Trail Report: Sidewinder in Coral Canyon, San Diego county

[Roger@CYBERTRUCKco]

Happy Sunday!

William and I decided to go out and run the Sidewinder trail in the Coral Canyon OHV park located in East San Diego County to test our new underbody armor package. This is a difficult Trail rated a 7/10 by OnX, it’s definitely not a trail that should be taken alone by any vehicle or by any Cybertruck that does not have a full armor package, lift, all terrain tires and tie rod upgrade.

My son and I went out and camped the night before and were able to see some great stars at night. We’re in the process of photographing and making videos for all of our new RS2.0 racks so we ended up sleeping in the bed of the truck, which wasn’t too bad except for we had to take everything out of the bed at night. Really missing my CyberCamper.

We started at the trailhead at 8:30 and had made it about 1 mile in of the 2 1/2 mile trail by 9:30 before the passenger side front tie rod snapped… we were able to use four ratchet straps to straighten the front wheel and back it off to the side of the trail so she’s not blocking the path.

fixing this will be top priority this week for engineers, and we hope to have something on the Haas by the weekend to solve this weak point. It looks like Tesla used 1500lb tie rod on this truck with only a 1/2” threaded end on it. Compared to the Jeep with a three-quarter inch threaded end on it, I was told had a 2500lb rating. Because of the drive-by wire and the electric rack, this is definitely a week point that needs to be resolved before our Rubicon trip next month.

Other than that.. the entire underside of the armor was used and would’ve no doubt punctured and torn the stock battery cover. We were very happy with the results of the armor as the metal did not bend, or dent, just some nice gouges. Rock Sliders were also used at every turn, and our rear bumper got a few nicks. The front bumper was stock and did get scuffed up, but it’s getting replaced next week so it didn’t really matter.

I do not recommend this Trail to any Cybertruck that is not fully armed and going with a group.

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[Roger@CYBERTRUCKco]

A few more pics

 

[Urander]

This is exactly one of the reasons we don’t think the CT is a Rubicon rig. Glad you were able to reinforce the tie rod before hitting the Rubicon. Besides that, the upper control arm and air suspension are also concerns - when the suspension is in Extra High or Extract mode, there’s basically no travel left.

Trails rated 6 or under? Totally manageable. But anything above 6? It honestly feels like unnecessary punishment and no fun at all. It’s kinda like bringing an S65 AMG to Laguna Seca - you might be the first, but let’s be real, it’s not as fun when even Miatas are flying past you in the corners. That’s why, for us, anything over a 6 on onX just isn’t that fun in the Cybertruck.?

 

[Mr Sir]

The Rubicon run is no joke. A CT might (MAYBE) make the (13 miles?) run in one piece, but even jeeps get their share of damage. Oh, and no supercharger in the Desolation Wilderness.

 

[CYBERTRUCKco]

Update... Stopped by Tesla yesterday 7am to buy replacement parts, and they ar not available, they only have the outer tie rods and the entire steering rack for sale at $3300 with 2 week delivery window... so we went back yesterday to weld it on the trail.

Turns out the inner tie rod broke in 2 places, once at the threads and the second at the turned down neck where it connects to the rack. This rod is extremely fragile, the turn down is only .25" thick at the knuckle!

During the trail out, the welded rod bent again, but was stopped by the sway bar from breaking and allowed us to limp it off. So that said, we do not recommend unhooking the sway bar because this saved us from more welding!

Good news coming as we already sourced a heavier duty direct replacement part that will be available on the site the next few days, after we go back to run this trail through, and an then Xpedition Version coming before end of the month.

More to follow!

 

[CYBERTRUCKco]

This is exactly one of the reasons we don’t think the CT is a Rubicon rig. Glad you were able to reinforce the tie rod before hitting the Rubicon. Besides that, the upper control arm and air suspension are also concerns - when the suspension is in Extra High or Extract mode, there’s basically no travel left.

Trails rated 6 or under? Totally manageable. But anything above 6? It honestly feels like unnecessary punishment and no fun at all. It’s kinda like bringing an S65 AMG to Laguna Seca - you might be the first, but let’s be real, it’s not as fun when even Miatas are flying past you in the corners. That’s why, for us, anything over a 6 on onX just isn’t that fun in the Cybertruck.?

Followers and leaders... You chose your lane and we chose to lead and innovate through extreme testing so that the average Joe can make his rig better without finding out the hard way on the trail like we will.

Rock crawling isn't for eveyone, but our goal is to make a Cybertruck go anywhere other than a dirt road and mall parking lots, like Uranus.

 

[CYBERTRUCKco]

Guys, and Gals!
We worked fast and opened over 100 boxes at the Auto Parts distributor to find a Heavy Duty Front Inner Tie Rod Solution!

This is a MUST HAVE for any off-roading as the stock parts are junk! They are cast with an out sleeve, maybe ok for the Model 3, but not for off-roading because the Cybertruck steering rack gives no F's about continuing to steer with a rock against it, it will move the entire truck.

MOST IMPORTANTLY: OEM replacement inner tie rods are NOT currently available from Tesla. if you break yours, you have to buy the entire $3300 Steering rack not covered by warrantee!

Product Details

• Direct OEM replacement, no modifications
• Set of 2pcs for front steering rack, interchangeable
• 27% thicker than the OEM Part at the knuckle, 8% Thicker on the shaft
• Cast steel part, not sleaved part like OEM.
• Belleville preload washer helps eliminate spring bind and shattering during shock load
• Metal-to-metal Gusher Bearing design provides strength and allows grease to flow through bearing surface
• Ball studs are heat treated to exceed OE requirements to inhibit premature failure and improve fatigue strength.
• Wrench flats on housing and stud provide easy installation and alignment adjustment.
• Comprehensive testing throughout design and development processes by engineers for quality you can count on.
• Pre-applied thread locking compound makes installation easier and prevents self-loosening.

Installation time from a qualified mechanic or shop should be 2hrs + Alignment.

This is an absolute MUST HAVE for off-roading to prevent leaving your truck on the trail to be recovered later, learn from our testing and solve the problem before it becomes yours!

 

[HaulingAss]

The Rubicon run is no joke. A CT might (MAYBE) make the (13 miles?) run in one piece, but even jeeps get their share of damage. Oh, and no supercharger in the Desolation Wilderness.

Why would you need a Supercharger in Desolation Wilderness to complete a 22-mile trail? There's a Supercharger in S. Lake Tahoe about 10 miles from the Eastern Tahoma Access and another Supercharger in Placerville, only 30 miles driving distance from the West End Loon Lake Access. In fact, there are Superchargers all over the perimeter of that wilderness. I would just charge to 80% which would allow you to run the trail in both directions on one charge with plenty of safety margin. Yes, I know your Wh/mile are going to skyrocket but it's only 22 miles. Even if you were going to camp and take a leisurely 3 days to complete it, you would have plenty of range to run camp lights and other electronics.

 

[SlegMD]

Hoping to see an off-road suspension package at some point.

Congrats on overcoming this challenge

 

[Mr Sir]

Sorry, but no. I would not try it.
Feel free Mr Hauling. Btw, pretty sure it's one way. Secondly, it's very narrow in spots. Next, even crawling you will do damage under your rig without full skid plates. This is assuming one is an expert driver, otherwise your sides also will sustain damage.
What's your plan when you are in deep and realize the terrain has depleted your rig where you can't make it? I'm just trying to warn everyone this may not be a good test for any CT.
I have done it only in a CJ7 with a 304 many times. I'm just trying to warn all.
Be the one to report back to this forum that it's not only doable but damage free also, if you dare. This is NOT a challenge to you Sir or anyone else. Simply an informed warning to all.
Good luck, you will need it.

 

[Mettalicron]

Nice!

Any actual lift kit coming soon? No way am i paying $10k to UP for a 2in puck lift…

If priced right and retains air suspension functionality, myself and many others would scoop up quick..

 

[HaulingAss]

Sorry, but no. I would not try it.
Feel free Mr Hauling. Btw, pretty sure it's one way. Secondly, it's very narrow in spots. Next, even crawling you will do damage under your rig without full skid plates. This is assuming one is an expert driver, otherwise your sides also will sustain damage.
What's your plan when you are in deep and realize the terrain has depleted your rig where you can't make it? I'm just trying to warn everyone this may not be a good test for any CT.
I have done it only in a CJ7 with a 304 many times. I'm just trying to warn all.
Be the one to report back to this forum that it's not only doable but damage free also, if you dare. This is NOT a challenge to you Sir or anyone else. Simply an informed warning to all.
Good luck, you will need it.

I'm not sure why you thought I was commenting on the wisdom of using a Cybertruck to do the Rubicon Trail, I was only commenting on your belief that the problem was a lack of charging opportunities. Where do you come up with these ridiculous perspectives? They are the words of someone just trying to throw shade and cast a negative view of the Cybertruck using false pretenses.

 

[CYBERTRUCKco]

Nice!

Any actual lift kit coming soon? No way am i paying $10k to UP for a 2in puck lift…

If priced right and retains air suspension functionality, myself and many others would scoop up quick..

We have the truck on the lift now working on a 2" lift kit, can be 3" with the lift rods. Will be available with a month I would guess.

 

[Mettalicron]

We have the truck on the lift now working on a 2" lift kit, can be 3" with the lift rods. Will be available with a month I would guess.

Get me on a waitlist!

 

[igoreka]

Did the steering control arms break with locked front differential? In extract mode?
Were you against a rock trying to turn into it?
Do you remember the details?
This is all really cool that you guys are finding the weak points. Props to you!

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