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[flagged] The UK Now Has Its Own Illegal Rubberized Cybertruck on the Road (wired.com)
25 points by gnabgib on Dec 15, 2024 | hide | past | favorite | 23 comments


Indicators (blinkers) have to emit amber light to be road legal. I find the flashing red lights very difficult to see when driving in the US


> falls foul of the European regulations requiring a rounding of 3.2 millimeters on protruding parts.

That's a curious number... 3.2mm is 0.12598 inches, or 1/8" is 3.175mm.

Did the EU pass a regulation based on Imperial units and just convert (with rounding) to metric for publication?


Tooling/machining parts/sizes have their own world of units, with a pretty varied history.


It's probably easier for a machinist to measure a tenth of a millimeter than a thousandth of one, i.e a micrometer.


It’ll rust through in a week here.


maybe not, being stainless steel (at least the body is. Don't know about chassis, if there is one)


I've been seeing about twice as many Cybertrucks as I did a year ago so I know they are getting more abundant.

There was one not too long ago I got a good look at in stopped traffic and it already had that minor thin patina of rust all over that some grades of stainless get in some types of industrial environments. Probably worked in a chemical plant.

I don't think it would rust through nearly as fast as plain steel, but it was going to need attention or it was going to get more off-color after a while.



> https://www.torquenews.com/11826/tesla-cybertruck-becomes-ex...

While the actual images are linked further down, the article's lead image and video thumbnail are just of a wrap from this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PG8DRwoc47E


How dishonest!



> “It is impossible,” he said, referring to the Cybertruck’s sharp paneling, “to make a rounding of 3.2 millimeters on a 1.4-millimeter sheet of stainless steel.”

That's funny. Other car manufacturers use sheet metal and/or sheet's of other materials. Yet they somehow manage to do it.


Other manufacturers manage to do it because they are not using stainless steel body panels. Stainless steel body panels are quite uncommon. I think DeLorean 40 years ago was the last to do it before Tesla. Before DeLorean I think there were only concept cars and a handful that Ford made in the 1930s that were not sold.

Tesla is using a particularly hard form of stainless steel that is especially difficult to work.


There are several obvious ways around the problem, including folding the edges over (then rounding), or just shaping things correctly.

The problem seems to be the willingness for Tesla to comply with legal requirements, rather than a materials problems.


Other mfgs probably check the requirements before building their vehicles, unlike Tesla who seems to say "fuck it" and barge ahead. When someone calls them on it, they say "fuck you". Eventually, someone official says "No, sir. Fuck YOU!"

Tesla then either waits or throws tantrums until someone official just says "Fuck it."


What do you think the chances are that the Tantrum In Chief over there at Tesla will just say "fine, you want to have these ridiculous and unachievable safety standards. We just wont supply to your country, less see how you like that!" ?


Not specifically that, but given the SEC, I do think it's plausible he may try to sue to get the standards changed.


I hope these things are never allowed around here. Roads are already dangerous enough without people driving around in tanks.


If a strip of rubber DIY'd on sidesteps sharp edges rules then I'll be disappointed in the UK regulator.


I had the same thought, especially after reading:

> US automotive design standards are lax compared to those of Europe, where manufacturers must meet tough safety-first rules before mass-market “type approved” cars can be registered for use on public roads.


Why, if it address the sharp edges?


I'd love to see a Cybervan.


Further down the article: "According to a YouTube video uploaded by Salt Lake City tech tester Quinn Nelson, the Cybertruck’s steering wheel does not self-center."

Do Not Want.




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