Tesla is now delivering Cybertrucks without wheel covers due to an issue that results in the sidewall of the tire being worn down. Deliveries will continue without the covers until they are redesigned, which is not expected to happen until at least March.
Tesla includes wheel covers on all of their cars as a way to increase efficiency, with the covers increasing range by as much as 10 miles. The wheel covers, as the name implies, are removable, giving owners the option to lose a small amount of efficiency for the sake of improving the looks of the car by exposing the rim underneath.
The same holds true for the Cybertruck, with it’s 35″ tires also coming with wheel covers. However, new owners are now taking delivery without them due to an issue that somehow wasn’t identified during testing.
According to a post on the CybertruckOwnersClub forum, deliveries as early as last week were being completed without aero covers, with Advisors giving no reason as to why, only saying they would be installed starting on February 1. However that date has now been updated to sometime in March.
At first, speculation was that it was to do with the covers coming off while driving, something which happened on a test vehicle last year driving along a highway. However, it is something entirely different – the aero covers are rubbing against the tire and wearing down the sidewall.
This is happening because unlike Tesla’s other aero covers, the ones on the Cybertruck extend past the edge of the rim. This causes that edge to come into contact with the sidewall as it flexes while driving. This was illustrated in a video by T-Sportline, showing that the war is enough for it to leave a significant mark on the sidewall, something which could potentially lead to a safety issue.
According to other forum members, Tesla says the aero covers are under investigation, referring to Cybertrucks being delivered without them as a “parts containment pending new revision,” and not a recall, so it looks like existing owners with the covers won’t have to send them in, although they will likely replace them free of charge when the time comes.
Tesla is planning on releasing a smaller aero cover on non-Foundation Series Cybertrucks, so they could always fall back on that, but the company will likely come up with a fix to allow the Foundation Series Cybertrucks to stand out.
Here’s the full video from TSportline explaining the issue.
