Well, that was fast. Sure, Tesla doesn’t quite have a North American PR department as such, but that hasn’t stopped a couple of outlets from driving 2019’s most-anticipated vehicle, the polarizing Cybertruck. These reviews come just hours after the first deliveries occurred, and they’re packed with information on Tesla’s big bet. Let’s start off with what we learned in Jason Cammisa’s film on the Cybertruck for Hagerty, with a particular focus on performance stuff.
Cammisa and company ran the tri-motor Cybertruck down the quarter mile in eleven seconds flat, with that elapsed time growing by just three-tenths of a second with a low state of charge. That’s remarkable consistency, and it would make the tri-motor Cybertruck the world’s quickest factory pickup truck.
It’s worth noting that two of the three motors used in the top-spec Cybertruck are reportedly induction motors, the exact sort of motor tech Tesla built a name on. Remember, the original Tesla Roadster was a conceptual evolution of the AC Propulsion tzero, a prototype electric sports car that used an induction motor to prove electricity’s feasibility as propulsion for performance cars.
The Cybertruck Doesn’t Have A Steering Column
The Cybertruck uses steer-by-wire with no steering column in place as a physical backup. While the Infiniti Q50 is available with steer-by-wire, this “Direct Adaptive Steering” system still employs a physical shaft between the wheel and the steering rack. I don’t have terribly high hopes for Tesla’s steer-by-wire given that Infiniti’s DAS is genuinely one of the most wretched steering systems I’ve ever had the displeasure of experiencing, but it’s possible that changing the steering ratio based on speed may be less egregious in a multi-ton slab of stainless steel.
Here’s How Much The Cybertruck Weighs
Speaking of weight, the Cybertruck is on the more reasonable end of the electric truck weight scale. Sure, it may still weigh 6,843 pounds, but that’s still lighter than a Rivian R1T or a Ford F-150 Lightning with the extended range battery pack, to say nothing of the GMC Hummer EV. So where did Tesla save all that weight? Well, one area might be in the crash structure. Cammisa reports that because of the impact-resistance of the hard stainless outer panels, Tesla doesn’t have to use door bars for side impact protection. Of course, we haven’t actually seen the guts of a Cybertruck door, so that claim still needs a little extra verification in my eyes, but it’s certainly fascinating.
Here’s The Weird Cybertruck Hubcap Up Close
When Tesla first showed off the Cybertruck in 2019, an easy piece of low-hanging fruit was the wheel design that overlapped the tires. There was no way that could make production, right? Wrong. There’s actually a relatively cheap way of making that work, but it will lock Cybertruck owners into one type of tire. Let me explain.
Through MKBHD’s video, we get a better look at the hubcaps fitted to the Tesla Cybertruck. These aerodynamically-tuned hubcaps line up with styling elements in the factory tire sidewalls to give off a concept car look. The downside? Things might not quite look right if owners switch to a different model of tire once the stock rubber is due to replacement. Interestingly, each wheel cover is a two-piece design, with a visible cap snapping into what appears to be a plastic carrier, which then attaches to the wheel.
Styling Inspiration By… Lotus?
Since the Cybertruck doesn’t look like any other pickup truck on the road, it may be surprising to learn that its styling was inspired by one of Giugiaro’s most iconic sports cars. As Franz von Holzhauzen said to Top Gear, “In the early days of finding this form and this idea, we had a Lotus Esprit in the studio and we’d been looking at that.” While the end result might be more similar to Top Gear‘s own Hammerhead Eagle i-Thrust, some principles of folded paper design are here either way.
Speaking of design, the styling choices made with the Cybertruck often have proper functional purpose. Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, told Top Gear that “The sail panel which goes from the C-pillar back out to the rear, it adds like 25 percent of the torsional stiffness of the vehicle.”
While we’re on the subject of styling elements, many Tesla owners struggle with frozen door handles, so Tesla’s solved this on the Cybertruck by removing traditional door handles entirely. The doors release via buttons and present themselves to the driver and occupants, and Moravy claims that these doors “actually can break through a half-inch of ice.”
In the Top Gear interview, Moravy also pours the cold water of reality onto Elon Musk’s claims of bulletproof status by highlighting the limitations of the Cybertruck’s unique material mix. The VP of Vehicle Engineering stated, “We can stop pretty much any handgun and anything that is sub-sonic, but if you get armor-piercing rounds or if you have a bullet that’s going faster than the speed of sound, that energy’s gonna hit it with velocity squared, and that tiny area’s definitely gonna go through.” To iterate, Moravy adds “You can definitely empty a whole clip from a Tommy gun, 9 mm subsonic, but I wouldn’t go around claiming that it’s fully bulletproof.”
Sliding inside the Cybertruck, it’s hard to ignore the conspicuous absence of a rearview mirror. It’s gone because the tonneau cover would interfere with an actual rear window. There is a digital rearview display on the central touchscreen that appears when the Cybertruck is in gear, but as we’ve previously reported, digital mirrors are crap for a variety of reasons.
The Cybertruck Has A Trick Bed And Bi-Directional Charging
Things pick up a little bit in the six-foot bed. There’s under-bed storage like a Honda Ridgeline, and a litany of in-bed outlets, including one 220-volt outlet and two 110-volt outlets. Speaking of power, the Cybertruck features Tesla’s first bidirectional charging system, which means it could eventually support vehicle-to-grid power bank capability. The Kia EV6 and Ioniq 5 also have this capability.
Oh, and bidirectional charging is only the tip of the electronic iceberg. The Cybertruck sports Tesla’s first 800-volt electrical architecture, catching up to the likes of Hyundai and Porsche and using the extra capability of 350 kW V4 Supercharger stations. In addition, the Cybertruck features the first complete 48-volt low-voltage electrical system in any car, which is great because adding voltage reduces required amperage, which should reduce the amount of wiring in the vehicle. Oh, and in case the standard range of 250 to 340 miles isn’t enough, Tesla will also sell a range-increasing auxiliary battery pack that slides into the bed.
While Cybertruck production will initially be limited, Tesla claims a production ramp time of 12 to 15 months, so expect Cybertruck capacity to really pick up the pace in 2025. Whatever you think of this shiny interpretation of an American workhorse, it’s coming to a road near you relatively soon.
(Photo credits: Tesla, Hagerty, MKBHD, Top Gear)
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For something that looks to have been designed for a post nuclear exchange apocalypse this thing seems rather vulnerable to an EMP.
That brown, diesel manual wagon mentioned earlier OTOH…
Counterpoint: EMP shielding works both ways, and there’s a lot of shielding in all electric cars because the switching power systems make a lot of “noise”. Also, I know several interesting ways I can make electricity if everything goes out. Can you make diesel?
Yes, Quite sustainably from waste or fresh cooking oil and animal fats.
I can also run a diesel engine mostly on methane using a pilot ignition system stretching that homemade diesel even further.
Nice!
So counterpoint to your counterpoint: Will those several interesting ways to make electricity still work after being hit with a massive EMP?
Indeed they will. From rebuilding a generation system to salvaging solar panels and winding your own alternators there’s tons of ways to make power. Every dead car is a resource bonanza, and all of the conversion electronics can be fixed if you know what you’re doing (Or replaced with a relay if you know the trick.) Water will still flow downhill, although sunshine might be an issue. Plenty of batteries will survive as well. I’ve worked on EMP shielded systems; modern electronics are more survivable than you’d think.
I’m assuming that pulse came from a NEMP or HEMP device specifically designed to defeat such hardening. It’s my a limited understanding things with nice long antennas attached (like say a power cable or computer) tend not to do well when hit with an EMP. That said I do wonder if a surge protector might do the trick.
The length/protection of the wire leading into the system is pretty key. There are various techniques to mitigate the incoming pulse that are pretty much fancy surge suppressors — think gas discharge vs MOVs. Optically isolating non power signals is really useful too. This is why power grids are a *really* soft target for this type of attack.
“Optically isolating non power signals is really useful too. This is why power grids are a *really* soft target for this type of attack.”
Interesting you should mention that. My family’s company makes – among other things – monitoring equipment for electrical substation platforms powered via an optical cable from a laser on the ground. It doesn’t get much more isolated than that.
That’s awesome!
The wheel covers seem to limit the ability to lower tire pressure for off roading because the sidewall bulge may pop them off, but I guess most people buying these won’t care.
They come off pretty easily. 2nd video addresses it.
-I’m not a proponent, but it’s here, so let’s see what the damn thing can & can’t do
I am not sure it’s even here, to be frank. What have they built so far, 12 examples?
Point. There aren’t any in private hands yet, but at least a couple have been driven by people who don’t work for EM. So I’m ready to pretend I’m from Missouri: show me. (Sometime in the next year)
The video of a prototype testing in an off-road park was pretty underwhelming, too. Looked more like a particularly bad AWD system than a good simulation of lockers or even a good LSD. But that seems at least partly fixable with software, so delivered versions may do better.
DBW should be illegal without mechanical backup and I thought Nissan used a backup because they had to. I guess not or it’s just Tesla doing WTF it wants without repercussion as usual. It’s f’n stupid that a near 7k lbs turd could lose power and the driver won’t even be able to steer it somewhere. I wouldn’t trust Toyota with that, never mind Tesla. And those ugly f’n wheelcovers! I thought they might be attached with the lugnuts or even some screw on covers that lock them to the lug nuts like GM did, but nope. Tesla had roofs fly off, so my expectations are for these to be high-powered Frisbees.
Toyota still doesn’t have their DBW on sale in America yet because of the regulations…
I dunno if that’s actually regulations or if they’re skittish about the US market after the unintended acceleration shitstorm they had before. They were made an example of, and now they probably don’t want a repeat.
[Hydraulic Brakes] should be illegal without [cable backup] and I thought [Duesenberg] used a [cable handbrake] because they had to. I guess not or it’s just [every manufacturer] doing WTF it wants without repercussion as usual. It’s f’n stupid that a near 7k lbs turd could lose [hydraulic pressure] and the driver won’t even be able to [slow down or stop]. I wouldn’t trust [Duesenberg] with that, never mind [every other carmaker since].
Dual master cylinder braking systems have been mandated in the US since 1968.
Parking brake (also called e-brake as in emergency brake) is the backup of the hydraulic brake system.
I have a family member with a Q50 that has the steer-by-wire system in it. As noted, the steering is bizarre, and it doesn’t inspire confidence. I’m sure given enough time and iterations steer-by-wire can be ironed out to feel seamless, but it seems like a fix in search of a problem.
“The Cybertruck uses steer-by-wire with no steering column in place as a physical backup.”
::Recoils in horror::
Two things I have long decided I will not accept in any vehicle I purchase is brake or steer by wire with no physical backup, with steer by wire arguably the worse of the two. No, no thank you, no no no. And now I’m upset that I have no choice but to share the road with some of these rolling manslaughter-in-potentia machines without my consent.
I’m no Luddite but brake and steer by wire are disallowed in my vicinity
People used to say the same thing about power windows and locks. When you get old enough, you see this happens with all new engineering ideas that become mainstream.
Ah yes, because power locks surely are of equal importance to steering and braking while driving.
Change is inevitable. There’s not much point in shouting at the clouds. Mechanical brake and steering failures are pretty common, aren’t they?
A failed power window is only an inconvenience. Locks failing closed could be a safety issue, but they tend to have a directly-actuated mechanical backup. Kinda like how cars with steer-by-wire usually have a mechanical backup.
Wow, there is absolutely nothing I like about this thing. Though I suppose that kind of consistency is admirable…
I like the rust resistance, I like the fact that it’s electric, I like the voltage choices.
There are probably a few other little details, but none of them matter.
I won’t consider a Tesla anymore. Musk has proven (many times over) that he doesn’t deserve or appreciate my business. My deposit was refunded long ago.
Excited about the bidirectional charging / that tesla’s will sync up with homes with powerwalls. No fan of musk, but when installing solar a while back – powerwalls were the best option for battery backups. If I can buy a used model 3 down the road that is capable of syncing up with my home system…adding another 50kwh+ to the system…I’ll bite the bullet and drive one.
Ford does that too.
And you can get one today.
Yeah I know, I just have all the powerwall stuff installed already. This is all projecting down the road a ways anyway.
I’ve been wondering about the crash test results. If they’re delivering these to customers, surely they’ve been tested, haven’t they? But I haven’t seen any reference to them.
Also, those wheel covers make it look cheap.
I do wonder if the units in this initial round are title-able vehicles. I wouldn’t put it past Musk to push some Cybertrucks out as ATVs or something like that to clear his stated delivery deadline and keep investors happy.
I prefer to think all the dunking on the F150 was a diversion from the fact the first batch are just F150s with a Tesla body bolted on.
There’s crash test footage but I don’t think there’s any data. Whatever’s happening to the rear wheel is mildly concerning.
https://youtu.be/2Zg34aSkuuY?si=9vPqVdAS5OOZIqOB
Yeah, is the rear steering rack turning or collapsing?
We’d need to see the other side to be sure. My money is on turning, but we really don’t have enough data.
“If you get into an argument with another car you will win”
Uh – Cars don’t argue.
And he’s basing his “It won’t roll over” on a 16mph rollover test?
Golly – if only life were still that slow…
Yeah I don’t care about “winning” in an accident. “Being alive and not in chronic pain for the rest of my life” is my ideal scenario.
All the crap people are giving them for steer by wire seems crazy. While I admit I’m a bit skeptical of it, I’m not ready to trash it without giving it a chance.
Throttle by wire has been reliable for a couple decades now. Airliners (certainly better maintenance there) have had it for decades as well. If implemented properly, it seems totally reasonable that it will be just as reliable as a mechanical linkage given it’s designed properly.
Airliners are generally triple-redundant on systems and I’m pretty sure most fly-by-wire planes have FIVE power sources for the flight controls.
The difference is that if you lose throttle, eventually you just stop. If you lose steering or brakes, you’re fckd.
Motorcycles have been throttle by wire for a long time as well. Sudden unexpected loss of throttle there can be a clusterfuck; it makes the bike want to lean more.
To act like steering is the only situation where loss of input signals could be catastrophic is silly.
Most manufacturing equipment around the world relies on electronic signals for emergency stops. These things are designed to de-energize the machine in the event of an emergency (or stop it in the safest position that exists) and these have existed for literally five decades at least.
The steering here as redundancies and at first glance appears well engineered. I’m not ready to call it dangerous yet.
I’m not advocating for throttle by wire, I’m advocating against brake and steer by wire 🙂
I’m saying the consequences of failure of throttle by wire are similar to the hoopla you are trying to lay at the feet of steering and braking by wire.
It’s because now when Autopilot steers you into a wall you will have no way to correct it yourself.
That assumes it is programed to ignore user inputs, which I’d guess couldn’t be further from the truth. I’d bet dollars to donuts that any user input on the steering wheel overrides Autopilot.
Of course there’s the risk that processing that fails in some way, but that’s what proper design should take into account to properly mitigate those risks. Did they do that? No freakin’ idea.
“The sail panel which goes from the C-pillar back out to the rear, it adds like 25 percent of the torsional stiffness of the vehicle.”
Sad. Aitekx was able to design a truck that doesn’t rely on sail panels for structural rigidity.
How is it that sail panels on the unibody pickup Cybertruck are fine, but on a first-gen Honda Ridgeline, they’re some kind of sin?
For me, it’s the opposite. The ridgeline was fine because it was always more of a car-like truck and they didn’t get in the way as much as this
I actually LIKE the first-gen Ridgeline and if it didn’t get 16-17MPG around town, I’d probably own one (I don’t live in the rust belt, so I’m not worried about that). It’s just that the sail panels were derided so much on that first Ridgeline, yet somehow no one seems to hold it against the Cybertruck.
I suppose the fact that most buyers won’t be using it for a whole bunch of actual truck stuff helps. 😉
They’re hideous on the OG Ridgeline, which looks fairly good otherwise. They’re OK on the cybertruck because the whole truck is already ugly.
I’m sorry, having a steering system that is not physically connected to the actual steering wheel should be illegal. I don’t care how many software redundancies and fail safes you have, that’s a stupid idea, especially in a 7,000lb ‘truck’ that’s going to be piloted at highway speeds.
Yah, that makes me nervous too. It’s just lines of code between the driver and oncoming traffic.
And it’s occasionally homicidal Tesla code.
How do you feel about throttle-by-wire?
In all honesty I don’t like it but at least with that you’re still in physical, manual control of the steering and brakes.
then what about brake-by-wire?
Nope, steering and brakes can have electronic assistance but should absolutely have a mechanical backup.
You could mitigate a throttle problem with brakes and steering, it’s far harder to mitigate a steering or brake problem using your throttle.
Then you’re still in control of the transmission and can downshift to slow….. Don’t say what about shift by wire ????????????
Damn this is starting to feel like an interrogation! I really don’t care what control methods people use, it’s not like my opinion has any actual merit or importance.
I just, personally, feel any major system that may be used in an emergency situation should be as simple and reliable as possible with a mechanical connection in place.
I’m just messing with you, strangely I noticed my laughing emojis turned into a bunch of question marks so it looks like I’m hammering on the questions lol
You are right Cool Dave, it’s a problem, If the battery dies or shorts or any number of stupid electrical gremlins but you need to steer the car to the side too bad.
Even when parked and broken down what if you need to angle the steering to be towed, tough luck.
Having no inclination to buy a truck but a compulsion to have an opinion on everything, it sounds like we’ll have to wait a bit to get reviews from anyone other than the select circle of acolytes. None of the info coming out is too surprising for a tesla (including the weird steering that people insist you get used to).
[searches youtube for “shooting things with tommy gun”]
Welcome Tesla KET. We wish we hardly knew ya.
Well, the video kinda answers my question from yesterday about rear seat headroom.
Jason briefly sits in the back seat, and his head didn’t hit the roof, or so it appears.
So maybe actual adults CAN sit back there.
Jason is 4 feet tall so wft
Jason Camissa.
I’d guess the 3.5-ton-plus weight is for the base, single-motor, mall-battery version. Perhaps when the tires are inflated with some lighter-than-air gas.
I know it’s electric, and it’s a Tesla, so is reinventing the wheel and all that, but it looks slightly less practical than the late, unlamented Lincoln Blackwood as a truck, and worse as an actual design.
The Early Adopters will go crazy for it. Expect to see them on BaT soon, at wildly inflated prices.
I think there’s only one battery size (so far?). Apparently, it looks better in person, so I’ll count the looks as PT-Cruiser territory: strong opinions dominate.
I’d love it with a toothy smile decal on the front, like you had on old WW2 aircraft.
I think the size vs weight is hard to tell. It probably doesn’t have a regular truck frame inside, nor the door crash beams, and together that’s a lot of weight.
According to their website that number is for the high trim levels.
I already canceled my reservation yesterday but if I hadn’t the Steer By Wire system would have gotten me to cancel it today.
The fact that it’s so rigid it doesn’t need door bars isn’t a good thing. You want the doors to be squishy because that gives the door time to deform and take the force of the impact while the airbag inflates before the object actually hits the rigid door bar that prevents intrusion. A good example being Kurt Busch who suffered a severe concussion despite all the safety systems in a highly advance race car just because the chassis was too rigid.
That’s true of forward and rear crumple zones…..but the side protection? Are you sure? Doesn’t sound right to me.
That said, I know these went through crash testing, but the absence of side impact protection bars, something pretty standard for some time, makes me a bit uncomfortable.
If I remember my IIHS and Mercedes-Benz explanations correctly, the design of a modern car door has several cells. The outermost layer protects from basic low speed collisions, the middle cell provides a cushion and more space should the outermost cell completely crumple, and the inner cell provides the bracing that keeps the door from from inverting by using the window frame as additional material. In between the middle cell and the inner cell is the door bar that uses the cabin to redirect energy. If the front of the car is the Y+ direction and the rear is the Y-, that means that the roof is Z+ and the ground Z-, and the driver’s side is X- and the passenger side X+ in terms of 3D space. The door bar on the driver’s side during an impact to that side would deform slightly into the X+ direction, meaning it would cave in towards the passenger side, but it would transfer the load in the Y- and Y+ directions, where the door hinge and the lock latch are attached to the firewall/Apillar and B-pillar. It’s one reason why the RX-8 was too expensive to re-engineer for a new generation, and why truck makers are abandoning reverse opening doors on extended cabs.
Gracias….so I’m reading that as we both are right….
For a non-scientific explanation: We need some things that are squishy, and some things that are not squishy.
We need a squishy
And also a non squishy
Thus science man spake
Yes, and NASCAR’s “fixes” to improve safety — which appear to have been successful — have focused on weakening key structural components for faster deformation and/or separation.
I know Nascar is “stock car” racing, but don’t think everything they do applies to road going…..
My understanding is front and rear crumple. Side and top deflect and redirect energy. Or I may just be too focused on the avoiding cabin incursion part.
“I know Nascar is “stock car” racing, but don’t think everything they do applies to road going…..”
Physics is physics.
Physics are in fact physics, but my car doesn’t have a full roll cage, multipoint harness, roof escape hatches. Meaning, the solutions they use in Nascar aren’t direct analogs to real cars in all cases.
I just want the occupants safe. I don’t care about the mechanism. If the crash tests pass, that’s pretty good.
Info on this has been so sketchy I don’t know what to think of it. Elon first proclaimed 3mm thick high strength aerospec. SS exoskeleton. B.S. you can’t have exoskeleton and crumple zones. you can’t neglect crumple zones without risking scrambled occupants. Here they say 25% torsional stiffness increase from sail panel design. Looking at the close up of the door panel gap, it doesn’t appear to be 3mm thick there.
It’s a Death Mobile with 45 degree beveled daggers to multiply stiffness front and rear, and they neglected the wedding cake disguise. Would not be surprised if it slices through side intrusion reinforcements in a T-bone accident.
“Think about it, you’re smart, and I’m right” Charlie Munger
He had some beauts.
What I hear is that the skin is 15 gauge or 1.8mm
So about 3X standard. That will not deform easily.
Also, how heavy will the range extender battery pack be? Will it require a crane or forktruck to install?
More importantly….how will that be secured so it doesn’t become a flaming lithium wrecking ball in a wreck?
Or go through the rear into the back seat passengers
Maybe Tesla will sell aftermarket headache racks….
Estimated ~500 lbs: https://jalopnik.com/tesla-cybertrucks-removable-range-extending-battery-pac-1851063758 It probably won’t be as heavy pound-per-kW as the regular vehicle’s battery pack, as I think those are usually structural. This is more of a battery box.
So I think a regular engine crane should get it in/out. Donno about mounting – but that’s the same problem you’d have for anything you want in the bed.
Gawd, what an ugly vehicle! A truck for wanna-bes and losers. This will be like the Cadillac Lyriq as seen on road, a total nothingburger.
Trucks are cultural statements. Not many folks actually use their trucks for trucking, leaving everyone else with a giant vehicle with a useless flat appendage for its second half.
Between pickups with shoulder-height hoods and BMWs with kidneys that can fit children inside, I’ve stopped assuming that appearance or sense affects sales much.
It’s still (subjectively) hideously ugly, and I still hate Tesla’s interior ergonomics. I am, however, reluctantly impressed that it’s lighter than the Rivian and the Lightning. What I REALLY want to know is how the insurance companies are going to write policies for this. Just how ungodly expensive are those premiums going to be? They’re already eye-watering for the 3 and the Y, how bad are they going to be for this thing?
I will disagree: it is objectively ugly. My guess is that insurance will be in the BMW M range with about a 7500 deductible. Finally, the idea of relying on computer code to get me through a hairpin turn on say Highway 1 is a non starter. Fluck, I am in the throes of trying to find out why my NEST thermostat won’t talk to my furnace. Did they break up? Was it about money or sex? I don’t care, 64 in AM when it is 18 outside is not ok
I was trying to be at least a little generous about its level of hideousness. I completely agree with you on the steering thing, though. What happens when a disgruntled Tesla engineer leaks a code backdoor and suddenly Russian script kiddies are holding your steering for ransom while you drive down the 610?
Or a disgruntled Jeep engineer? Outside of movies, software dependency in cars has been a nothingburger for decades.
Only in previous decades, cars weren’t constantly connected to the Internet and having the core software updated over the air. The vulnerability is only increasing as time and technology progresses.
The steering thing is definitely concerning, especially coming from Tesla, “full-self driving” software and all. If this was from Toyota I’d still be concerned, but I’d be much more inclined to trust it.
Good luck with the nest. Mine gave me so much trouble I ended up going back to a “dumb” thermostat and gave the nest away. It was so not worth the hassle.
I don’t get smart thermostats at all. The thermostat is the most boring and basic device in my house. It sure as hell doesn’t need to be online. I have Honeywells with basic programmability and they just work.
Wow first I’ve heard. My Nest thermostat has been great and easy to use. I also have a fairly new (2016) furnace, not sure if that has any bearing.
Having a newer system is the key. Mine’s from the 90s.
It was just especially frustrating because if you go by their website my system was compatible, but after a few months it just kept dying. It felt really stupid having to charge my thermostat to get heat. Replaced it with a regular programmable one (though one that has wifi, which is 90% of what I wanted the nest for anyway) and it’s been flawless. If it ever dies just a quick swap of the AA batteries and I’m good to go. Bonus is after subsidies from my electric company the new one only cost $1.
Mine is like 5 years old. So it is t the furnace.
I am close to that myself. A mechanical one with a high and a low. My issue is I can’t break my Nest habit cause we have a nest cam 40’ up in our backyard willow tree trained on our Great Horned Owls nest. There is nothing better than watching them slaughter rabbits
I’m in HVAC. Pull the front panel on your air handler and make sure there isn’t a janky splice in the wires. I have seen many nice new systems still using old wires which were run a decade or more ago and causing headaches.
A Honeywell 8000 isn’t as fancy, but they work well in my experience.
Who would I talk to to get dust out my ducts?
That’s a tough one. Many-if not most-of the services are almost scams because ductwork in houses has so many turns that it’s not really feasible to get more than a few feet at either end actually clean. Completely dependent on your particular house: if it’s older and has the really narrow stuff, just forget it.
Plus, in most houses the final few feet to supply grills is run in flexible tubes called flex duct. That you pretty much have to replace. Instead, concentrate on secondary filtration and keeping the humidity up which helps the dust particles settle
TL;DR: Rule number one about HVAC ducts is “don’t mess with the dust that has already settled”.
Call that 1 a)
Rule 1 is Change Your Filters. Change them often—and don’t skimp. Use pleated filters: that poly crap lets LOTS of dust through to clog up your coils killing efficiency.
If you have pets, consider installing a poly pre-filter to catch the hair. Ideally, you have a pleated filter at the air handler and poly filter at your intake(s)*. Seriously: this is probably the single cheapest change an average homeowner can make to improve efficiency and extend longevity. But! Filters impede air flow, so you must change them regularly
*note that it’s all about how much air you can flow. Not all systems are properly designed or installed. If you feel you don’t have much air flow now, you shouldn’t just add another filter. This is especially true for old houses which originally had fuel oil furnaces because the duct is sized for much hotter air than a heat pump can provide. Already too long, but I have to add: choose your HVAC provider carefully: many of the big, shiny residential ones are really focused on selling you new stuff rather than working with you on what you have.
Your psychometrics may vary 😉
Now yer speaking my language! Also consider checking duct dampers if any one room has seemingly insufficient airflow – previous occupants of the house may have adjusted them for their own usage patterns. My girlfriend’s room was frigid until we realized that the supply duct was simply closed.
Great point!
-few months back found that the supply duct for a grill in an south-facing office had actually been blocked off. And the thermostat was in there: rest of the office people were freezing because the manager in there had no cooling at all.
Thanks!
Harvey,
if your concern over dust is health related, go buy 4) 24x24x2 HEPA pleated air filters. Tape them together to create four walls of a cube and set it on the floor, then lay a cheap box fan over the open top so the fan blows air upwards. Simple & cheap secondary air filtration that will filter a room’s air multiple times per hour.
Don’t bother using ionic air purifiers as at best they aren’t particularly effective and at worst can produce ozone which can cause respiratory problems. Not saying they’re the Devil, but do a simple search. Or maybe you remember that Sharper Image went bankrupt after lawsuits over their Ionic Breeze purifiers.
ok, I’ll stash my soapbox away now
Thanks again, this place rules.
But can it function as a boat? I mean Elon made that claim, so where’s the proof?
He said it could function as a boat “for a short period of time”, which I assume just means “for however long it takes to completely finish sinking”, which is basically also true for all other vehicles
“The Tesla boss tweeted that the long-awaited Cybertruck needs to travel from “Starbase to South Padre Island, which requires crossing the channel”. Starbase is the home of SpaceX in Texas. As such, Musk reckons the new truck will have the ability to cross rivers, lakes, and “even seas that aren’t too choppy.”
I think that falls under the same category as accusing a stranger of pedophilia because he criticized an unviable idea – you can’t hold Musk responsible for what he Tweeted, because he didn’t mean it and we’re all supposed to be able to tell that somehow
The pedoguy did just say the earth will judge what happens, so let’s see earth vs cybertruck
Until I see him recreate this commercial, I’m not convinced. https://youtu.be/xz7qxQcRYl4?feature=shared
Does it have directional control and enough motive power when floating to not be swept away in currents? Long ago in a small 4×4 vehicle I tried to cross a river at a shallow spot and ended up side tracked about half a mile by the current. It was scary as hell and took it as a sign, I ran without the plugs in the floor from then on. Better to sink, wet feet preferred.
It can travel between them using the bridge like all other cars. Checkmate?
By that creative definition, I too can function as a boat. For a finite amount of time. 😉
Anything is a boat for a short period of time.
No physical steering column? Call me a luddite if you like but no thank you.
OTA update renders steering inoperable. Elon promises update soon for subscribers to the blue verification check mark on X.
Owners that buy them used will have to pay a monthly subscription fee for the software that makes the steering work!
Flown in an Airbus sometime in the last 20 years? All controls are by wire. It’s probably super good enough.
Right, so how often are airplane controls checked and audited for functionality before use vs someone going on a Starbucks run?
I’m betting these are hall-effect sensors—discrete electronics with no moving parts. I think they’ll live a comfortable, low-stress life inside the cabin. You can also afford to put a bunch of them in for redundancy.
I don’t care how little moving parts they have. The rack is powered too. Too many failure points on this and it should not be allowed. How often do computers crash? How often do we see software problems in phones? This is such an idiotic and arrogant design.
And what are the legally mandated safety inspection and certification intervals for the Cybertruck?
I don’t drive anything and don’t want to drive anything large enough to require power steering. I also don’t fly anything large enough to require hydraulic and or Fly By Wire controls.
An Airbus has strict inspections and an incredible amount of redundancy. In a twin engine plane with RAT, that is FIVE individual power sources for the control electronics. (4 for hydraulics)
How well did the computer controls work on the Boeing 737 Max?