Jay Leno has released a new Cybertruck review video showing, how to turn the Cybertruck into a boat (Elon Musk has confirmed with more details), hidden air compressor, drift backward, scuba battery pack, Basecamp & other hidden features.
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It has been almost 20 days since Tesla started Cybertruck deliveries. Throughout these two-and-a-half weeks, we’ve learned a lot about the Cybertruck.
Hagerty has released the channel's breathtaking Cybertruck video. During Hagerty’s review, we’ve seen the Cybertruck break the speed record for pickup trucks.
In the same video, we’ve also learned about the incredible new Cybertruck steer-by-wire system and 48-volt architecture. Host Jason Cammisa added that Tesla has sent all automotive CEOs a copy of a guide on “How to build a 48-volt vehicle.”
Ford CEO Jim Farley last week confirmed that he has indeed personally received a how-to-build 48-volt vehicle guide from Tesla which prompted Elon Musk to respond.
MKBHD has released not one but two Cybertruck videos. During his Cybertruck 2nd impression videos, among other things, MKBHD says “All the numbers except 0 to 60 mph are worse than they promised, 1st time that’s true for Tesla”
Top Gear has also released a Cybertruck review where Tesla’s Head of Vehicle Engineering confirmed that the Cybertruck is capable of 350KW next-generation V4 supercharging that can charge the truck from 15% to 85% in just 18 minutes.
Sandy Munro has released a Cybertruck deep-dive video with 5 of the top engineering heads in Tesla where he discussed the engineering behind the steer-by-wire system, 48-volt architecture, ethernet wiring loop, hairpin motors & more breakthroughs.
After all this Cybertruck content, you might think that you’ve learned everything there is to know about the all-electric truck, however, a few hours ago, Jay Leno released his Cybertruck review and we’ve learned a ton of new information.
For his Cybertruck video, Jay Leno interviewed Tesla’s Chief Designer, Franz von Holzhausen, and Tesla’s Head of Engineering, Lars Moravy. Luckily, Jay was able to make the Tesla executives spill more information about the Cybertruck.
So what are the highlights? Jay Leno’s Cybertruck interview is over an hour long so there is a lot of information we will not be able to cover in this article, so we recommend you watch the video in its entirety.
However, just to whet your appetite, these are the bullet points in no particular order. Tesla’s Head of Engineering discussed in detail the Cybertruck’s new “Wade Mode”, scuba pack water-tight battery pack, and how to convert the Cybertruck into a boat.
In order to allow the Cybertruck to drive on water, Tesla has come up with an ingenious solution where the EV maker directs air from the air suspension into the battery pack and pressurizes the batteries to prevent water from leaking into the battery.
Tesla calls this approach a “scuba pack” and can be activated by enabling “Wade Mode” in the off-roading menu. Wade Mode allows Cybertruck to be incredibly capable while driving through challenging watery situations for example something like a flood.
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This on its own is incredible however, how about if you want to make your Cybertruck into a boat and like Elon Musk promised be able to drive it through “rivers, lakes, and seas that aren’t too choppy?”
Tesla's lead engineer says “Elon did want to make it a boat and so the vehicle almost floats. Maybe you have to add a little bit of extra buoyancy just to keep it up. If you're creative and you want, you could figure out how to put an outboard motor plugged into your [240-volt] outlet, turn it on from your screen, and go boating.”
Update
Elon Musk, in response to Jay Leno’s video and the specific comments from Tesla’s Head of Engineering, has confirmed that Tesla is “going to offer a mod package that enables Cybertruck to traverse at least 100m of water as a boat. Mostly just need to upgrade cabin door seals.”
Musk hasn’t given us additional details about when we can expect Tesla to release the modification package that will turn the Cybertruck into an amphibian vehicle, how much it would cost, whether it will be done by Tesla or third-party installers, and so on.
Having said that, no matter when it arrives and whether you think turning the Cybertruck into a boat is important or not, the Cybertruck effortlessly sailing the sea as a boat will surely have a halo effect that will increase sales for all Tesla vehicles.
We’ll be sure to keep you posted when we learn more about Elon Musk’s promised Cybertruck boat mode upgrades.
This is interesting however, the Cybertruck easter eggs don’t end here. You might be asking what cool things can you do on the road? Tesla’s Head of engineering says you’re able to drift backward in the Cybertruck.
Lars explains this capability by saying, that the Cybertruck has rear-wheel steering and the ability to shut down both rear motors and transfer all power to the front motor. This allows you to basically make the front of the truck the rear and the rear, the front allowing you to drift backward.
A release candidate Cybertruck has already been filmed utilizing 4-wheel steering to drift in reverse and do a standing 180-degree turn.
Another feature Moravy confirmed includes a hidden air compressor. Unlike the Rivian, the Cybertruck does not come with an onboard air compressor. However, now Lars says Tesla will include, although an off-board one, an air compressor with the Cybertruck.
The off-board compressor will be stored in the under-bed storage on the back of the truck and if you get a flat, you can just plug it into the 120-volt or 240-volt outlet in the back of your bed and you can use that to inflate your tires.
Tesla’s Head of Engineering says the reason the EV maker did not simply tap into the Cybertruck’s air suspension to give the truck an onboard air compressor is due to the fact that there are fundamental differences in specification between the air suspension and air compressor meant to inflate tires. This difference will result in an onboard air compressor taking 30 minutes to fill up your tire.
If we’re in the theme of hidden features, what other hidden Cybertruck features are there? Lars says, Tesla has designed the underbelly of the Cybertruck’s battery pack in a way such that people can easily “bolt on a skid plate in order to go super off-roading.”
The Cybertruck already has the highest ground clearance of any vehicle at 17 and a half inches. However, with easily bolt-on skid plates, the truck should be even more capable at off-roading.
Finally, Jay Leno ends his video with a hypothetical Cybertruck-related problem and the optional “Basecamp” tent as a possible solution.
Leno says “Now here's a problem a lot of folks have. You get so excited about something like this Cybertruck that you just go out and you just buy it on the spot. One of those impulse buys. Then you go home and you tell your spouse, they're not thrilled, they throw you out of the house but, if you bought the optional tent no problem.”
Jay is seen lying down in the Cybertruck’s Basecamp tent while delivering his Cybertruck bit. Overall, Leno’s Cybertruck review is full of interesting new tidbits about the truck and we highly recommend you watch the episode in its entirety.
For now, this is all the information we’ve regarding the Cybertruck. However, we’ll be sure to keep you posted when we learn more about the all-electric truck. Until then, make sure to visit our site torquenews.com/Tesla regularly for the latest updates.
So what do you think? Surprised to learn there is still a lot we don’t yet know about the Cybertruck? From all the new easter eggs which one is your favorite? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Image: Courtesy of Jay Leno’s Cybertruck review
For more information check out: Tesla Cybertruck Orders Show Tri-Motor Cyberbeast is Way More Popular Than Cybertruck AWD, Delivery Dates Diverge by 9 Months
Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and The evolution of the EV space on a daily basis for several years. He covers everything about Tesla from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.
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