Braking and Stopping

Braking Systems

Warning

Properly functioning braking systems are critical to ensure safety. If you experience a problem with the brake pedal, brake calipers, or any component of a Cybertruck braking system, contact Tesla immediately.

Cybertruck has an anti-lock braking system (ABS) that prevents the wheels from locking when you apply brake pressure. This improves steering control during heavy braking in most road conditions because ABS constantly monitors the speed of each wheel and varies the brake pressure according to the grip available.

The alteration of brake pressure can be felt as a pulsing sensation through the brake pedal. This demonstrates that the ABS is operating and is not a cause for concern. Keep firm and steady pressure on the brake pedal while experiencing the pulsing.

USA and Mexico:

The ABS indicator briefly flashes amber on the touchscreen when you first start Cybertruck. If this indicator lights up at any other time, an ABS fault has occurred and the ABS is not operating. Contact Tesla. The braking system remains fully operational and is not affected by an ABS failure. However, braking distances may increase. Drive cautiously and avoid heavy braking.

Canada:

The ABS indicator briefly flashes amber on the touchscreen when you first start Cybertruck. If this indicator lights up at any other time, an ABS fault has occurred and the ABS is not operating. Contact Tesla. The braking system remains fully operational and is not affected by an ABS failure. However, braking distances may increase. Drive cautiously and avoid heavy braking.

USA and Mexico:

If the touchscreen displays this red brake indicator at any time other than briefly when you first start Cybertruck, a brake system fault is detected, or the level of the brake fluid is low. Contact Tesla immediately. Apply steady pressure and keep the brake pedal firmly pressed to stop the vehicle when safe to do so.

Canada:

Red exclamation point within a red circle with the word BRAKE underneath

If the touchscreen displays this red brake indicator at any time other than briefly when you first start Cybertruck, a brake system fault is detected, or the level of the brake fluid is low. Contact Tesla immediately. Apply steady pressure and keep the brake pedal firmly pressed to stop the vehicle when safe to do so.

USA and Mexico:

The touchscreen displays this amber brake indicator if a brake booster fault is detected. Apply steady pressure and keep the brake pedal firmly pressed to stop the vehicle when safe to do so. Hydraulic Boost Compensation will be active (see Hydraulic Boost Compensation).

Canada:

Amber exclamation point within an amber circle with the word BRAKE underneath

The touchscreen displays this amber brake indicator if a brake booster fault is detected. Apply steady pressure and keep the brake pedal firmly pressed to stop the vehicle when safe to do so. Hydraulic Boost Compensation will be active (see Hydraulic Boost Compensation).

Emergency Braking

In an emergency, fully press the brake pedal and maintain firm pressure, even on low traction surfaces. The ABS varies the braking pressure to each wheel depending on the amount of traction available. This prevents wheels from locking and ensures that you stop as safely as possible.

If an alternative method is needed to bring the vehicle to a stop, press and hold the Park button on the touchscreen's drive mode strip to apply the brakes and remove drive torque while the button is held. Touch Controls or press the brake pedal to display the drive mode strip.

Warning

Do not pump the brake pedal. Doing so interrupts operation of the ABS and can increase braking distance.

Warning

Always maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you and be aware of hazardous driving conditions. While the ABS can improve stopping distance, it cannot overcome the laws of physics. It also does not prevent the danger of hydroplaning (where a layer of water prevents direct contact between the tires and the road).

CAUTION

Automatic Emergency Braking (see Automatic Emergency Braking) may intervene to automatically brake in situations where a collision is considered imminent. Automatic Emergency Braking is not designed to prevent a collision. It is designed to minimize the impact of a frontal collision by attempting to reduce your driving speed. Depending on Automatic Emergency Braking to avoid a collision can result in serious injury or death.

CAUTION

In emergency situations, if the brakes are not functioning properly, press and hold the Park button on the overhead console or touchscreen to bring Cybertruck to a stop. Do not use this method to stop the vehicle unless absolutely necessary.

Brake Disc Wiping

When cold and wet weather is detected, brake disc wiping repeatedly applies an imperceptible amount of brake force to remove water from the surface of the brake discs.

Hydraulic Boost Compensation

Cybertruck is equipped with a brake booster that activates the brakes when the brake pedal is pressed. Hydraulic boost compensation provides mechanical assistance if the brake booster fails. If a brake booster failure is detected, the brake pedal feels stiffer to press and you may hear a sound when you press the brake pedal. To stop Cybertruck, apply steady force to the brake pedal without releasing or pumping. Drive cautiously and maintain a safe distance from other road users—brake pedal responsiveness and braking performance may be degraded.

Hydraulic Fade Compensation

Hydraulic fade compensation assists in monitoring brake system pressure and ABS activity for instances of reduced brake performance. If reduced brake performance is detected (for example, as a result of brake fade, or cold or wet conditions), you may hear a sound, feel the brake pedal pull away from your foot, and notice a strong increase in braking. Brake as you normally would and continue to press the brake pedal without releasing or pumping the brakes.

Warning

Always maintain a safe driving distance from the vehicle in front of you and exercise caution when driving conditions are hazardous. Brake disc wiping and hydraulic fade compensation are NOT substitutes for adequately applying the brakes.

Regenerative Braking

Whenever Cybertruck is moving and your foot is off the accelerator, regenerative braking slows down the vehicle and feeds any surplus power back to the Battery. By anticipating your stops and reducing or relieving pressure from the accelerator pedal to slow down, you can take advantage of regenerative braking to increase driving range.

Vehicle deceleration due to regenerative braking may vary depending on the current state of the Battery. For example, regenerative braking may be limited if the Battery is cold or is already fully charged.

To experience the same amount of deceleration whenever you release the accelerator pedal, regardless of the state of the Battery, you can choose to have the regular braking system automatically engage whenever regenerative braking is limited. Touch Controls > Dynamics > Apply Brakes When Regenerative Braking is Limited. When enabled, the brake pedal may move or feel stiffer when pressed. This is expected and does not change your ability to slow down Cybertruck.

Note

Apply Brakes When Regenerative Braking is Limited may not operate if the brakes are extremely hot.

Note

Apply Brakes When Regenerative Braking is Limited is not available when Trailer Mode is engaged (see Towing a Trailer).

The power meter (a thin vertical line next to the drive mode strip) displays real-time power usage:

Shows power being output by the Battery, such as that used to accelerate the vehicle or to cool the cabin. When you press the accelerator pedal, the top half of the power meter fills with black (or white if the display is dark).
Represents power generated from regenerative braking, or power that captured from slowing down the vehicle. Power being fed back to the Battery displays in green whereas power used by the regular braking system displays in gray.

Note

Installing winter tires with aggressive compound and tread design may result in temporarily-reduced regenerative braking power. However, your vehicle is designed to continuously recalibrate itself, and after changing tires it will increasingly restore regenerative braking power after some straight-line accelerations. For most drivers this occurs after a short period of normal driving, but drivers who normally accelerate lightly may need to use slightly harder accelerations while the recalibration is in progress.

Note

If regenerative braking is aggressively slowing Cybertruck (such as when your foot is completely off the accelerator pedal at highway speeds), the exterior brake lights turn on to alert others that you are slowing down.

Warning

In snowy or icy conditions, Cybertruck may experience loss of traction during regenerative braking.

Vehicle Hold

When Cybertruck is stopped, Vehicle Hold can continue to apply the brakes even after you remove your foot from the brake pedal and is automatically enabled any time the vehicle comes to a complete stop.

This indicator displays on the touchscreen whenever Vehicle Hold is actively holding Cybertruck while stopped.

To disengage Vehicle Hold, press the accelerator or brake pedal, or shift into Neutral.

Note

After actively braking Cybertruck for approximately ten minutes, Cybertruck shifts into Park and Vehicle Hold cancels. The parking brake is still applied. Cybertruck also shifts into Park if it detects that the driver has left the vehicle.

Parking Brake

The parking brake is automatically engaged when in Park, and automatically disengages when shifted out of Park.

To manually engage the parking brake, touch Controls > Safety > Park Brake. Follow the onscreen instructions. Manually disengage the parking brake by selecting Park Brake again.

USA and Mexico:

When you manually apply the parking brake using the touchscreen, the red parking brake indicator lights up on the touchscreen.

Canada:

A read P within a red circle with the word PARK underneath

When you manually apply the parking brake using the touchscreen, the red parking brake indicator lights up on the touchscreen.

USA and Mexico:

If the parking brake experiences an electrical issue, the amber parking brake indicator lights up and a fault message displays on the touchscreen.

Canada:

If the parking brake experiences an electrical issue, the amber parking brake indicator lights up and a fault message displays on the touchscreen.

Note

The parking brake operates on the rear wheels only, and is independent of the pedal-operated brake system.

CAUTION

In the unlikely event that Cybertruck loses electrical power, you cannot access the touchscreen and are therefore unable to release the parking brake without first jump starting (see Jump Starting).

Warning

In snowy or icy conditions the rear wheels may not have sufficient traction to prevent Cybertruck from sliding down a slope, particularly if not using winter tires. Avoid parking on hills in snowy or icy conditions. You are always responsible for parking safely.

Warning

Your Cybertruck may display an alert if the road is too steep to safely park, or if the parking brakes are not properly engaged. These alerts are for guidance purposes only and are not a substitute for the driver’s judgment of safe parking conditions, including specific road or weather conditions. Do not depend on these alerts to determine whether or not it is safe to park at any location. You are always responsible for parking safely.

Brake Wear

Cybertruck brake pads are equipped with wear indicators. A wear indicator is a thin metal strip attached to the brake pad that squeals as it rubs against the rotor when the pad wears down. This squealing sound indicates that the brake pads have reached the end of their service life and require replacement.

Brakes must be periodically inspected visually by removing the tire and wheel. For detailed specifications and service limits for rotors and brake pads, see Subsystems. Additionally, Tesla recommends cleaning and lubricating the brake calipers every year or 12,500 miles (20,000 km) if in an area where roads are salted during winter months.

Warning

Neglecting to replace worn brake pads damages the braking system and can result in a braking hazard.