Tesla’s steel beast is drawing closer and closer to production. Not long after an image of a Cybertruck body prototype was leaked from Gigafactory Texas, videos from the site now suggest that the all-electric pickup truck’s 9,000-ton Giga Press is being delivered to the facility. It does seem like Tesla is indeed on track to start the Cybertruck’s production next year.
When teardown veteran Sandy Munro, who has conducted thorough analyses of several Teslas, shared his first impressions of the leaked Cybertruck body photo from Giga Texas, his initial feedback was that the apparent rear megacast in the body was actually comprised of several parts that were lost-foam casted. This meant that the leaked image actually showed a prototype rear megacast for the Cybertruck.
Munro explained that the actual megacasts of the Cybertruck would require the presence of IDRA’s flagship 9,000-ton Giga Press, which has been ordered by Tesla for the all-electric pickup truck. So far, drone flyovers of the Giga Texas complex have yet to indicate that the 9,000-ton press has been fully constructed in the facility. That being said, images recently taken around Giga Texas suggest that parts of the gigantic machine are already arriving onsite.
Drone operator and Giga Texas watcher Joe Tegtmeyer recently shared a video of his recent aerial flyover of the massive facility. While Tegtmeyer’s footage provided a number of interesting insights as to the different construction projects currently being conducted in the Giga Texas complex, what is arguably the most interesting part of his recent flyover were the parts of IDRA’s 9,000-ton Giga Press.
As noted by the drone operator, the 9,000-ton Giga Press components were spotted in the northwest bay of the casting machine structure. Among the components were two large, red compression plates, as well as a long box with an IDRA logo that’s believed to hold some of the 9,000-ton Giga Press’ tie bars. Considering the size and design of the massive contraption, it would not be surprising if more components of IDRA’s flagship Giga Press were spotted in Giga Texas in the coming weeks.
Despite skepticism from some who believe the Cybertruck may never be released, updates from Giga Texas and increasing images of the electric pickup truck at Tesla facilities indicate the vehicle is approaching production at a steady pace. Tesla confirmed this as much during the Q3 2022 earnings call when the company stated that Giga Texas is set to begin early Cybertruck production in mid-2023.
Watch a recent flyover of Giga Texas in the video below.
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