Musk wants Cybertruck to be made with Lego-like precision
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Elon Musk allegedly asked Tesla employees to ensure that Cybertruck production achieves single-digit micron” tolerance, much like Lego or even soda cans are made with. This instruction was sent to employees in an email, which was later leaked, Electrek reported.
The Cybertruck is Tesla's most awaited electric vehicle, running several years behind schedule and expected to begin deliveries by the end of this quarter. The vehicle's iconic shape piqued many potential buyers' interest when unveiled in 2019.
More than two million people signed up for the car to enter production by 2021. Whether the timeline was yet another ambitious but impossible deadline set up by Musk or the vehicle faced multiple issues before hitting the production line, we do not know. But the good news for Tesla fans is that the Giga factory in Texas has indeed rolled out the first vehicle, and many more are expected to follow soon.
Musk demands high-quality standards.
Earlier this week, the Tesla CEO took time out to visit the Giga Texas facility and take the Cybertruck for a spin.
Just drove the production candidate Cybertruck at Tesla Giga Texas! pic.twitter.com/S0kCyGUBFD
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 23, 2023
He likely surveyed the production floor and oversaw the quality of cars produced at the facility as the company prepared to enter production mode officially.
Following the visit, Musk allegedly shot off an email to employees, which was later leaked. In the email, Musk stated that the Cybertruck was made of metal and mostly had straight edges before saying that dimensional variations would stick out like a sore thumb.
Therefore, he asked Tesla employees to ensure that all vehicle parts needed to be built with sub-10 micron accuracy, which even applied to suppliers.
Musk further added in the email, "all part dimensions need to be to the third decimal place in millimeters and tolerances need be specified in single digit microns" and went on to compare the production of the vehicle to that of popular Lego blocks, which are known for their precision.
The Tesla CEO has noted that this was not very difficult or expensive to achieve since even soda cans, which are made cheap, accomplish this regularly.
Not the first time
Musk's email to employees of his highly valued company comes as a reminder of complaints about the finishing of early models of Tesla cars. Back in 2018, Musk had sent a similar email after the Model 3 was launched. In that email, Musk claimed that design tolerances on the vehicle were already better than other cars in the market, but the company needed to keep on going till they were ten times better.
Back then, too, Musk pointed out that suppliers might not be willing to conform to such requests, and the company should stop working with them.
While Tesla cars have indeed gotten better over the years, they are nowhere as close to the high claims Musk makes, Electrek said in its report.
Users also pointed out that the exacting limits that Musk demanded with the Cybertruck could easily be overshot with minor changes in ambient temperature. It is likely that Tesla engineers also know this exceptionally well. So, the major question is how employees respond to such emails. That is the email we want to see leaked out.
For Cybertruck hopefuls, the deliveries are still on track, but we wouldn't ask you to get excited yet. There is a long queue ahead.
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