How much extensive "truck" testing?

[Deleted member 105]

It's kinda mind-blowing to me that not a single photo has leaked. Not even of a camouflaged version. Most trucks are tested in a huge variety of environments - even BMW did some offroad stuff with their X5s. There's the snow / extreme cold weather tests up in Sweden / Norway / Greenland, hot weather testing in Arizona / Australia / New Mexico / SoCal, etc.

It raises the question - is their opsec really that good? Are they using private testing grounds nobody is aware of / monitoring with long lenses and such? Or just doing everything in "simulated" environments in their labs and such at work?

Not that I don't trust the simulated environments as it does allow for a hell of a lot of rapid iteration tweaking and potentially even more extreme circumstances, but...

Advertisement

 

[stumby]

Woa I had this exact thought this afternoon! I was surprised how Tesla managed to keep everyone completely guessing at even a basic shape of it. That's why all the renderings so far are completely all over the map and so different hah. Most other vehicles managed to get spied during testing but somehow the truck hasn't.

You bring up a good point and I hope the Cybertruck wasn't engineered purely or mostly with computer modeling and simulations. And can extreme weather/temperature even be truly tested using computer simulators?

 

[Deleted member 105]

Oh I wasn't referring to just computer simulators. Tesla is perfectly capable of building their own wind tunnels, vacuum chambers, etc.

There are some giant ones that can be used to test things in temperatures ranging from -100 to +300 degrees in the same chamber.

Something like this maybe but on a bigger scale - and maybe with added shock simulators to bounce the vehicle around, plus a wind tunnel?

http://www.testingandsimulation.com/drive-in-vehicle-test-chamber/

 

[Roadway Mike]

My guess is given how unique and perhaps extreme the design is, even camouflage will not hide enough. The shape itself is a total secret which is so rare in this day and age of everyone who has a phone being an amateur spy photographer. It seems to be the plan all along as Musk has had to drop little nuggets of info about the design knowing no one will see even a hint of it before the reveal.

I'm sure Tesla went to great lengths to test this in their own hidden facilities but I do wonder also if you can get simulate all "real life" conditions like that in a truck that will have to deal with such a variety of uses/environments.

 

[@RCHER]

I guess I'm hoping for a heavy-duty commercial class vehicle. A powerful, capable, workhorse, charging-station-for-the-entire-work-site, targeting fleet markets...truck. I won't hold my breath,. But I can dream.

 

[jyc78]

Does Tesla have a known "proving grounds" where it tests its vehicles out of public sight?

 

[i_dreamincolour]

I believe that the Model S Plaid with a "new platform" they were testing at the Ring was actually CYBRTRK in a Model S suit. Could test in plain site the high performance version, weight and the new platform and batteries. Verify the performance of a Porsche 911 aspects of the vehicle. If true, the more truck like aspects could be running around disguised as a Model X

 

[stumby]

I believe that the Model S Plaid with a "new platform" they were testing at the Ring was actually CYBRTRK in a Model S suit. Could test in plain site the high performance version, weight and the new platform and batteries. Verify the performance of a Porsche 911 aspects of the vehicle. If true, the more truck like aspects could be running around disguised as a Model X

Interesting theory! And I could see that as a possible scenario. Tho presumably the Cybertruck will have towing and off-road capabilities and no Tesla prototypes have been spotted doing those?

 

[Gold Run Ranch Cypertruck]

Does Tesla have a known "proving grounds" where it tests its vehicles out of public sight?

How about SpaceX facilities? They could build a track inside a hanger or go out into the middle of the property to test it off road.

 

[xs0]

The CYBRTRK will be based on the Tesla Semi platform. The Semi has been thoroughly tested in all sorts of real world environments. Those tests likely translate quite well to the CYBRTRK.

 

[i_dreamincolour]

The CYBRTRK will be based on the Tesla Semi platform. The Semi has been thoroughly tested in all sorts of real world environments. Those tests likely translate quite well to the CYBRTRK.

I doubt that. There are going to be some common parts, like the electric motors, which are evolved from the Model 3/Y, but a Semi platform would not translate to a pickup truck well. It would be much too heavy and too large to be practical.

 

[ModelAZ]

I doubt that. There are going to be some common parts, like the electric motors, which are evolved from the Model 3/Y, but a Semi platform would not translate to a pickup truck well. It would be much too heavy and too large to be practical.

So more likely a modified 3/Y platform? Hope that's heavy duty enough.

 

[xs0]

Between a scaled down Semi platform and a scaled up 3 platform, my money is on the Semi
At any rate, can’t wait for tonight!

 

[DaveH]

Tesla does't need to test, it has the public for that! But it is odd that no prototypes have been seen around yet. Perhaps it's that far away from production that testing proper hasn't begun yet?

 

[i_dreamincolour]

So more likely a modified 3/Y platform? Hope that's heavy duty enough.

I can't see it being the 3/Y platform scaled up either. The idea of a 200Kw battery makes me think it will be an evolved S/X platform. The chassis width required for a full size truck is a better fit for that platform as well as an easier fit for the battery. When you think about how the skateboard holds the battery, the relatively narrow track of the 3/Y would make it much harder to put such a big battery in.