If you think Cybertrucks are a mess now, just wait until winter comes

Freezer

Tesla’s Cybertruck has had a rough time this year since it launched to the paying public, with hail causing its armored glass to crack and the vehicle breaking down during normal automotive tasks.

So what will it do when the temperatures drop and winter arrives? Well, some Redditors are speculating that road salt on winter roads isn’t so kind to the Cybertruck’s aluminum frame, let alone its extremely maintenance-intensive steel exterior.

They may be right. Metallurgists and those who shape aluminum for various applications know that the metal corrodes and weakens in the presence of salt water under certain conditions.

While it’s not clear what kind of protective coating covers the aluminum or what the quality of the metal is, the fact that the consumer model of the car has a number of quality control issues should be cause for concern.

“Awesome,” posted one Redditor. “We sent you an unfinished truck that will deteriorate in a few weeks if exposed to road salt. Good luck.”

Bad idea

Corrosion isn’t the only problem the Brutalist pickup faces in cold weather.

This past winter, there were numerous reports of Cybertrucks getting stuck in the snow while driving off-road, prompting ridicule from the public.

And that’s without even getting into the range issues that can arise when cold weather saps the batteries of electric vehicles. In January, Tesla owners in Chicago were left out in the cold when a sharp drop in temperatures made it difficult for them to charge their electric vehicles. The situation got so bad that Supercharger stations became a graveyard for abandoned Tesla vehicles.

Now meet the Cybertruck, a futuristic tank-like vehicle dreamed up by CEO Elon Musk, who has claimed that the vehicle is ready for the apocalypse. Disaster is brewing, as there will be far more Cybertrucks on the road than ever before, with inexperienced drivers who don’t know how to drive in harsh conditions and aluminum bodies that can crack from repeated exposure to road salt.

All we can say is good luck to everyone with a Cybertruck, because winter is coming.

More about the Tesla Cybertruck: Burglar discovers you can ‘peel’ a Cybertruck and gain access to the inside