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"All 173 of the RWD Cybertrucks sold by Tesla are being recalled" 173...
by tusimi 5mo ago
"All 173 of the RWD Cybertrucks sold by Tesla are being recalled"
173...
- vablings 5mo agoThe RWD model was only for sale briefly after launch. I don't know why you would ever want a pure RWD electric truck
- wat10000 5mo agoI probably wouldn't buy a truck, but it's at least a possibility that I'd get one for hauling materials and towing around town. If I did, I'd prefer a RWD model just to save a little money. I find the modern obsession with AWD a bit baffling. AWD doesn't help you stop in bad weather, so it feels like an illusory advantage there. RWD can be "interesting" compared to FWD, but modern traction control on an electric drivetrain should make it a non-issue. (In practice, I can abuse the accelerator on my non-truck RWD Teslas pretty badly without any issues with losing traction.)
- creaturemachine 5mo agoYou get better regenerative braking performance out of FWD or AWD. Since typically the front brakes do most of the work, it makes sense to have that energy go into the motor rather than friction braking.
- kgermino 5mo agoThat's true, but if you stay in the regenerative zone it doesn't (seem to) make that much of a difference in practice. All the braking power happens in the rear if you only brake the rear wheels
- wat10000 5mo agoTraction is very rarely the limiting factor with regenerative braking even when it's only on the rear wheels.
- sunshinesnacks 5mo ago> AWD doesn't help you stop in bad weather I frequently think about this when weather gets bad! I already have AWB (all wheel braking?). Seems like AWD could make it too easy to get in a situation where my AWB isn’t sufficient to stop
- saalweachter 5mo agoSnow tires, people! Snow tires! A FWD vehicle with snow tires is frequently better in the snow than an AWD without snow tires. Better control, better stopping, better uphill on snowy roads.
- mingus88 5mo agoYep All cars are “all wheel stop” All wheel drive doesn’t matter when you lose traction and need to stop. When you are sliding on ice all cars perform the same, and the quality of your tires is what matters. AWD just gives people false confidence to drive faster than they can stop. I convinced my wife to stop buying the absolute cheapest tires by telling her it is literally the only part of the car that actually touches the road. Why would you cheap out on that?
- cucumber3732842 5mo ago>A FWD vehicle with snow tires is frequently better in the snow than an AWD without snow tires. Better control, better stopping, better uphill on snowy roads. Control and stopping of course, but I'd love to see the justification behind "better uphill" Napkin math says that doubling the contact patch over which the motive force applies still wins because snow tires aren't going to double your friction coefficient. And this is before you consider unloading of the front suspension on a hill (though for most grades it's still probably got more weight than the rear of RWD). Furthermore, this seems to be corroborated by reality. People in snowy climates tend to go AWD rather than snow tires and snow tire makers typically advertise by comparing stopping/handling rather than acceleration.
- saalweachter 5mo ago
- dec0dedab0de 5mo agoI've never driven an AWD, but having a 4x4 in a snow storm is wonderful. Waking up and driving through the pile of snow from the plow to go to wawa before I even think about shoveling is an absolute luxury. Plus, driving on the beach is pretty fun too.
- cheschire 5mo agoWhen was the last time you drove on an unplowed road with only rear wheel drive? Unpowered wheels become uni-directional skis, regardless of their ability to turn left and right.
- wat10000 5mo agoA few months ago when it snowed last time. I used to occasionally drive a V8 with no traction control in Wisconsin winters. It was fine, just took a little care. A modern electric drivetrain is about a million times better. Unpowered wheels still steer just fine. AWD certainly does better. But I'd rather be cautious and take it slow anyway.
- AngryData 5mo agoBasically never? And I live in a deep rural area 30 minutes from the northern border. Where do you live that you drive through unplowed roads? The only time ive ever wanted AWD or 4WD is once or twice knowingly risking getting stuck by pulling off of people's driveway onto their lawn.
- toast0 5mo agoHalf of my vehicles are RWD only, and my roads are very rarely plowed. No big deal most of the year... Of course, when it snows, it's diffferent, but local geography means if it's snowing enough to matter and the plows haven't gotten around, it's not worth it to be driving, regardless of drive configuration. If driving throw unplowed roads with snow and ice is a regular thing for you, sure. But lots of people never drive in those conditions, so AWD adds weight and complexity that's unnecessary. But people like to be prepared for everything.
- deleted 5mo ago[deleted]
- alexjplant 5mo agoWith the weight of the batteries in back it might be fine. The issue with RWD trucks with traditional drivetrains is the lack of traction owing to all of the weight being over the non-drive wheels. Driving my F-150 in the snow or rain was always dicey because of this. That being said I wouldn't touch a Tesla with a barge pole for reasons numerous.
- bluGill 5mo ago2wd is just fine if you keep a load of firewood in back all winter.
- cogman10 5mo agoBatteries and the engine. The engine sits in line with the wheels rather than being under the hood of the car. That puts all the weight right next to the driving tires. But agree, cybertruck is a really silly purchase for numerous reasons. The only reason you'd buy it is to signal your support for Elon. It's a very bad vehicle.
- neogodless 5mo agoWait until you find out how many gas and diesel powered trucks are RWD! At least in the U.S. below a certain ~longitude~ latitude it's quite common.
- discors 5mo ago> neogodless: <snip> At least in the U.S. below a certain longitude is quite common. Latitude.
- neogodless 5mo agoI KNEW I was going to get that wrong.
- bobthepanda 5mo agoThe mnemonic i use is latitude is flat.
- triceratops 5mo agoLatitude is the only one that matters between the two.
- rkomorn 5mo agoI was going to ask if you were making a joke or just too tired to spell mnemonic correctly, but they would've been pneumatic, not pneumonic. Edit: oh, boo, you fixed it.
- bobthepanda 5mo agoHadn’t had the morning coffee yet.
- neogodless 5mo agoI usually say to myself "ladder" and that helps. But this time I slipped. Rough morning. Wheels fell off on the way to work.
- kgermino 5mo agoI don't see why it would be an issue in most cases. Obviously you'd want AWD for proper off-roading, but for just driving around on streets it should be fine. My EV van is RWD and it's totally fine in everything I've dealt with - including deep snow - and I really only even noticed when trying to parallel park on ice.
- vablings 5mo agoThe biggest difference in AWD vs RWD cars to the average consumer is usually gas milage. In the case of electric cars this is largely unaffected because there is no active driveline components just an electric motor
- rpdillon 5mo agoThis has been a question the Slate team has been trying to answer. They claim the weight distribution being more even front-to-back (batteries offsetting motor, I presume), but I don't know whether I believe them. I was interested in a Slate, but the changes at the company lately (new CEO from McKinsey, rather than an engineer), along with decisions like RWD, and the anemic acceleration (0-60 in 8 seconds) gives me pause.
- mingus88 5mo agoI don’t know how the slate is designed but I have a rivian The battery pack is by far heavier than the motors. In the r1 they are also positioned with the wheels (quad) or front/back (dual) so weight distribution is great. If the slate has a single motor and is RWD then I would assume the weight might be biased toward the rear where the drive unit is powering the rear wheels. Either way the motor is relatively small compared to ICE trucks and that’s where you want the weight anyway for a RWD vehicle. Am I mistaken?
- rpdillon 5mo agoI know little about this, so I suspect you're right. I've mostly been looking for the car version of a "dumb phone", and Slate looked like a nice fit, but it's thrown me into the world of EVs and I'm still pretty new to it. That said, your explanation makes sense. Slate engineers claimed it would handle well, but it was vague enough that I'd want more detail before I believe them.
- wesleyd 5mo agoOh man, I love that we live in a world where an eight second 0-60 is considered anemic! For a truck! (Not digging at you, I feel the same way you do. I just think it’s weird and amazing!)
- rpdillon 5mo agoMy old car is a Honda Civic hybrid from 2008. Your comment sent me checking out the current Civic (ICE) performance, and it's also eight seconds! So I see your point, I guess my expectations have changed since EVs came on the scene.
- mohamedkoubaa 5mo agoCollectors item
- gangstead 5mo agoI didn't even realize there was a RWD model. The website shows 3 options for sale and they are all AWD.