Tesla Achieves Breakthrough in Single-Piece Car Casting
September 14th, 2023Via: Electrek:
Tesla has achieved a breakthrough in making Hot Wheels-like single-piece car casting a reality, according to a new insider report.
In recent years, Tesla has heavily invested in large casting technology to produce vehicle bodies in just a couple of large parts rather than hundreds.
The automaker now operates several of the world’s largest casting machines, which it often refers to as “Gigapress.”
CEO Elon Musk has often referenced how he has been inspired by Hot Wheels toy cars being made in a single cast piece and hinted that he would like Tesla cars to eventually be made like that.
However, Tesla has already pushed the limits of casting technology to be able to produce the rear and front casting on Model Y and had a new 9,000-ton press made to produce Cybertruck parts.
But now a new report claims that Tesla has achieved “a series of innovations to make a technological breakthrough” to “die cast nearly all the complex underbody of an EV in one piece.”
Mess up a quarter-panel badly enough, replace the entire body…?
Seriously…?
You’ve been thinking again, M., and you know you’re not to supposed to do that. It’s contagious! Don’t say another word, or somebody might decide not to buy the new model… and then someone else, and another someone — you could start a pandemic!
!!! Tesla sales skyrocket due to single-piece car casting technology (and the big three automakers going out of business).
“Mess up a quarter-panel badly enough, replace the entire body…?”
I think it’s worse than that.
The way I understand it (search tesla structural battery pack) is that the body is going to directly incorporate the pack, so mess up a quarter panel badly enough and the pack gets damaged.
If the damage to the body didn’t cause a total loss, the damage to the pack definitely would.
A rolling crematorium with remote data link and externally managed updates…?
What… me worry?