Its starting to get chillier here in Minnesota. But we get good sun into our (appropriately named) sunroom and it feels nice.

When I was growing up, one of my favorite books was Mike Mulligan & His Steam Shovel. It follows the career of a steam shovel (Mary Anne) and her driver (Mike). I read it to my kids and grandkids. It was written by Virginia Lee Burton. She also wrote The Little House, another favorite.

Here are a few bits embedded in the story that stuck with me.

Mechanical work is cool. The story lifts up modern creations such as train tunnels, canals, highways, skyscrapers, and airports.

Clever solutions save the day. They get stuck at the end and figure out a solution.

Precision matters. “They finished the first corner neat and square.” Being able to work hard is important.

Maintenance is important. Mary Anne was still in good shape after years of working.

It acknowledges that technology moves forward and most things become obsolete. It doesn’t pull any punches about steam shovels becoming obsolete. Mike and Mary Anne had to work harder to finish the job.

Pretty good for a book published in 1939.

The deep dive video is below.

Some things that stuck out to me from the video:

• Manufacturing drove much of the design.
• Everything from the currently designed vehicle including manufacturing steps is looked at with the idea of using across the Tesla product line. There are parts that Cybercab (the smallest Tesla) shares with Semi (the biggest Tesla).
• No paint, no paint booth, no paint shop. Not only does eliminating paint and painting save money, but it also allows for the more sophisticated manufacturing to take place.
• Gullwing doors are more ergonomic for handicap or seniors. And also because it’s cool.
• Supply chain with every chip dual sourced.
• Change in gear ratio because demand on motor is less for cyber cab
• Heat is usable all the time so why throw it out the radiator if you don’t have to?
• There is an insane design focus on removing parts and removing assembly steps.

Tesla Cybercab Deep Dive: Inside the Engineering

with Lars Moravy and Team