Auto expert Sandy Munro shared a tour of part of Tesla’s Cybertruck production line on Monday, just weeks after customers received their first deliveries of the vehicles.
In the YouTube video, Tesla VP of vehicle engineering Lars Moravy showed Munro how the electric-car maker builds some of the stainless steel panels for the Cybertruck at the company’s gigafactory in Austin, Texas.
The stainless steel starts out in massive coils.
Then these are unwound on a line and flattened, according to the video.
After that, the metal is cut to fit the shape of the individual parts of the car and stacked, Moravy said.
The Cybertruck’s doors are 1.8 millimeters thick, though the rest of the truck is made out of 1.4 millimeter-thick metal, according to Moravy. For those concerned whether that’s safe enough, Tesla has said the vehicle is thick enough to stop a bullet. The truck even has an option for fixed bulletproof glass windows, according to Elon Musk.
After the parts are cut, some are quality checked to try to ensure the factory matches the level of precision Musk has pushed for, one worker said in the video. In August, the Tesla CEO reportedly told staff that any variations in the truck would show up “like a sore thumb.”
Moravy also took Munro through the factory’s hot stamping process and later showed how the truck’s exterior panels are bent into their final shape.
A Tesla spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Tesla delivered its first dozen Cybertrucks in November. Musk has said he aims for the company to eventually reach production of about a quarter million Cybertrucks per year.
The billionaire has however emphasized that the vehicle faces some production hurdles due to its unique shape and stainless steel exterior. A carmaker hasn’t built a stainless steel vehicle since the DeLorean was released in the 80s.
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