Epic Fail! “Hold My Beer” Cybertruck Escapade Goes Wrong In Spectacular Fashion

A driver in Texas decided to try “Wade Mode” in his Tesla Cybertruck this week. It didn’t go well. “Wade Mode” allows the vehicle to “enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks,” according to the owner’s manual. The maximum wade depth is approximately 32 inches, measured from the bottom of the tire.

The manual warns that to enable “Wade Mode,” drivers must ensure that all doors and windows are fully closed and that the vehicle’s speed is less than 20 mph. It also says it is the driver’s responsibility to gauge the depth of any body of water before entering and that the truck may sink in soft or muddy underwater surfaces.

“Wade Mode defaults the vehicle’s ride height to Very High and protects Cybertruck for up to approximately 32 in (815 mm) of water, driving at slow speeds (1-3 mph or 2-5 km/h). As water depth changes, reduce your vehicle speed accordingly. Do not disable Wade Mode until your vehicle is fully out of water,” the manual says,

Heard It Through The Grapevine

Grapevine, Texas, population 51,320, is located northwest of Dallas and is known for its Cotton Belt Railroad District, which is home to a glass blowing studio, a blacksmith shop, and a bronze foundry. The Cotton Belt Railroad Depot built in 1888 serves as the starting point for the Grapevine Vintage Railroad.

Grapevine also has a boat launching ramp at Katie’s Woods Park, and so, if you own a Cybertruck, why not give “Wade Mode” a try? What’s the point of having a feature like that if you can’t use it? The Grapevine police said the vehicle became disabled and took on water, prompting the driver and passengers to abandon it before calling for help. A picture posted online by the police department showed a half-submerged silver Cybertruck near the lake’s shoreline.

According to The Guardian, the driver has since been arrested on charges of operating a vehicle in a closed section of a park or lake, as well as several water safety equipment violations. Authorities successfully removed the Tesla Cybertruck from the lake.

On Tuesday, the Grapevine Police Department announced the vehicle’s recovery from Katie’s Woods Park Boat Ramp, adding that the “driver stated he intentionally drove into the lake to use the Cybertruck’s ‘Wade Mode’ feature. We want to remind drivers that although a vehicle may be physically capable of entering shallow freshwater areas, doing so can create legal and safety concerns under Texas law.”

So now we know that before using “Wade Mode” in a Cybertruck, we should first determine how deep the water is and whether the bottom is irregular with sudden changes in depth that might destabilize the vehicle. The only good news here is that the undercarriage of the Cybertruck probably got a good cleaning, thanks to being immersed for several hours in the waters of Katie’s Woods Park. Small consolation for being the object of global ridicule, but if you have pulled a stunt like this, you welcome any good news you can find.