bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

The CEO of electric car company Tesla said on Friday that a battery in a Model S that caught fire this week was apparently impaled by a metal object.
Elon Musk gave more detail in a blog post about the fire that became an Internet sensation and unsettled Tesla investors. He also defended the car’s battery technology.
Musk wrote in a blog post on Friday that fires are more common in conventional gas-powered vehicles.
“For consumers concerned about fire risk, there should be absolutely zero doubt that it is safer to power a car with a battery than a large tank of highly flammable liquid,” Musk wrote.
The CEO said a curved metal object on the road was apparently to blame for the fire Tuesday. He says the large object’s shape led to a powerful hit on the underside of the vehicle, punching a 3-inch hole through an armour plate that protects the battery under the passenger compartment.
Watch: Tesla catches fire near Seattle

The car properly contained the blaze in one section of the battery, the company said. The driver was able to exit the highway in the Seattle suburb of Kent and get out of the vehicle before flames engulfed the front of the sedan.
Of the estimated 194,000 vehicle fires in the US each year, the vast majority are in cars and trucks with petrol or diesel engines. Electric vehicles make up less than 1 per cent of the cars sold in the US
Firefighters struggled to extinguish the Tesla fire, finding that the flames reignited. 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.
Musk said in his blog post that a “road crew” at the scene of the fire identified the curved metal piece, which fell off a tractor-trailer, as the apparent culprit. However, state and local officials have not been able to say what debris, if any, was found in the area.
Shares of Palo Alto, California-based Tesla Motors Inc. fell sharply Wednesday and Thursday after a video of the car fire circulated on the Internet. The stock recovered somewhat Friday, rising $7.67, or 4.4 per cent, to $180.98. The shares still finished the week with a loss of $9.92, or 5.2 per cent, but they’re still up nearly 400 per cent this year.


China’s FAW buys US$534 million stake in Leapmotor as EV firm sees deliveries jump in 2026

How Elon Musk and his merry band of billionaires run the United States

Keep humans in mind as China races ahead in robotics

Mercedes-Benz acquires stake in Chinese autonomous driving developer for US$191 million

Tesla

Tesla CEO says fire caused by impaled battery

Tesla Model S. Photo: Nora Tam, May Tse

Tesla Model S comes to town

Photos: Nora Tam, May Tse

The Tesla Model S is the world's first sedan built from the ground up as an electric vehicle.

The 17 inch touch screen gives the driver a full view of the car at all times.

Tesla starts the charge in the light brigade.

Tesla blaze renews safety concerns with electric cars

A quick charger for BYD taxis in a Hong Kong parking lot overheated and emitted smoke in June. Photo: David Wong 

Business

Elon Musk gave more detail in a blog post about the fire that became an Internet sensation and unsettled Tesla investors. He also defended the car’s battery technology
