the Escalade: a luxury vehicle over a certain weight that gets reported as a "business expense" even when it's for personal use. That's also why a lot of them have shitty decals or stencil-paint advertising local businesses.

bluGill

There are so many cars that even a fraction of a percent will be seen a lot. I never see a Rolls Royce by comparison.

dmix

From the article

> but it’s “not aware of any collisions, fatalities, or injuries” related to the recall.

FireBeyond

Fun fact, for Tesla's FSD/AI reporting, it doesn't consider any incident where airbags didn't deploy to count for accident stats. This includes situations where the airbag system cannot deploy because of catastrophic damage.

It also, strangely, doesn't count fatality incidents.

kortilla

Teslas or cyber trucks? If you mean teslas in general then you’re being willfully ignorant because model Ys are the best selling car in the US.

amanaplanacanal

Only if you don't count trucks. Which are wildly more popular, though I wish they weren't.

Extropy_

athorax

Hey just FYI, this kind of behavior is super annoying.

Extropy_

Right back at ya

hermitcrab

I saw one at a car show. They look even more shit in real life, than they do in photos. Probably quite good for killing pedestrians and cyclists though.

hereme888

All 173 RWD Long Range Cybertrucks have a defect that may potentially lead to wheel separation.

No crashes, injuries or fatalities have occurred. Much bigger recalls from other auto-makers in the past:

Toyota: 8-9 million worldwide recalled for "sticking" accelerator pedals and floor mats that would trap pedals, and a $1.2B DOJ penalty.

Kia 2015: also sticky pedals in various models.

Ford (1970's): 1.5 million vehicles recalled due to read-end collision fires from the fuel tank placement.

dlev_pika

Are you comparing Toyota’s reliability and recall record to Tesla’s Cybertruck?

Lmao

hereme888

Did you just compare a manufacturer to a specific model from a new-ish company and then laugh?

jihadjihad

Seems the focus group guy's idea was good after all, kinda fair to just want a wheel that doesn't fall off while I'm driving [0].

0: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YDpvMYk5jA

thelastgallon

Fully self driving wheels! People have been waiting for this feature.

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