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The Tesla Cybertruck Hides More Secrets Than Elon Musk Can Reveal

Elon Musk has been promising the Tesla Cybertruck for three years now, but the wait seems to be far from over. The more we find out about Tesla’s electric truck, the more we are convinced that Elon never really gave it much thought, let alone get it into production.
Tesla Cybertruck hides more secrets than Elon Musk can reveal 6 photos
Photo: Tesla
Idra’s 9,000-ton Giga Press is ready to cast Tesla Cybertruck’s underbodyIdra’s 9,000-ton Giga Press is ready to cast Tesla Cybertruck’s underbodyIdra’s 9,000-ton Giga Press is ready to cast Tesla Cybertruck’s underbodyThe Tesla Cybertruck spotted in Malibu, with Elon Musk at the wheelThe Cybertruck is on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles
It might come as a surprise, but it does not appear that Tesla Cybertruck is now any closer to mass production than it was three years ago. Despite some rough prototypes being showcased at different events, the Cybertruck is only an idea for now. What’s discouraging is that this idea keeps changing. Like the horizon line, the Cybertruck seems impossible to get to.

Many things were said about the Cybertruck, but the simple fact that Tesla changed the concept once the Rivian R1T was launched says a lot about this electric truck project. At the end of May, another seemingly unrelated news shed more light on the Cybertruck development state. It’s taking shape, it’s closer to daylight, but it’s still in its infancy.

The news was about Idra’s biggest casting machine yet, the 9,000-ton Giga Press. The rumors around the gigantic casting machine were quickly stopped by Elon Musk himself, who confirmed the machine would be used to stamp the Cybertruck body. This is a little different from stamping the underbody, as Musk also told us a year ago. Either way, this information confirms two things related to the Cybertruck development.

The first is that Tesla did not have a casting machine big enough to build the Cybertruck a year ago when the pickup was first supposed to enter production. The second is more complicated. Depending on what you want to see, is either positive (as in “Tesla has the machine now”) or negative (the whole plan needs to be rewritten from scratch).

To be clear, Elon Musk said from the very beginning that the Cybertruck would have an exoskeleton unibody shell. This is not very different from how die-cast toy cars are made. Until now, Tesla did not have a casting machine big enough to produce one. This probably made Musk stall for time or even find a workaround, hence the 8,000-ton machines Tesla ordered at Giga Texas.

Now, it looks like Idra was finally able to supply Tesla with a bigger casting machine that can stamp the whole Cybertruck body instead of only the rear underbody. This will force Tesla to redesign the entire production process, leading to more delays. The good part is that Tesla could once again revolutionize car manufacturing. If only the Cybertruck would enter mass production, of course.

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About the author: Cristian Agatie
Cristian Agatie profile photo

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.
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