Watch: Tesla Semi goes through durability test

Tesla has released a video of the Semi electric pickup truck undergoing tests for durability and reliability. The video released on the LinkedIn page of the automaker shows the Semi being driven through water and snow, and then on the bench for suspension testing. The video post reads that the company is looking for people to join its vehicle testing team.

Tesla had previously shared glimpses of the testing video at the delivery event of Semi earlier this month but the latest video gives a clearer idea of how the testing was being done. Earlier this month, Tesla delivered the first unit of the Semi after five years of its unveiling.

The entire footage is not absolutely fresh, as reported by Electrek. While some of it appears to be a few years old, from when the EV maker tested the original Semi prototype in freezing temperatures in Alaska, the rest of it shows the latest generation of the electric truck. “Our engineers tested Semi in a variety of harsh conditions to maximize reliability and durability", the video caption read.

It's been a long long journey for the Tesla Semi. The vehicle was revealed five years ago and it was supposed to go into production three years ago. And finally now, after several delays, the first batch of the electric truck has been delivered to long-time reservation holders.

The Tesla Semi electric truck has an unladen weight of around 25,000-27,000 pounds, a battery capacity of approximately 1,000 kWh, and over 1,000 horsepower from its tri-motor, Plaid-based drive system. The Semi is claimed to have been driven for 804 kilometers during testing.

It comes equipped with an all-new thousand-volt powertrain which is capable of charging at a rate of up to 1 megawatt (MW), allowing the truck to gain 70 per cent state of charge in just 30 minutes. Power consumption of the vehicle is estimated to be less than 2 kWh/mile.