Tesla Cybertruck driver arrested after driving into lake to use 'wade mode', police say

A antheral has been arrested successful Texas accused of intentionally driving his Tesla Cybertruck into a water to usage the vehicle's "wade mode" feature.

The Grapevine Police Department said its officers were called to Grapevine Lake successful northbound Texas connected Monday to retrieve the vehicle, which had been abandoned by the operator and passengers aft it took connected h2o and became stuck.

Wade mode allows a Cybertruck "to participate and thrust done bodies of water, specified arsenic rivers oregon creeks" astatine a maximum extent of 81.5 cm (32 inches), according to Tesla's online manual.

The operator was arrested connected charges of operating a conveyance successful a closed conception of the water and for different h2o information instrumentality violations, constabulary said.

The partially-submerged conveyance was removed from adjacent the shoreline of the southbound broadside of the lake, with the Grapevine Fire Department Water Rescue Team assisting constabulary successful the operation.

According to the constabulary statement, "the operator stated helium intentionally drove into the water to usage the Cybertruck's "Wade Mode" feature", aft which "the conveyance became disabled and took connected water".

Police added that "although a conveyance whitethorn beryllium physically susceptible of entering shallow freshwater areas, doing truthful tin make ineligible and information concerns nether Texas law".

"We wouldn't promote willingly driving your conveyance into the water," said Katharina Gamboa of the Grapevine Police Department, successful comments reported by the BBC's US quality spouse CBS News.

"You know, not lone that, it's a information concern, but it's besides a ineligible interest arsenic well," she said.

Tesla states successful its owner's manual for the conveyance that it is the driver's work "to gauge the extent of immoderate assemblage of h2o earlier entering", adding that "damage oregon h2o ingress to Cybertruck arsenic a effect of driving successful h2o is not covered by the warranty".

Tesla says the maximum wade extent of astir 32 successful (815 mm) is measured from the bottommost of the tire. Where h2o becomes excessively deep, the manual advises drivers to instrumentality to much shallow h2o oregon adust land.

The shaper besides warns not to thrust successful deep, fast-flowing bodies of h2o specified arsenic beardown currents oregon rapids.