Hail proof ?

[cybrtrk_maybe]

Okay, what about the laser that is going to keep dirt and rain off the windshield; Can that be used to incinerate the hail before it hits the car?

 

[John K]

Okay, what about the laser that is going to keep dirt and rain off the windshield; Can that be used to incinerate the hail before it hits the car?

Hoping the laser debris removal is available and affordable.


I also picture my can jumping on the front and sliding back down. I hope sentry mode catches it.

 

[Dids]

Okay, what about the laser that is going to keep dirt and rain off the windshield; Can that be used to incinerate the hail before it hits the car?

Ha ha... no. My understanding of the laser is that it is only effective at the interface of the glass and the debris. Less incineration more just over coming van der waals force ( sticky force)

 

[Saskateam]

The CT may not be hail proof but it will be more hail resistant then any other vehicle. I think we are in line for more fierce storms with higher damage to public infrastructure. The CT will be the choice vehicle to handle the effects of climate change.

 

[tidmutt]

They have asked me not to correct peoples' English or get too geeky here so I am not going to say any more on this.

Who is "they" and why on earth would they ask that? Both of them seem like what you should do!

Beyond that, I admit, I thought it looked like he sort of pulled the strike on the Cybertruck during that presentation. Seemed like a half-hearted blow. Yet I don't really care, I'm not looking to buy it because it's bulletproof or is ideal for the zombie apocalypse. If it was painted but offered similar characteristics I would still be interested. I assume all this stuff of transparent metal and bulletproof, sledge hammer proof exoskeleton is marketing hype. Maybe it will be all those things, or maybe it will just be a robust vehicle with a bunch of desirable characteristics.

I would be interested if Tesla started offering wraps as a factory option, either to the Cybertruck or their other vehicles. Their paint sucks (maybe until they get their new paint shop up and running), so a wrap is a good idea for their other vehicles and I would kind of like the Cybertruck in matte black. I don't need to be able to buff out the stainless steel and run into trees without it making a dent. Yes, it will rarely go off road. I live in a part of the country where offroad pretty much requires an airboat, so why would I? I've never owned a truck before, I usually drive hot hatches, but the Cybertruck sparked my interest. I like the idea of taking my kids camping in the truck, sleeping in the bed with an air mattress and air con. Might even do a long road trip and take it off road somewhere out of state. I like that it doesn't have to compromise on performance, yeah it may not corner like my Golf R, but it's still very quick.

Bulletproof etc. meh. If someone is shooting at me, I've got bigger problems.

 

[Mini2nut]

Being that 3mm thick is close to 1/8” I would guess that the stainless steel exterior is resistant to your average golf ball sized hail storm. 1.75” hail? No so sure.

 

[fritter63]

Being that 3mm thick is close to 1/8” I would guess that the stainless steel exterior is resistant to your average golf ball sized hail storm. 1.75” hail? No so sure.

If it is, it will sell like hotcakes in Denver.

May 2001 (I think), was literally 3 weeks away from closing on our new house that had a garage my truck would fit into. And we get a 3/4" hail storm. Not as big as the baseball sized that hit our new car in 1990 and golf ball in 1991, but I ran out right away and covered all horizontal surfaces with comforters. Didn't help, the truck (Dodge Ram) still took $1700 in pointless dent removal.

And this is happening in Denver more often from what I've heard (we left - got tired of that).

 

[android04]

Being that 3mm thick is close to 1/8” I would guess that the stainless steel exterior is resistant to your average golf ball sized hail storm. 1.75” hail? No so sure.

I don't think you have anything to worry about with any hail of any size. I bought a 3mm (1/8") thick plate of 304 stainless steel after I found out that it was the thickness of the Cybertruck skin. There's no way that hail will do anything at all to it, I wouldn't even expect a mark on it. Remember that it's also hardened. And it's bullet proof. The mark seen in the video at the Cybertruck presentation where it's shot with a 9mm is a tiny pinhole crater at the center of the bullet strike.

Those that know about AR500 steel (which is used in armor plate and shooting targets) know that velocity has a bigger impact on the possible damage that can be done to steel. The kinetic energy increases with the square of the velocity, so velocity is the biggest factor in causing damage. Even on AR500 plates, a high velocity rifle round (like 5.56x45mm at 55 grains and 3260 ft/s) will cause the same small pinhole crater on AR500 steel. This 5.56mm example has 1,294 ft-lb of energy.

A 115 grain 9mm bullet travelling at 1200 ft/sec has 368 ft-lb of energy. This is 3.5 times less energy than the 5.56mm example even though the 9mm is twice as heavy (because the 5.56mm is travelling 2.7 times faster). The 9mm will not even leave a mark on the AR500 steel.

Now hail stones do not approach the energy of 9mm until you get over 2" in size (2" hail has 283 ft-lb and 2.25" hail has 449 ft-lb of energy). See here for reference https://abbottforensic.com/wind-driven-hail-vs-hail-without-wind/. However, as stated in that Abbott Forensic article, the contact area of an impacting object matters in how much energy is transferred. A 9mm bullet has a small point that contacts the steel first (which is why there's a tiny pinhole crater) but a 2.25" hailstone has a much larger surface area that spreads out the force of impact.

In short, I am not concerned at all about any size hail with respect to my Cybertruck. Maybe if I lived in an area that sees softball-sized hail, but 2" hail is about the biggest I've seen all my 34 years of life. Also, this assurance is with respect to the stainless steel. I expect and hope that the roof glass will be armored as well and have some give to counteract the impact of hail. Otherwise that will be a weak point as well as other trim like the side mirrors or fender flares. The roll-up vault cover might also be a weak point if it's made of hollow aluminum sections.

Edit to add other references to hail stone velocity and energy calculations:
Neat calculator that you enter a diameter into https://www.gabriel-strommer.at/en/calculators/hail-fall-velocity-energy/
https://hypertextbook.com/facts/2005/AliciaKosiba.shtml
https://www.wired.com/2012/05/big-hail-is-bad/

 

[Jhodgesatmb]

I saw somewhere that Tesla expected the glass to be able to handle golf ball sized hail. Does anyone recall where that was said? Baseball sized, hail Mary.

 

[Mini2nut]

This is an excellent selling point for anyone who resides in a hail prone state.

Think about it. Tesla is actually going to build a F150 competitor with a 3MM thick cold rolled stainless steel skin AND a stainless steel bed from the same SS used on the Space X rocket. A STAINLESS STEEL BED!

I was in disbelief when the details were revealed this past November. The durability, low cost of operation, AWD option and reasonable price point will have tradesman, service companies, etc. flocking to this truck.

 

[Jyak]

I'd be happy if it is hickory nut proof. Squirrels have peppered many of my vehicles with dings over the years. It isn't as bad as hail damage, but happens consistently regardless of the weather!

 

[fritter63]

This is an excellent selling point for anyone who resides in a hail prone state.

Agreed. Large Hail (up to baseball sized!) is why we left Denver. Just got tired of it. And it's gotten worse since we left!

 

[ricinro]

I live in the northeast and have rarely seen hail but it was always with tremendous wind where houses blow away etc. Does anyone think that parachute cloth is going to hold up in a thunderstorm? I see a truck with shreds of rags in my mind. I'm also questioning the ability to hold off hail. What could the internal pressure of the inflation be? Possibly 20lbs/ sq inch?

a psi or so is more than sufficient.

 

[ricinro]

That wasn't a sledge hammer. It was a "dead blow" mallet specially designed to limit damage to the item being struck. Commonly used in auto body repair for just that reason. Look at the video carefully and see if you still think it was a sledge hammer.

it was still mallets aforethought... With mallets towards none -A. Lincoln