Statistically, electric vehicles catch on fire less often than gas or diesel-powered cars. Nevertheless, when they do go up in flames that conflagration can be dramatically quick and very difficult to put out. One recent example of a Tesla Model 3 burning to the ground highlighted the strengths and potential dangers of EV fires.
Burning electric vehicles gather a lot of attention. Not only do some distrust the new technology associated with the platform but there are real challenges associated with it too. The fires themselves are often very hard to put out, they tend to start and grow rapidly, and sometimes they’ll reignite weeks after an initial incident. In fact, it’s noteworthy when firefighters are able to save an EV after it’s caught fire.
In the case of this video, a burning Tesla Model 3 caught the eye of Tom Moloughney. He runs the State of Charge YouTube channel and is an EV enthusiast. When he saw the car on fire in New Jersey, he caught up with the owner who explained what happened.
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Evidently, the driver hit an object while traveling. Soon after, the Tesla displayed a warning message telling the driver to pull over. When he did he smelled the scent of something burning and got out of the car. He called the fire department and at some point after that, the car caught on fire.
Moloughney highlights how this is very similar to the way that many Tesla Model S’ caught on fire not long after it launched. Each had hit something on the road, damaged the battery pack, and then caught fire. Once an EV battery is damaged it can experience thermal runaway.
Once the process begins, extinguishing it can be challenging, and conventional methods are often ineffective. In some cases, firefighters have resorted to fully submerging a vehicle underwater to prevent reignition. However, it’s important to reiterate that electric vehicles (EVs) are generally less prone to fires compared to combustion cars.
This behavior isn’t confined to Tesla or even just to electric car manufacturers either. Electric scooters and electric bikes are also susceptible to fires that start quickly and cause a great deal of damage almost as fast. In many of those cases, the battery technology isn’t as refined or as regulated though. As a result, many have died due to e-bike or e-scooter battery fires.