As promised so many times, Tesla Cybertruck is about to enter production. This time, it could be the real thing, though, as the Italians from Idra have shown the assembling process of their biggest Giga Press yet. The 9,000-ton machine is supposed to cast the Cybertruck underbody, greatly simplifying the production process.
If you’re not familiar with Idra, it’s enough to say that the Italians build the world’s largest high-pressure die casting machines. They call them Giga Presses, and, believe it or not, the name has nothing to do with Elon Musk. As explained by the company’s CEO, it was coined in 2019 when Idra produced the first 5,500-ton die casting machine. It might have something to do with Tesla, though, since the EV maker was among the first customers for the Giga Press, and its assembly plants are called gigafactories. Who cares?
These things are getting bigger and bigger, and the latest built by Idra is capable of 9,000 tons of clamping force. Rumors have it that the Giga Press is destined to be installed at Giga Texas and used in the Cybertruck’s single-piece rear underbody production. This information was backed by Elon Musk, who said a year ago that the Cybertruck’s underbody would require at least an 8,000-ton Giga Press.
“We’re actually going to be using even bigger casting machines for the rear body of the Cybertruck because it’s a bigger vehicle and you’ve got a long truck bed that’s going to support a lot of load,” said Musk at the time. “So we’ll be using an 8,000-ton casting press for the rear body casting as opposed to the 6,000-ton for the Model Y.”
Next week, Idra’s open house event will exhibit the gigantic casting machine. But before that would happen, the Italians had to assemble the contraption, and a video was produced to show the process. As you can see, the Giga Press (or maybe the Terra Press) is already painted in the traditional Tesla livery, just as the smaller Giga Presses before it. This adds further weight to the claim that it will be used to build the Cybertruck.
A one-shot mega casting of a front or rear platform from a Giga Press replaces up to 250 pieces and reduces weight by 10 to 30 percent, depending on the mix of steel and alloy used. It is also very efficient, replacing up to 200 meters of robotized welding lines that would have been needed to create a complete front or rear platform.
After his childhood dream of becoming a "tractor operator" didn't pan out, Cristian turned to journalism, first in print and later moving to online media. His top interests are electric vehicles and new energy solutions. Full profile
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