Tesla, TSLA & the Investment World: the Perpetual Investors' Roundtable

[Electroman]

Source: I’m a mechanical engineer and pilot and therefore have taken several fluid dynamics and aero classes, but do not claim to be an aero expert:

Sharp angles cause separation of the airflow at the angle, which indices turbulence and increases induced drag.

Stainless is less smooth than a painted surface, so there are some losses there due to body material choice.

The inability to do a lot of curvature on the body prevents you from following the airflow, which again induces separation at the surface, turbulence, and induced drag.

Cyber is longer, which increases Cd.

All the angular wheel arches, etc are less ideal than a gradually curved surface.

Cybertruck still has a vertical (but slightly curved) front fascia.

Wiper is not concealed out of the airflow. It’s probably better to have the wiper there than not, given the flat panels, to help guide airflow around the edge of the windshield, but not as good as a concealed wiper with more complex body panels that can guide airflow better.

Frontal area is NOT part of the Cd equation, but is a factor in total drag *force*.

The tonneau cover has to be a big contributor to the good numbers as it prevents air over the roof from backfilling into eddies in the low pressure truck bed area. But the tonneau cover is still ribbed, so will induce some turbulent airflow over it.

Frankly, it’s great that the CT’s drag coefficient is as close to the Rivian’s as it is.

Thank you for that detailed reply.

Never imagined stainless steel to be less smooth. I always thought they are naturally smoother than most surfaces except maybe glass.

The fact that tonneau cover is critical to get that CD means, if you are hauling stuff with objects that are tall enough that you cannot close the cover, that will show up in the reduced range. And most folks that actually haul stuff for a living have very little reason to close it and open it everytime.

 

[Artful Dodger]

Saw a few today at Costco that would occupy a small part of the bed, can easily be lifted by a single person, and run $600-$800.

That, and 6 gal of gas (and likely 48 hrs) for that genset to put out 50 KWh of energy. Do you really want to listen to / breath a genset for the whole weekend?

And $25 for gas and oil. Better to just wait until Dual Motor prices come down in a year or so. The whole point of this is to not buy any more gas... why not a portable solar array? How much power do you need?

There are some pretty amazing little carry-on suitcase sized gasoline generators out there nowadays that are quite efficient.

Yeah, and those small gensets produce about 1 KW continuous. It's not in the same league as the range extender pack.

 

[Electroman]

- Quiet as a concert hall.

MKBHD says the exact opposite. Road noise is worse than other Tesla cars, and that is very unflattering given that Teslas are not known for their smooth quiet rides like the Germans.

 

[Usain]

For someone who runs an EV news channel and has for years I still find it odd she has bought 2 Chevy Bolts and a Ford Lightning.

It's clear she doesn't understand the tech and just follows the wrong news sources.

I'm pretty sure her co-host has a Tesla.

 

[MP3Mike]

I'm pretty sure her co-host has a Tesla.

Nope.

 

[Electroman]

Cybertruck doesn't have a solid rear axle to break. The rear links or tie rods are yielding (likely designed to).

In terms of energy dissipation, it's better to have the wheels splay and drag rather than passing all their momentum and rotary interia into the chassis where it needs to be dissipated by the crumple zone.

+1. I thought every part that crumbles or breaks off , except the cabin interior is actually a very good thing on a crash.

So why is the axle breaking any concern here? It is not that the repair bill is going to get any higher

 

[dhanson865]

MKBHD says the exact opposite. Road noise is worse than other Tesla cars, and that is very unflattering given that Teslas are not known for their smooth quiet rides like the Germans.

MKBHD was driving a Beast trim pre-production vehicle vs most people looking at the AWD dual motor trim that is actual consumer production, his comments on sound aren't apples to apples comparable to others.

 

[Electroman]

Outrageous suggestion: If you are only looking for a sleeper, why bother with camping gear? Just put a couple of blankets on the truck bed and close the tonnaue cover. May be keep it cracked a bit for ventilation. Or fold the back seats and crack the driver windows open. You can even have a small candle that will heat up the space very nicely even in subzero temps.

great idea? stupid idea?

 

[Usain]

Nope.

Yep. I was thinking of Winter Tashlin's car. But I'm not sure if Winter is working with Transport Evolved these days.

 

[dhanson865]

Nope.

I see you disagree with me, but I've watched quite a few of her videos (especially so during the Bolt fires period) and stand by my opinion of her technical knowledge.

Either she has little and is reading a script provided to her (by someone with insufficient technical knowledge) or she is writing her own script and the same deficiency exists. It was interesting because she did come through with some correct information but it was often mixed in with other content I found lacking.

You can down vote me if you like but I stand by that assessment.

 

[Todd Burch]

MKBHD says the exact opposite. Road noise is worse than other Tesla cars, and that is very unflattering given that Teslas are not known for their smooth quiet rides like the Germans.

I wouldn’t put any weight into what he said. He didn’t exactly do a scientific test:

1. Driving a pre-production truck,
2. On all-terrain tires,
3. On a road surface he couldn't possibly have compared with other vehicles.

Human ears are not subjectively accurate-enough decibel-meters for him to compare to his memories of his own car, either.

 

[Drumheller]

Outrageous suggestion: If you are only looking for a sleeper, why bother with camping gear? Just put a couple of blankets on the truck bed and close the tonnaue cover. May be keep it cracked a bit for ventilation. Or fold the back seats and crack the driver windows open. You can even have a small candle that will heat up the space very nicely even in subzero temps.

great idea? stupid idea?

That was my plan but then I saw a picture and description from Jessica Kirsh, who says she is 5' 10", and it appears that she cannot fully lie straight in the bed with the tailgate up.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1730673735328272568

I don't know how much lift is on / in her boots but doesn't look like she would fit comfortably even with them off.

6' bed so I guess technically it would work but doesn't look like it for her.

 

[MP3Mike]

For someone who runs an EV news channel and has for years I still find it odd she has bought 2 Chevy Bolts and a Ford Lightning.

Odd why? She needed a truck and the Ford was what was available that met her needs. As far as the Bolts, again it met the needs of her family and was in the correct price range. I don't think there were any other vehicles in the same price range with the same features.

It's clear she doesn't understand the tech and just follows the wrong news sources.

I don't think she lacks a understanding of the tech, but yes they get a lot of details wrong. In a lot of cases it is because they get their content from other sites/sources that got it wrong and they don't fact check it before reusing it. And they really dislike Elon.

 

[SunCatcher]

Yeah, and those small gensets produce about 1 KW continuous. It's not in the same league as the range extender pack.

Hey, sometimes we do what we gotta do to get down the road, or back to where we started. Survival is key to watching the next day's SP you know!

 

[kbeckley]

Since the number of posts has quieted....

The biggest thing I loved about the reveal was the V2H (vehicle to home) or V2V (vehicle to vehicle) capability. Finally! This will allow every Tesla home to be much more resilient.

Not sure how appreciated this V2H or V2G(rid) will be as the capability makes its way into the full lineup. The sheer amount of storage in all these cars will change how our electrical grids work. Any it will only increase. For reference Tesla will deploy ~11GWh of Megapack and powerwall this year. At 1.8million vehicles sold with an average pack size of, say, 75kWh that is ~135GWh of energy storage capacity deployed in cars, or 12x stationary deployment.

One other thought about range anxiety. Once the full lineup is converted to enable V2V then if you run out or low on charge then the car could notify Tesla and Tesla could alert via the display other nearby Teslas going your way and they could assist with a boost if they chose. Tesla could give you SC credits for helping. Cool use case I would think.

 

[Paul_SF]

Since the number of posts has quieted....

The biggest thing I loved about the reveal was the V2H (vehicle to home) or V2V (vehicle to vehicle) capability. Finally! This will allow every Tesla home to be much more resilient.

Not sure how appreciated this V2H or V2G(rid) will be as the capability makes its way into the full lineup. The sheer amount of storage in all these cars will change how our electrical grids work. Any it will only increase. For reference Tesla will deploy ~11GWh of Megapack and powerwall this year. At 1.8million vehicles sold with an average pack size of, say, 75kWh that is ~135GWh of energy storage capacity deployed in cars, or 12x stationary deployment.

One other thought about range anxiety. Once the full lineup is converted to enable V2V then if you run out or low on charge then the car could notify Tesla and Tesla could alert via the display other nearby Teslas going your way and they could assist with a boost if they chose. Tesla could give you SC credits for helping. Cool use case I would think.

Yeah, maybe someone can do the math and see when Tesla Energy will pass Cars. It seems Energy grows like crazy, more than 150%(?) now compared to 40-50% Cars?

 

[Krugerrand]

Remember I am the dickhead to the fanbois on here. When I say anything, I am being truthful...Fanbois just can't stand the truth. So when I posted the direction that SuperCharger placement is taking, and it is positive, you can believe it.
Tesla has to build ALL(of the good ones) of the gas stations for EV's right now. Ever time another Major automaker swaps over to Tesla I can only imagine the agreement. And how much that move gives Tesla's charging network Team additional reasons and the resources it needs to put up even more chargers.

Did one of your Koi die or something?

 

[Matt Porter]

That was my plan but then I saw a picture and description from Jessica Kirsh, who says she is 5' 10", and it appears that she cannot fully lie straight in the bed with the tailgate up.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1730673735328272568

View attachment 995928

I don't know how much lift is on / in her boots but doesn't look like she would fit comfortably even with them off.

6' bed so I guess technically it would work but doesn't look like it for her.

Is she laying *on* the rolled up tonneau cover? Looks like maybe that takes up some of that 6ft bed when open, which could make loading interesting.

Do we know if it's possibly to completely remove?

 

[Dikkie Dik]

Excellent thread about the advantages of 48V systems and a short history of car electric systems.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1731162725378666760

 

[Cult Member]

Have you seen any of the old fashioned 12V outlets in this Truck? I hope they had the guts to remove them and came up with a modern successor.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1731055836691066922