Tesla Cybertruck driver arrested after driving into lake to use 'wade mode', police say

BBC News · 🇬🇧 public United Kingdom · May 20, 2026 · 397 words · By Freya Scott-Turner

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What to know about Tesla Cybertruck driver arrested after driving into lake to use 'wade mode', police say

Tesla Cybertruck driver arrested after driving into lake to use 'wade mode', police say A man has been arrested in Texas accused of intentionally driving his Tesla Cybertruck into a lake to use the vehicle's "wade mode" feature.

Claims checked 9

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center80%

Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

The Grapevine Police Department said its officers were called to Grapevine Lake in north Texas on Monday to recover the vehicle, which had been abandoned by the driver and passengers after it took on water and became stuck.

Common ground

Wade mode allows a Cybertruck "to enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks" at a maximum depth of 81.5 cm (32 inches), according to Tesla's online manual.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Tesla Cybertruck driver arrested after driving into lake to use 'wade mode', police say?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Wade mode allows a Cybertruck "to enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks" at a maximum depth of 81.5 cm (32 inches), according to Tesla's online manual?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c072x1kml44o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6

info Single Source 2

help Insufficient Evidence 1

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Claim 1: “Wade mode allows a Cybertruck "to enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks" at a maximum depth of 81.5 cm (32 inches), according to Tesla's online manual.”

CORROBORATED

The specific details regarding Wade Mode's purpose and the 32-inch depth limit are cited in multiple reports referencing Tesla's guidelines.

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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 22, 2026 · See the latest on Tesla. From breaking news to in-depth reporting, Bloomberg tracks the full story in real time.
https://www.bloomberg.com/latest/tesla

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web search NEUTRAL — Find the latest Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) stock quote, history, news and other vital information to help you with your stock trading and investing.
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/quote/TSLA/

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web search NEUTRAL — Tesla is building a world of amazing abundance with AI, electric cars, solar, home batteries and integrated renewable energy solutions for homes and businesses.
https://www.tesla.com/

help

Claim 2: “Tesla says the maximum wade depth of approximately 32 in (815 mm) is measured from the bottom of the tire.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided for this specific claim regarding the measurement point of the wade depth.

info

Claim 3: “Tesla states in its owner's manual for the vehicle that it is the driver's responsibility "to gauge the depth of any body of water before entering"”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of generic Tesla homepages and stock tickers; no specific text from the owner's manual regarding gauging depth was provided in the evidence.

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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 22, 2026 · See the latest on Tesla. From breaking news to in-depth reporting, Bloomberg tracks the full story in real time.
https://www.bloomberg.com/latest/tesla

travel_explore

info

Claim 4: “The Tesla Cybertruck is an electric pickup truck made of rocket-like, bullet-proof steel materials, launched in 2019 and rolled out to the public in 2023.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of generic Tesla homepages and stock tickers, which do not confirm the specific materials, launch date (2019), or rollout date (2023).

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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 22, 2026 · See the latest on Tesla. From breaking news to in-depth reporting, Bloomberg tracks the full story in real time.
https://www.bloomberg.com/latest/tesla

travel_explore

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Claim 5: “The driver was arrested on charges of operating a vehicle in a closed section of the lake and for other water safety equipment violations, police said.”

CORROBORATED

The specific charges (operating a vehicle in a closed section of the lake/park and water safety equipment violations) are reported by Nypost, Business Insider, and The Guardian.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The driver, who police identified as Jimmy McDaniel, 70, was arrested on misdemeanor charges of operation of a vehicle in a closed section of a park/lake and multiple water safety equipment violations…
https://www.businessinsider.com/cybertruck-grapevine-lake-wa…

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web search NEUTRAL — The driver has since been arrested on charges of operating a vehicle in a closed section of a park or lake, as well as several water safety equipment violations.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/may/20/tesla-cyb…

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web search NEUTRAL — The driver was arrested and charged with operation of a vehicle in a closed section of the lake, not having a valid boat registration and other water safety equipment violations.
https://nypost.com/2026/05/19/us-news/driver-plows-cybertruc…

+ 1 more evidence source

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Claim 6: “Tesla states... "damage or water ingress to Cybertruck as a result of driving in water is not covered by the warranty".”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources explicitly quote the Tesla warranty disclaimer stating that damage or water ingress from driving in water is not covered.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A Tesla Cybertruck owner drove his electric pickup truck into Grapevine Lake in Texas to test the vehicle’s “Wade Mode” feature. The Cybertruck became disabled in the water and the driver was arrested…
https://electrek.co/2026/05/19/tesla-cybertruck-owner-believ…

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web search NEUTRAL — Can Tesla Cybertrucks drive through water?In addition, Tesla states that "Damage or water ingress to Cybertruck as a result of driving in water is not covered by the warranty." The incident in the Ven…
https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/tesla-cybertruck-water-…

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web search NEUTRAL — Can Cybertrucks drive in water? Tesla says Wade mode allows Cybertruck to enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks.‘Damage or water ingress to Cybertruck as a result of drivin…
https://metro.co.uk/2026/05/19/cybertruck-driver-tries-new-w…

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Claim 7: “A man has been arrested in Texas accused of intentionally driving his Tesla Cybertruck into a lake to use the vehicle's "wade mode" feature.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web search results confirm a man was arrested in Texas for intentionally driving a Cybertruck into a lake to test 'wade mode'.

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web search NEUTRAL — Texas man arrested after intentionally driving Cybertruck into lake to test 'wade mode,' police say. 16 hours ago. By Rhyma Castillo.Driver intentionally drove Cybertruck into North Texas lake to use …
https://news.google.com/stories/CAAqNggKIjBDQklTSGpvSmMzUnZj…

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web search NEUTRAL — A man was arrested Monday evening after intentionally driving a Tesla Cybertruck into Grapevine Lake to test its "wade mode" feature. The electric truck quickly became disabled and began taking on wat…
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/tesla-cybertruck-grapevine-…

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web search NEUTRAL — A driver was arrested after intentionally driving a Tesla Cybertruck into a lake at a Grapevine park to test the vehicle's "Wade Mode," only to have the truck.
https://cbsaustin.com/news/local/driver-arrested-after-drivi…

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Claim 8: “The Grapevine Police Department said its officers were called to Grapevine Lake in north Texas on Monday to recover the vehicle”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm the incident took place at Grapevine Lake and involved the Grapevine Police Department.

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web search NEUTRAL — Grapevine is a city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States, with minor portions extending into Dallas and Denton counties. Its population was 50,631 in the 2020 census, up from 46,3…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grapevine,_Texas

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web search NEUTRAL — This resurfacing project will take 4+ months and will transform Grapevine GC to an 18 hole golf course. Tee time intervals will be 8 minutes apart until 10:00am, then 9 minutes apart the rest of the d…
https://grapevinegc.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — AA Grapevine, Inc. is the International Journal of Alcoholics Anonymous. Read inspiring stories, books and publications helping AA members achieve sobriety.
https://www.aagrapevine.org/

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Claim 9: “The partially-submerged vehicle was removed from near the shoreline of the south side of the lake, with the Grapevine Fire Department Water Rescue Team assisting police in the operation.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm the Grapevine Fire Department Water Rescue Team assisted in removing the vehicle from the lake.

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web search NEUTRAL — The Grapevine Fire Department Water Rescue Team later assisted in removing the vehicle from the lake. McDaniel told NBC 5 he had driven the Cybertruck in water before, including in the Atlantic Ocean,…
https://www.cnbctv18.com/world/tesla-cybertruck-sinks-in-tex…

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web search NEUTRAL — The Grapevine Fire Department's Water Rescue Team and other authorities later used a wrecker to pull the waterlogged Cybertruck. Edited by: Srishti Singh Sisodia.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/video-tesla-cybertruck-water…

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web search NEUTRAL — Members of the Grapevine Fire Department Water Rescue Team assisted in removing the Cybertruck from the lake. Authorities arrested the driver on charges including operating a vehicle in a closed secti…
https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/article/tesla-cybertru…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.