Kathrine Frich
When a car company introduces a flashy new technology, curious owners often cannot wait to try it out for themselves.
Pushing an expensive vehicle to its limits sounds like an exciting weekend plan, but things can turn embarrassing very quickly when reality sets in.
A bizarre incident in the American south shows exactly what happens when driver confidence overrides common sense.
Into the water
A routine afternoon patrol quickly turned into a bizarre rescue mission.
Officers in Texas rushed to a local boat ramp after receiving strange reports about a submerged vehicle.
When the team arrived, they found a distinct electric pickup truck stuck in Grapevine Lake. According to the Grapevine Police Department cited by People, the vehicle was stranded near the shoreline.
The vehicle had quickly broken down and started taking on water. This forced everyone inside to quickly scramble out of the cabin to escape the sinking truck.
The driver reportedly told officers that he plowed into the lake on purpose. He wanted to test the vehicle’s special feature.
Rules and warnings
The modern feature is designed to help the truck navigate through shallow streams and rivers. But the manufacturer includes plenty of warnings about how to use it safely.
According to the online manual, Tesla states that “Wade Mode allows Cybertruck to enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks.” However, the company warns that owners must check the water depth before entering.
Footage of the event quickly surfaced on social media. An Instagram video shows the vehicle struggling to move through the water after the passengers crawled through a window.
Emergency crews had to use heavy equipment to solve the problem. The local fire department rescue team eventually pulled the flooded truck out of the lake using a crane.
Facing the charges
The driver’s afternoon test drive ended with a sudden trip straight to jail. Media outlets later identified the motorist as Jimmy Jack McDaniel.
The Grapevine Police Department arrested McDaniel on multiple charges. He faces counts for operating a vehicle in a closed section of a park and various water safety violations.
According to NBC5, McDaniel also lacked a valid boat registration. He told reporters he had driven the truck in water “several times before without incident,” before this accident.
The local jail told PEOPLE that the motorist was released by Tuesday evening. Local authorities warned that driving into fresh water can trigger serious safety and legal risks under state law.
Sources: Grapevine Police Department, Tesla, NBC5, PEOPLE, Instagram
