Tesla Cybertruck Breaks Down During Off-Road Test, Tuner Not Worried, Was “Just A Bolt”

The Cybertruck might be Tesla’s most off-road capable model, but everything has its limits. A photo taken in the Mojave Desert proves exactly that, showing a damaged example of the Cybertruck with its right rear wheel sitting at a weird angle and leaving skid marks on the gravel.

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A quick online search suggests that the model belongs to California-based tuner Unplugged Performance, which is currently working on a a series of upgrades for the Cybertruck. The incident happened during development testing at the King of the Hammers off-road event in Mojave and didn’t involve any other vehicles.

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Drive it tell until the wheels fall off 😅 pic.twitter.com/noLIz0l5QW

— 🐝FriendlyCitizenJoe 🍌 (@FCJOriginal) February 3, 2024

While the damage wasn’t initially addressed in Unplugged Performance’s social media channels, a photo of the aftermath was uploaded on Reddit , attracting plenty of attention. Some speculated that either the rear half shaft or the tie rod of the Cybertruck was broken. In response to several questions on its X (ex-Twitter) profile, the company issued the following statement: “Just a stock bolt broke. We were beating the hell out of the truck multiple days. Things can break when you do madness like this.”

In a later post, Unplugged Performance went into greater detail about what happened. The company is “not concerned with this bolt” since “broken bits are commonplace” at the King of the Hammers and repairs are already underway. The tuner added they will “continue to push the Cybertruck platform hard” in a quest “to campaign the most hardcore Cybertrucks in the most hardcore terrains”.

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The Tesla in question featured a set of dry carbon fiber fender extensions, front and rear quick-disconnect sway bar endlinks, and a new set of 20-inch forged beadlock wheels equipped with Yokohama X-AT tires. The rest of the vehicle remained in stock condition, including the suspension, as a lift kit wasn’t available for the event. It’s worth noting that the EV currently lacks differential locks, which will be introduced in the future through a firmware update.

Videos taken before the incident show the Cybetruck power sliding on dirt, towing a Tesla Model Y out of the sand, and tackling some rocky off-road courses. Still, some users are worried about the truck’s reliability in harsh conditions, hoping that Tesla will eventually solve any design-related issues.

#Cybertruck playing in the desert during #OPTIMAbatteries Unplugged powered by @ClariosGlobal Check it out @Tesla & @elonmusk We uploaded this video from the Mojave desert with @Starlink pic.twitter.com/khNeMEgNG2

— OPTIMA® Batteries (@OptimaBatteries) February 1, 2024

The Cybertruck is amazing at so many things. Even without full feature firmware (no locking diffs or track mode yet) it’s been so much fun. In the past 6 days we towed Dark Helmet, we raced it at TeslaCorsa Buttonwillow, we daily drove it, and we ran two super fun days at KOH! pic.twitter.com/FyvbOnaDII

— UNPLUGGED PERFORMANCE (@UnpluggedTesla) February 4, 2024

Such an epic day of testing and putting both these incredibly off-road capable Teslas through some extreme terrain. @cybertruck makes for a perfect recovery vehicle. https://t.co/YfXr5R8c2H

— UNPLUGGED PERFORMANCE (@UnpluggedTesla) February 2, 2024