Tesla has made a significant change to its battery pack design with the Cybercab, moving away from the fully structural approach used in the Model Y in favour of a more serviceable modular design.
The decision was revealed during a recent Munro Live factory tour, where Tesla’s battery engineering team explained how lessons from the Model Y and Cybertruck influenced the new battery architecture.
Tesla’s battery engineering director Robbie explained that while the Model Y’s structural battery pack worked well for customers, it was considerably more difficult and expensive to manufacture than the company wanted.
He went as far as giving the Model Y structural pack a grade of “D” from an internal manufacturing and cost perspective.
The Cybertruck represented an improvement, earning a “B minus,” but Tesla ultimately decided that a different approach would better suit the Cybercab.
Instead of bonding all the battery cells into one large structural assembly, Cybercab uses individual modules that can be serviced or replaced separately.
This is particularly important for a Robotaxi, which Tesla says is engineered to remain in service for at least 500,000 miles (804,672 km).
With a fully structural battery, a failed cell or module can require replacement of the entire pack. The Cybercab’s design allows Tesla to retain the remaining healthy modules, reducing the cost of repairs.
Tesla also found that the economics of an optimized modular pack were comparable to those of a fully structural design.
While the structural approach can provide approximately 10% more space for battery cells, the potential savings from servicing individual modules helped change the calculation.
The new pack still contributes to the vehicle’s structural strength, particularly during side impacts, but does not rely on the same fully integrated construction.
Tesla’s engineers gave the Cybercab battery an “A minus” during the tour, describing it as one of the company’s most integrated and refined designs.
The change marks a notable shift in Tesla’s battery engineering strategy, with manufacturing costs and long-term serviceability playing a larger role in the final design.
You can watch the full video below.
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