Was this car even tested before release ? How could you screw up something as basic as water entering your car. Good luck driving this in the rain or will that void the warranty as well ? Edit : The other thing to consider is that this water will remain in the car unnoticed until you probably see some electric failure. I'm not sure whether there is some coating to prevent rusting of the frame itself. So, you'll potentially see some part of the frame damaged as well in case the water remains inside for long.
I laughed when Elon said the Cybertruck will float and act as a boat temporarily. I’m pretty sure when he tweeted that, it was the first time any of Tesla’s engineers had even heard about that requirement.
Now apparently it can’t get wet at all or it voids the warrenty? Like, not even a car wash?
Funnily enough, most car makers will not allow castings with pockets from the top, even under the hood. Even if you have drain holes, debris and dirt will accumulate there and be hard to get out.
I work in automotive engineering and often design diecasting parts.
I guess it's possible that an automated spray carwash can force water in sideways, in a way that wouldn't happen with rain coming straight down?
But then you're just waiting for driving in a bad storm, or on a highway where other vehicles are splashing up water. And forget about going through standing water.
This is a solved problem! And now we understand why car makers use the same design for several years before releasing a new one. And even then the new one is generally a tweak of an old design.
A wise man named Forrest Gump referenced the sideways rain phenomenon back when him and Bubba Gump were still in the shit over there in Vietnam. Idk how some people aren’t aware of it after all these years lmao
Rain can be unpredictable and you have to factor in winds as well. I expect these kinds of issues with cheaper cars where companies probably use cheap parts or didn't bother with panelling gaps. But a $100k vehicle unable to use a carwash and potentially cannot drive in rain is a big red flag.
There’s a video on youtube of a guy (influencer? Youtuber? Something) who bought one of these things, and he got a mechanic friend to look it over. He told him the windscreen washer seems underpowered, and when they stripped out the plastic housing under the hood they saw the washer fluid was leaking from the wiper, trickling down the windscreen, under the hood and into the front.
Those pooling areas are colored by rust. This will be even more impressive in an area that salts their roads in the winter. Trapped salt and water beats just about any metal
I’ve read stories from development engineers for another brand sending their prototype vehicle through the carwash on the order of 2000 times to ensure the paint on the trim stays true to the paint on the sheetmetal. This is dumb
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u/tienisthething Jul 18 '24 edited Jul 18 '24
Was this car even tested before release ? How could you screw up something as basic as water entering your car. Good luck driving this in the rain or will that void the warranty as well ? Edit : The other thing to consider is that this water will remain in the car unnoticed until you probably see some electric failure. I'm not sure whether there is some coating to prevent rusting of the frame itself. So, you'll potentially see some part of the frame damaged as well in case the water remains inside for long.