Crashes related to the Tesla Model S have been an issue for a long time, and despite Tesla’s repeated claims that it is working on it, the incidents do not seem to stop.
Not much known about what caused the fire
Just a couple of days ago, a Model S caught fire at a Supercharger station in Shanghai. Another Tesla parked at the station was also damaged. However, no injuries were reported, according to Chinese media. The Supercharger station where the fire took place is located in the vicinity of Tesla’s first 4S stores in China. According to reports, the car that caught fire was parked there for a long time, and it is not known if the car was being charged at the time of the fire.
Another explosive incident in November in Indianapolis, involved a young woman driving her boss’ Model S. The young woman, Casey Speckman, succumbed to her injuries. It is reported that Speckman, who had a very high blood alcohol level, died immediately after the crash, but boss Kevin McCarthy died due to the car’s subsequent explosion and fire.
In September, a similar fire was reported in the Model S; the car’s driver died after it hit a tree in the Netherlands. A similar incident happened in France when the Model S caught fire during a test drive.
Incidents involving the Tesla Model S
In 2013, there were also a few incidents of the Model S catching fire, but the majority of the accidents then were the result of the car hitting debris and puncturing the battery. The EV firm responded to the threat quickly by introducing a titanium shell to prevent the battery from being punctured. Downplaying the risk, CEO Elon Musk said at that time that there are “thousands” of cars running on gasoline that are involved in accidents every year. He added that if a conventional gasoline car had caught fire, the result could have been much worse.
Just last week, a Model S in Autopilot Mode slammed into a barrier, and a video of the crash was posted on Reddit. Fortunately, the driver came out of the vehicle unharmed. The driver said the Autopilot did not give any warning and could not identify the hurdle on the road. According to the driver, Autopilot lacked precision, resulting into a crash.
However, the video posted on Reddit had a different story to tell. The video indicated that the Model S was running on a road that was under construction and failed to identify the construction barrier. Although the Autopilot technology did its bit to prevent the accident, it definitely isn’t perfect.
