Automotive manufacturing consultant turned Tesla YouTube star Sandy Munro has discovered a tribute “easter egg” on one of the Cybertruck’s circuit boards.
“Hi Sandy!”, printed in tiny font on a circuit board, was discovered as intended by the Munro team and posted on Twitter.
Tesla left Sandy Munro a note on one of the Cybertruck’s printed circuit boards https://t.co/uKaYTzlQ80
— Whole Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) June 4, 2024
The original Tesla teardown
Sandy Munro’s company Munro and Associates is an engineering consulting firm that specialises in stripping down new car models from different manufacturers, analysing each component (how its made and what it costs) and then selling that research to other companies.
Munro has worked in automotive manufacturing all his life and his firm is considered one of the best in the world at what it does.
Munro originally came to the attention of Tesla fans in 2018 when he appeared on Autoline After Hours after taking apart a Tesla Model 3 and analysing its parts and assembly. During the traditionally ICE vehicle focused program, Munro spends over an hour discussing the incredible technology he had discovered in the Model 3.
The episode is now a piece of EV history. Since then the auto industry veteran has become a Tesla evangelist and a celebrity in the Tesla community. He now has his own YouTube channel Munro Live where he and his team mostly discuss engineering and Tesla technology.
“This is really cool” Munro show’s Superbottle easter egg in 2018
“This is called the Superbottle.” says Munro pulling the Tesla Model 3 cooling system out of his bag during the show.
“This is really cool. This bottle does all the cooling” says Munro.
“For the battery?” asked the show’s host.
“For everything” replies Munro.
Munro goes on to explain how the Tesla in-house designed Superbottle is an engineering marvel through its integration of multiple cooling systems. (Youtube clip Superbottle discussion starts at 52:40. For a full rundown of what makes the Superbottle such engineering breakthrough see The Tesla Model 3 ‘Superbottle’ Easter Egg Is a Fascinating Packaging Solution).
“See that little man there? This is the little logo on the Superbottle.” says Munro showing the printed logo on the cooling system to the camera.
The Tesla engineers were so proud of what they’d created, they included a roughly drawn cartoon sketch of a superhero bottle, with the Tesla logo on its chest, onto the plastic component.
Six years after Munro first made tribute to the talents of Tesla’s engineering team on Autoline After Hours, Tesla engineers have paid tribute to Munro by etching his name onto one of the Cybertruck’s circuit boards. As intended, it was Munro’s team who made the discovery.
Tesla has not only lead the world’s transition to electric vehicles, they’ve revolutionised manufacturing and inspired an entire new generation of engineers to take on the world’s greatest problems. It’s why along with Space X, Tesla is the most desirable company in the world to work for for engineers.
It’s stories like the Superbottle that make Tesla such a special company and its why people like Sandy Munro say that Tesla is a symphony of engineering. A symphony being played by an orchestra of world’s best engineers led by the world’s best engineering conductor.
Daniel Bleakley is a clean technology researcher and advocate with a background in engineering and business. He has a strong interest in electric vehicles, renewable energy, manufacturing and public policy.