Since Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s Model S sedan runs on lithium batteries, it’s natural to wonder what happens when it crashes. After all, there have been reports of companies which manufacture this type of battery accidentally burning down their factories. Thankfully for us, Forbes contributor Quora reports on his experiences with a wrecked Model S.
Tesla’s Model S the safest vehicle
Not too long ago, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) issued a controversial press release stating that the Model S is the safest car on the road. The vehicle did achieve a rating very few other vehicles have achieved, but the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration took issue with the automaker’s wording in the press release. Anyway, this would suggest that the car doesn’t have any problems with the batteries catching fire. As reported by Quora, this does appear to be the case.
He accidentally wrecked his wife’s Model S sedan (imagine the comments if that situation was reversed and she wrecked his car) after being “sideswiped by a hit-and-run.” The vehicle spent “several weeks” in the Tesla body shop in San Carlos.
So what kinds of issues do Tesla’s cars have?
He noted that there are many Model S sedans there with a variety of problems caused by accidents. However, he said there wasn’t a single fire in any of Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s vehicles—including the older Roadster models.
He found that about 20 to 30 percent of the Roadsters though, fell apart and had to be rebuilt. However, this doesn’t appear to be the case with the Model S, suggesting that Tesla learned from its mistakes with the Roadster.
He also noticed that there were “tons of rear-end accidents.” He speculated that it could be because of the default regenerative braking setting. This setting means that drivers of vehicles following the Model S won’t see the red brake lights come on as early as they would on other vehicles. Another speculation was that the extreme quietness of the vehicle could cause more accidents. He notes that these are just speculations, of course.
Other notes about Tesla’s vehicles
He advised drivers of Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) vehicles not to get into a wreck because parts are not readily available. He said it takes approximately a month for the body shop to get parts and fix the vehicle. In addition, he says repairs are pretty expensive.
Another somewhat minor note is that he saw several with the back hatches ripped off. He suggested that this may be because buyers of luxury cars aren’t used to having a hatchback on their vehicle, so they leave it up when backing out of their garages. Of course again, this is pure speculation.
As of this writing, shares of Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) were up more than 3 percent, pushing the stock closer and closer to $200 a share.
