Photo: Tobias Lindh/YouTube

Tesla moved from words to actions. Model Y bodies with a front single-piece cast are spotted at Giga Berlin, indicating that production of vehicles with a structural battery pack is due to start before the end of this year.

The start of production of Tesla vehicles with a structural battery pack is a welcome development. However, there will be a long transition before the goal is reached. Although the technology has been developed for several years, the transition of production and the provision of a car with the necessary components for this is not an easy task, requiring time and effort.

At the moment, Giga Texas is already producing Model Y with a structural battery pack, for which it uses front and rear single-piece casts and 4680 battery cells. According to Tesla's Q3 Earnings Report, Tesla is also aiming to start manufacturing vehicles with a structural battery pack at Giga Berlin before the end of the year. It seems that the manufacturer will achieve the planned goal, the latest observations from the factory hint.

Tobias Lindh/YouTube spotted something interesting while visiting Giga Berlin with a drone recently. He saw 11 car bodies that had rear and front single-piece casts. It is hard to say for sure, but it seems they were in the area with scrap. Even if these bodies were thrown into scrap, it still indicates that Tesla is setting up the production of Model Y with new technology. After some time, the production will be calibrated and the made-in-Germany Model Y will be produced according to the latest technology.



Body castings are a revolutionary achievement by Tesla. Through the use of one-piece castings, the company has eliminated over 170 individual components that were previously needed to make a front and rear end. The process of forming a single-piece cast is complex and requires that all the aluminum needed for the whole part “be injected into a die in about one-tenth of a blink of an eye, through a single point of entry, without solidifying or distorting.”

However, such parts in vehicles provide an improved modular design with a high degree of integration. This increases the coverage area of ​​the anti-collision beam, thereby improving body performance. Collision safety is improved by more than 20%. This design will also increase battery life. The overall reduction in weight provides an increase in the range of the car. Furthermore, this production process is more environmentally friendly and energy efficient. Traditional stamping results in a lot of residual scraps, while Giga Press uses 100% raw material. This results in resource and energy savings in terms of manufacturing and is in line with Tesla's environmental values.

© 2022, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.

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