Tesla Motors hit its first big road bump in months yesterday after Jalopnik broke the news that a Model S caught fire near Seattle after it crashed into some road debris, igniting the car's battery pack. Here's what we know so far, and why it may not be a big deal for Elon Musk.
Yesterday's fire was significant and newsworthy because it was the first known incidence of a Model S fire on a public road. And even though gasoline cars catch fire after wrecks — or spontaneously, as is known to happen with Ferraris and other supercars — this event is likely to stoke safety fears about electric cars among the public and it is even credited with contributing to a decline in Tesla's stock prices yesterday.
I am not convinced those fears are warranted. I'll recap what's happened so far, and then tell you why that is the case.
What happened exactly? According to Tesla officials and the Kent Regional Fire Authority, the Model S drive crashed into what has been called a "large metallic object" in the roadway around 8 a.m. Tuesday on Washington State Route 167 outside of Seattle.
The Tesla's alert systems signaled a problem, instructing the driver to pull over immediately. The driver exited without being injured but the car's battery packs were already on fire.
What was the debris in the road? Unknown at this point. Tesla spokeswoman Liz Jarvis-Shean told Jalopnik that whatever it was, it was very large. Whatever it was caused significant front-end damage and punched up into the battery pack underneath the car.
What happened when firefighters tried to extinguish the blaze? According to fire department reports obtained by the New York Times and other outlets, firefighters attempted to extinguish the blaze with water, it made the flames worse. To quote our previous story, firefighters ended up putting out the blaze with dry chemical extinguisher.
When they took apart the front end, they found a battery pack still burning. The firefighter "had to puncture multiple holes in the pack to apply water to the burning material in the battery," the report said. Firefighters also used a jack and cut into the frame of the car to spray water on the pack.
Why is that? Fires in lithium-ion batteries can present many challenges for firefighters. The company issues a guide to first responders on how to extinguish blazes on their cars. A fire in a lithium-ion battery isn't just combustion, it is a chemical reaction.
Tesla advises firefighters extinguish the fires using an ABC (dry chemical) or CO2 extinguisher. If the battery is breached, they are told to cool it with very large amounts of water. Battery fires can take up to 24 hours to fully extinguish, according to Tesla.
Have fires like these happened before? This is the first known incident where a Model S caught fire on a public road. The old Tesla Roadster was the subject of a recall for a potential fire hazard back in 2010 that involved its 12-volt battery system.
The Chevrolet Volt was also investigated for potential fires following a series of fires after test crashes. No known Volt fires happened in public. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration closed their inquiry in early 2012.
Could it have been the 12 volt battery instead? Tesla doesn't think so; Jarvis-Shean told us the fire occurred in the lithium-ion battery pack, not the standard 12 volt battery that powers the lights, ignition, touch screen and other components.
Why did Tesla's stock sink? Tesla's stock fell 6.2 percent yesterday, down to about 4 percent this afternoon. Two things have been blamed for this: a downgrade by R.W. Baird to "neutral" from "outperform" and then news of the Model S fire. It was a bad day to be Elon Musk, but it could be much worse.
Will there be a recall? That's tough to say. Jarvis-Shean said that is unclear at this point. Often a recall investigation will be conducted by NHTSA, but they are currently not operating due to the government shutdown. An investigation could take place at some point.
I thought the Model S was super safe. What's the deal? They are safe. In August NHTSA ranked the Model S as a 5.4 on the one-to-five safety scale, making it the safest car ever tested on their scale and possibly the safest car ever produced.
Jarvis-Shean said that the fire is proof that the car's safety systems are effective. The car alerted the driver to pull over, and the fire breaks between the battery modules kept the flames from ever entering the cabin.
"What this was was an affirmation of the safety design of the vehicle," she said.
Is this a big deal for Tesla or for electric cars? The image of the burning Model S was certainly a jarring one, and the first black eye Tesla has received after a several month streak of rave reviews, super-high stock prices, profits, support from the public (if not elected officials) in their ongoing battles with car dealers, and the acclaim over safety.
But I don't think it's going to end up as a major issue for Tesla. As many of you readers have pointed out, it's not out of the ordinary for gasoline-powered cars catch fire after crashes. As Jarvis-Shean says, this is the first Model S fire after being on sale for a year, 13,000 cars delivered and a collective 83 million miles driven. If the Model S had issues with fires, I feel like we would know about it by now. (It's also kind of funny because it's highly unlikely one vehicle fire would dampen the stock prices of a company like General Motors or Toyota, but Tesla is still proving themselves.)
We'll wait and see if other fires happen after crashes, and whether a recall will somehow become necessary. In the meantime, I think these statistics speak for themselves, and I don't think one fire will dampen enthusiasm or demand for the brand.
Your Guide To The Tesla Model S Fire (And Why It's Not A Big Deal)