Cybertruck arrives at New Zealand airport for winter testing

[ÆCIII]

Ask yourself the question "What is the purpose for the box?" Protection? Vehicles are shipped all the time and don't get scratched. What is the reason NOT to use a box? In the air cargo business you pay for two things. Weight and cubic inches. A box would add unneeded adds to both of those, and really up the cost, without a benefit. Planes don't like heavy things.

I actually stated the box purpose when first mentioning it - to conceal the shape to avoid drawing attention. Such a crate sides and top cold be made without a significant addition to weight considering how heavy the Cybertruck already is, if the purpose is just a lightweight cover and not that structural with nothing else supported on top. They could've even made a rectangular frame and stretched cloth over it to conceal the shape, which would've been almost negligible weight.

This was just a slight observation really, just wondering if Tesla might want to keep more secrecy of the shipment - It wasn't meant to be a critical point for dissection or debate and again - just an observation.

- ÆCIII

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[CybertruckAgent]

not our experience will a MY...... it performed well this winter, in a cold snap especially that froze my jeep solid.

So you’re saying your ICE gasoline Jeep was literally frozen solid and could not be started or driven, but your model Y worked well in the same conditions? Sounds totally legit.

 

[jerhenderson]

So you’re saying your ICE gasoline Jeep was literally frozen solid and could not be started or driven, but your model Y worked well in the same conditions? Sounds totally legit.

correct. a few days later the weather warmed up and the jeep reluctantly started again

 

[JBee]

It's 8:00AM in Austin and it's already 80ºF outside

Did you have power cuts this morning as well? We had 4 already this morning in Pflugerville.

I'm actually surprised your grid is holding up so well here. It's quite common to see equipment and network failures at plus 100'F, especially after a few days at that temperature, because the heat saturates the gear and everything has to be derated over 100'F. It's been 2 weeks since we've been here and it's been hot the whole time.

In particular thermal generators, like peaking plants running on NG are derated quite substantially, resulting in less power availability on the grid, and together with high consumer demand from air conditioning the grid often has no other choice but to go down. Especially in the cities.

In Australia we have the same issue, but there our primary cause of failures is line ones, where our red dust (iron oxide) builds up on the isolators, and a brief thunderstorm shower shorts them out. Also #1 cause for fires from overhead powerlines. That's why all the new stuff is always underground now. More expensive, but more reliable and better protected from the sun.

 

[CyberGus]

Did you have power cuts this morning as well? We had 4 already this morning in Pflugerville.

I'm actually surprised your grid is holding up so well here. It's quite common to see equipment and network failures at plus 100'F, especially after a few days at that temperature, because the heat saturates the gear and everything has to be derated over 100'F. It's been 2 weeks since we've been here and it's been hot the whole time.

In particular thermal generators, like peaking plants running on NG are derated quite substantially, resulting in less power availability on the grid, and together with high consumer demand from air conditioning the grid often has no other choice but to go down. Especially in the cities.

In Australia we have the same issue, but there our primary cause of failures is line ones, where our red dust (iron oxide) builds up on the isolators, and a brief thunderstorm shower shorts them out. Also #1 cause for fires from overhead powerlines. That's why all the new stuff is always underground now. More expensive, but more reliable and better protected from the sun.

Despite ERCOT's tarnished reputation from winter storm Uri in 2021, power has been reliable. I can't recall an outage from heat, although on really hot days they ask people to voluntarily cut back at peak times.

We do get dropouts during thunderstorms and the occasional blown transformer. Our lines don't burn, though, since our dust is limestone. Probably helps insulate lol

 

[Art O'Connor]

AYKM? CT has been "in testing" since 2019! And they are just getting around to "winter testing"? In NZ? This past winter in Reno, home of Giga I, was brutal. They could have tested it here for a whole lot less than flying it to NZ! You want a winter test? The AlCan to Alaska in winter. They are supposed to be delivering CT's in August, 2023, not 2024. Boy, am I glad my delivery date is July 2024. Maybe they will get the kinks out by then?

 

[CyberGus]

Y'all need to chill.

 

[CyberGus]

Last month not sufficient for you? How about a Tesla tweet from December? Of a video taken last July? (OK to be fair there are no CTs in this video, but they are clearly doing cold-climate testing in NZ.)

 

[mhaze]

I like, but the orientation of the loading ramp to the plane looks funny, with the lift at the cargo door seeming to appear too small for the Cybertruck length.

Most wide-body aircraft still would have difficulty accommodate an ~19½ foot long vehicle sideways internally in a cargo section. An Airbus A380 likely would, but all information points to only four carriers every ordering a freight version of the A380, but supposedly no freight versions of the A380 were ever delivered....
- ÆCIII

My understanding is that air freight is routine for high end race cars and similar auto transport issues. Don't know the details though.

From working around Air Force bases the C130 immediately comes mind as a brain dead solution. There is a commercial version, the L100. https://thepointsguy.com/news/how-airlines-transport-super-hercules/

 

[CYBRSMTH]

Pretty much all EV’s are at this point anyway

Cold weather EV range largely depends on three things:

1. What battery chemistry does the EV use? LFP batteries are not good in temperatures below freezing and vehicles equipped with them have been reported as losing up to 40% of their range In cold weather. In cold weather conditions NCM chemistry is better, but shouldn’t be charged up to 100% on a regular basis as it will accelerate battery degradation.

https://www.pcmag.com/news/carmakers-are-switching-to-cheaper-ev-batteries-but-theres-a-big-trade

2. Does the EV have a resistive heater or a heat pump? Resistive heaters use “a heating element that converts electrical energy into heat.” This drains the battery more quickly, thus reducing range. Luckily most newer EVs use heat pumps because they’re more efficient at heating and cooling and don’t tax the battery as much as resistive heaters.

https://electrek.co/2020/12/03/tesla-model-3-heat-pump-comparison-results/

3. Does the EV have an efficient thermal management system? Keeping the battery at an optimal temperature helps increase range and charging speed. In cold weather things like pre-conditioning the battery make a huge difference in charging. If this process is inefficient it may drain the battery faster as its trying to pre-condition itself before charging.

 

[AlDente]

I wonder if this is a Beta unit? If they used the gigacastings this might be very close to a first Gen CyberTruck.

 

[uff_da]

So you’re saying your ICE gasoline Jeep was literally frozen solid and could not be started or driven, but your model Y worked well in the same conditions? Sounds totally legit.

I live in a cold climate (regularly below -20F) and I would say my MY complains MUCH less than my ICE vehicles in cold. No cold oil and lead acid starting battery to struggle to start the engine. Just tap the stock and start to move.

The only down side is the battery drain to keep the battery warm when parked. No problem when plugged in/in my garage, but takes some extra planning when overnight on trips.

There are pros/cons to EV's in the winter but in my family we fight over who "gets" the Tesla.

 

[uff_da]

Calling all Kiwis with a drone....

 

[Ogre]

On this site every video or image is instantly accused of being CGI despite no one having any proof beyond "That shadow looks funny" or "It's a weird angle".
It's very hard to tell with a video this short, and I am not saying this is fake, but in my view...
The cover on the truck looks like a cloth sim.
I wouldn't stake my reputation on it but...
Could be flim flam.

It’s a pretty vague image.

Why would someone fake this?

No clue if it’s the Cybertruck… if it’s in New Zealand, or when it was even taken.

Not saying it’s fake. Not saying it’s legit. But the timing is similar to Model 3 testing.

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