Tesla Cybertruck owner who intentionally drove into Grapevine Lake arrested: police
A Cybertruck driver who intentionally drove into Grapevine Lake to test the truck’s “wade mode” on Monday night was arrested, police said.
Grapevine police officers responded to Katie’s Woods Park Boat Ramp about 8 p.m. after a Tesla Cybertruck was reported in the water near the shoreline, police said in a news release.
The driver told officers that he intentionally drove into the lake to use the Cybertruck’s “wade mode” feature, which allows the truck to enter and drive through bodies of water, such as rivers or creeks, police said.
The driver and passengers abandoned the vehicle after it became disabled and took on water, the release stated. The Grapevine Fire Department Water Rescue team assisted in removing the Cybertruck from the lake.
The driver, identified in jail records as 70-year-old Jimmy Jack McDaniel, faces charges of operation of a vehicle in the closed section of park/lake, no valid boat registration and numerous water safety equipment violations, police said.
McDaniel told Star-Telegram media partner WFAA-TV that he’s driven the truck in the lake and even in the Atlantic Ocean before without problems, but this time he went in too deep. He said he was taking two visitors from Germany for a ride and the three of them escaped through a window.
“We want to remind drivers that although a vehicle may be physically capable of entering shallow freshwater areas, doing so can create legal and safety concerns under Texas law,” police said in the release.
This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 12:49 PM.