DIY Remote Controlled Te$la Cybertruck

Hi there and welcome to my 'ible' #47.

Tesla cars are undoubtedly cool. I must admit the design of the Cybertruck is a bit out of the ordinary, but you can't deny this car will turn heads as soon as it will hit the road (2021).

The remote controlled version made by Hotwheels is nice, but it's available only in the U.S. and it's very expensive 121$.

After watching FliteTest video about their own DIY versions of the Cybertruck (thanks guys), I've decided to build my own one.

As I always do, not having too much space at home, I choose to go small. I've bought a very inexpensive remote controlled car on Banggood. I've chosen the one that resembles the most the chassis of Cybertruck.

https://bit.ly/2Zi755v

I must say as soon as I have received it, I've started to play with it, postponing the beginning of the project to the next day. ;-)

Anyway, removing the original body takes 5 seconds, there are only 3 rubber caps that hold it.

1x RC Racing Car Rock Crawler Off-Road Truck 2WD 4CH https://bit.ly/2Zi755v

1x A4 5mm Sheet Foam Board (good not just to build RC planes) :-)

1xA3 Correx 5mm (Black) for the windshield and windows

5x 3mm LED White (Anterior Lights) https://bit.ly/3cHmNuB

5x 3mm LED Red (Posterior Light) https://bit.ly/3cHmNuB

1x Resistor 100 Ohm (white LEDs)

1x Resistor 150 Ohm (red LEDS)

1x 1S Lipo Batttery 200mAh https://bit.ly/36CB0Hf

1 JST-GH Micro Connector

1x Metallic Paint water based

1x Paintbrush

UHU Por (Glue foam friendly)

Soldering on iron (please use it very carefully)

Heat Shrinks https://bit.ly/3g0ksNl

Utility Knife

Scissors

On Internet there are a lot of templates available. The only thing is that the original Cybertruck has a length quite considerable.

I've seen a guy on YouTube who cut the RC car in 2, adding a spacer to match the length of the original version... ouch... that hurts!

I wanted to keep this project as simple as possible, therefore, instead of doing so, I've just shortened the template. Basically, I've removed the 2nd door (Picture 1)... transforming the Cybertruck in a sort of "Duetto" (you know, the one made by Alfa Romeo). ;-)

As you can see, the design hasn't suffered too much and the overall result is not bad at all.

Using the foam board and the new template, I've cut 2 sides, shaping them with the profile of the Cybertruck, checking also that the wheels were able to move.

Please pay attention to the steering wheels, which requires more space to move freely.

For the roof and the bonnet, I've scored the template (Picture number 1), creating an hinge exactly where I'm going to place the LEDs. To score the foam board, you have to cut just the upper layer of it.

To protect the hinge, I've glued a small strip of foam board, that gives
also a better looking to the overall shape of the Cybertruck and contributes to the diffusion of the light, making it similar to a strip.

Using a piece of black Correx, I've cut the windshield and the windows (in the last step you can see I've cut the roof too).

In this way, I don't have to paint that parts and the final result looks much better.

This is the most tedious part of the project.

Although I wanted to keep it simple as much as possible, I didn't have a strip of LEDs ready to be used, therefore, I've made my own ones with some LEDs previously used for my other projects.

Using very carefully the soldering on iron, I have had to connect in parallel all the LEDs.

Please note that white LEDs need a 100 Ohm Resistor and red LEDs a 150 Ohm one.

To soldering them without damaging the body, you can make a template using a piece of foam borad. Just keep the LEDs in the same position you are going to place them, on the body of the car.

One important thing to do, it's to check that all the LEDs are working (before you start to solder them).

To complete this check, I've put them on a breadboard, powering them with 5V and adding the proper resistors.

Once I've finished to solder all the +s and -s, I've attached a JST GH micro connector, I'll use to plug another small battery in.

To turn the light on/off, I've added switch.

To power the lights, I used a super small battery (1S Lipo 200 mAh), that I've glued to the body of the car, using UHU Por glue (foam friendly).

In this way, I'm not going to affect the performances of the RC car.

I've placed the battery there, to have a quick access to the JST GH micro connector, that allows me to recharge the battery.

Please be aware that the charger that comes with the car, has the polarity inverted, therefore you can't charge the auxiliary battery, unless you are going to make an inverted connector.

Congratulations! You are now an owner of a Te$la car... though, a very small one. :-)

Some day, Jennifer... some day. :-)

Of course this "project" couldn't be finished, without testing the "armored glass". :-)

Anyway, regarding the real Cybertruck Elon Musk has explained that the test failed, because previously the door of the car has been hit with the sledgehammer, cracking the lower part of the window, weakening the structure of the armored glass.