Settings for Snow Driving

[Partially Responsible]

I’ve had my Cyberbeast since July but just recently had a chance to drive it in the snow a bit. In all of my previous vehicles I would turn off traction control but in the CB I believe the only adjustment is to turn on “Slippery Surface”. While I was able to navigate pretty easily where I needed to go I do feel the experience would be better if I was able to just use the AWD without any traction control interference.

Are there better settings that people are using? Off-road mode? I do wish they could roll out a toggle for traction control in future

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[NSCyber]

Would be nice if they had a “snow mode” and calibrated the car to the climate outside.

 

[Partially Responsible]

Also it’s annoying that the “slippery surface” button toggles off every time the truck goes into park. There should be some stickiness to this setting in my opinion.

 

[MyOtherTruck]

Agree! Slippery should stay on until you turn it off

 

[Pulaski]

If I remember correctly when you toggle on slippery mode it says it will automatically turn it on if it feels the conditions merit it.

 

[electricAK]

I've been experimenting with Slippery Surface mode. It definitely turns itself off after a short bit, even during the same drive without going into park.

I'm not sure exactly what the mode is doing (the manual isn't clear on this), but I get the sense all it does is reduce the amount of regen, i.e. it just makes the accelerator less sensitive to how much you let off to slow down.

If that is true, then Slippery Surface mode isn't really needed at all. You could just be slower/more careful with the accelerator and achieve the exact same effect.

I get the sense from the manual that the truck is designed to maximize traction in all scenarios. No need for special modes for snow or ice.

 

[Partially Responsible]

I think you’re right with regards to their design intention but I do wish they’d add a toggle to turn it off if desired. Unlikely, but a man can wish.

 

[Partially Responsible]

If I remember correctly when you toggle on slippery mode it says it will automatically turn it on if it feels the conditions merit it.

For what it’s worth I I do feel a noticeable difference, albeit not extreme, when I pin the accelerator in wet conditions with the toggle on vs off.

 

[LiveFreeOrDieBob]

I think the “slippery surface” switch mainly limits the torque from a stop and at very low speeds so the torque doesn’t overwhelm the traction when starting out. I haven’t noticed an impact on regen but I’m pretty conservative with braking the truck when it’s slippery out so I may have just not noticed it.

 

[tmeyer3]

The slippery setting is just to get you moving in slick stops by adjusting torque smartly. Also applies to mud slicks, or even an oil slick (old-school batman theme queued)

If you're continuously driving is snow that isn't plowed/salted/graveled/etc. then I'd recommend the off-road snow setting. It will stay on and will allow upwards 50mph, which is faster than I'd recommend anyway if you need that setting on.

 

[Cybertruck 1974]

I've put this out there many times, the truck is dangerous in icy conditions with its regen. There's no mode that affects the regen to the point it needs to be which is off. I've driven it two winters now and the only thing you can do is keep a huge distance away from other cars and drive slow.

 

[RoboTaxi]

I've put this out there many times, the truck is dangerous in icy conditions with its regen. There's no mode that affects the regen to the point it needs to be which is off. I've driven it two winters now and the only thing you can do is keep a huge distance away from other cars and drive slow.

I took a road trip from Kansas to Colorado and ran into ice/snow storm. Holly shit, that was scary until I hit the Slippery Surface mode button. I couldn’t let off the juice pedal because regan braking would start a very bad slide. I feel confident in whipping around the snow in my old Tacoma but not the Cybertruck….yet.

 

[dar1]

My cybertruck is new and I haven't used it on winter roads much but do have a model s, which I have had for 6 years as a primary driver in Canada and a leaf for 5 years prior.

I turn the Regen mode to low which I believe doesn't apply Regen braking on its own.

My tire guy has looked up the tires that have both come with the CT and are part of the winter tire kit and they are off road all season tires on the winter kit so all are apparently very bad on ice. Next season if I am driving in winter I would get properly rated winter tires good on ice.

I also wonder of the best habits with the all wheel steering. I have learned not to oversteer and not to touch the wheel much, if you don't have the steering in comfort that could make a difference too. Tesla may want to consider a mode for winter with limited rear wheel steering.

 

[electricAK]

I've put this out there many times, the truck is dangerous in icy conditions with its regen. There's no mode that affects the regen to the point it needs to be which is off. I've driven it two winters now and the only thing you can do is keep a huge distance away from other cars and drive slow.

It's not the truck, it's the tires. You can't expect summer tires to perform well in snow / ice. On any vehicle.

I've found the truck performs extremely well on a wide variety of snow and ice. I installed snow tires. Traction is better with this truck than any of my previous vehicles.

 

[electricAK]

I took a road trip from Kansas to Colorado and ran into ice/snow storm. Holly shit, that was scary until I hit the Slippery Surface mode button. I couldn’t let off the juice pedal because regan braking would start a very bad slide. I feel confident in whipping around the snow in my old Tacoma but not the Cybertruck….yet.

Yep, driving fast in very icy conditions can be scary. Only solution is studded tires, or slow down. It's great that the slippery surface mode helped you in this case. That's probably why it is there.

I'm still confused about your experience though. What was causing you to slide? If you were letting off the accelerator pedal enough to cause a slide, my guess is that you felt that you were going too fast. Why not just keep your speed at the right level to begin with?

Also, you can coast just fine with the truck settings as they are, there's an indicator on the screen that tells you exactly where the sweet spot is to avoid any regen braking. I watch that meter constantly while driving on ice/snow, and I've had no problems with traction. I control the regen with my foot the same way I controlled the brake pedal in my previous vehicles. With care.

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