The search for a vehicle that doesn’t rely on fossil fuels to run yet doesn’t burst into flames at the slightest provocation continues.
The video above is making rounds on the Internet today , and depicts a Tesla electric car in flames for no apparent reason. Curious bystanders capture the event on video, and only toward the end realize that the vehicle is one of them new-fangled electric rigs.
“Oh that’s a Tesla, dude!” someone shouts off-screen. Best. Viral. Marketing. Ever.
Anyway, according to the Associated Press, the story behind the fire is somehow worse than the image of a flaming eco-friendly vehicle. Officials said Wednesday that the fire actually started in the vehicle’s battery pack, and was caused when a large metallic object hit one of the battery pack’s modules. Translation: The driver of the Model S ran over something metal.
The fire was contained to the front of the vehicle and no one was injured, but the incident seemed to validate the fears of investors and other companies that the batteries aren’t entirely safe.
And as if driving a vehicle that could spontaneously combust isn’t bad enough, it seems that Tesla fires are incredibly difficult to put out. Per the AP:
“In an incident report released under Washington state’s public records law, firefighters wrote that they appeared to have Tuesday’s fire under control, but the flames reignited. Crews found that water seemed to intensify the fire, so they began using a dry chemical extinguisher.
“After dismantling the front end of the vehicle and puncturing holes in the battery pack, responders used a circular saw to cut an access hole in the front section to apply water to the battery, according to documents. Only then was the fire extinguished.”
After the video started going viral online, shares of Tesla Motors Inc. fell more than 6 percent. So much for the “ safest car in America .”
