[RCB268]

So, this just came in from C/Net:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-5...=nl.e404&s_cid=e404&ttag=e404&ftag=CAD1acfa04

I would bet that most Tesla S owners would say the same thing...

 

[Elemental]

He would, or he will buy another one? Being his is currently charcoal.....Kinda of forces his hand, no?

 

[Fulgerite]

More like... I will take another one that my insurance company buys for me...

 

[emartin00]

"Next, he said he got 100 yards away and, some two minutes later, the car caught fire"

2 minutes after an ICE car started smoking it would probably be completely engulfed in flames.

 

[bonaire]

I'm glad he is safe. But I don't buy the arguments that some have said which run the gamut of "if he was in an ICE, he would be dead right now" to "there is no other car in the world which would have protected him as much as the Tesla". But yes, any car with such a low ground clearance would have had some injury. Perhaps the engine compartment would have jammed up with the tow hitch and drug it along to it perhaps bending in the protection pan below the gas tank, etc. Maybe causing an oil leak and fire, etc. Soft steel is different than the aluminum sheet under the Tesla battery and it would deform. Many types of aluminum will crack or puncture under very heavy stress. When Musk says this is "armor" but it is made of aluminum, I kind of have some doubts on the reality of the "armor" quote.

The guy was going 70 mph and was behind a truck (maybe drafting or well under 2-seconds of gap, I assume). Perhaps speed and following distance played a part in this.

 

[Upper5Percent]

One wonders if and when insurance companies will be raising their comprehensive rates on Teslas...especially since three of them turned into total losses...

 

[focher]

Full text:

I was driving home from work on the interstate in the right lane at approximately 70 miles per hour, following a truck. In the middle of the lane, there was a rusty three-pronged trailer hitch that was sticking up with the ball up in the air. The truck in front of me cleared the object. I did not have enough time to swerve to avoid the hitch, and it went below my car. I felt a firm "thud" as the hitch struck the bottom of the car, and it felt as though it even lifted the car up in the air. My assistant later found a gouge in the tarmac where the item scraped into the road. Somewhat shaken, I continued to drive.

About 30-45 seconds later, there was a warning on the dashboard display saying, "Car needs service. Car may not restart." I continued to drive, hoping to get home. About one minute later, the message on the dashboard display read, "Please pull over safely. Car is shutting down." I was able to fully control the car the entire time and safely pulled off the left shoulder on the side of the road. I got out of the car, and started to get all my belongings out. About 5-10 seconds after getting out of the car, smoke started to come from the front underbody of the car. I walked away from the vehicle to a distance of about 100 yards. More smoke started to come out of the bottom of the car, and about two minutes after I walked away, the front of the car caught on fire.

I am thankful to God that I was totally uninjured in any way from this impact. Had I not been in a Tesla, that object could have punched through the floor and caused me serious harm. From the time of impact of the object until the time the car caught fire was about five minutes. During this time, the car warned me that it was damaged and instructed me to pull over. I never felt as though I was in any imminent danger. While driving after I hit the object until I pulled over, the car performed perfectly, and it was a totally controlled situation. There was never a point at which I was anywhere even close to any flames.

The firemen arrived promptly and applied water to the flames. They were about to pry open the doors, so I pressed my key button and the handles presented and everything worked even though the front of the car was on fire. No flames ever reached the cabin, and nothing inside was damaged. I was even able to get my papers and pens out of the glove compartment.

This experience does not in any way make me think that the Tesla Model S is an unsafe car. I would buy another one in a heartbeat.

Juris Shibayama, MD

 

[srmarti]

Doesn't say the car is unsafe to the occupants, but still doesn't say the car isn't especially vulnerable to battery damage and fire from road debris. All the other stuff said about had he been in another car is speculative opinion. Debris might have taken out the engine in a conventional car, but assuming it would end up in the passenger compartment is a bit of a stretch considering engineering for crash protection. In both cases the energy storage was compromised and a fire started in the front of the vehicle. Most fuel tanks are at the other end of the vehicle.

 

[DonC]

His statement reads like it was written by someone in Tesla's PR or legal department. Pretty lame. The "had I not been in a Tesla, the object could have punched through the floor and caused me serious harm" is a dead giveaway. The "could have" is your legal weasel word. By saying "could have" you're also saying "could not have", allowing you to give the impression of saying one thing while legally not saying it.

 

[AngelRa]

The similarities of the 3 Model S fires make me suspect there may be a design flaw that escaped crash testing.

 

[focher]

The similarities of the 3 Model S fires make me suspect there may be a design flaw that escaped crash testing.

There's a difference between a design flaw and potential design improvements that are identified through real world experiences. Or situations like the reinforcement of the Volt battery that was done. It wasn't a design flaw, but was an opportunity to improve the design.

 

[scottf200]

The similarities of the 3 Model S fires make me suspect there may be a design flaw that escaped crash testing.

Comments like this make it clear people are not following this closely. Here is the 2nd. It certainly is NOTHING AT ALL like the 1st or 3rd. Geez!

Fire # 2
The second fire, on October 18, was in Mérida, a city in the Mexican Yucatán. It apparently occurred after the Model S driver jumped a curb, took out several feet of a concrete wall, and then hit a tree.
The driver--who was reported to have been under the influence of alcohol (via Jalopnik)--then fled the scene.
That's apparently not uncommon in Mexico--where the Tesla Model S is not yet sold, by the way. Video of the aftermath here (NSFW if you speak Spanish).
Tesla issued a statement saying the driver was "appreciative of the safety and performance of the car, and has asked if we can expedite delivery of his next Model S.”
This fire seems to have generated less controversy, perhaps due to its location outside the U.S. and to the severity of the accident--for which the driver may have been at fault.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

One wonders if and when insurance companies will be raising their comprehensive rates on Teslas...especially since three of them turned into total losses...

Let's say 17,500 cars. 1 per month, so 12 debris fires per year per 17,500 vehicles. Let's say $120k per car then the annual cost is $120000*12/17500 = $82.29.

 

[Ladogaboy]

Wow, I'm surprised at how many people are jumping on the "design flaw" bandwagon. No vehicles (with the exception of military vehicles with ballistic shielding) are designed to account for large, steel objects bouncing around the undercarriage at highway speeds. You can scream design flaw all you want, but the fact of the matter is that a Volt would be crippled (and possibly catch fire) under similar circumstances.

You don't like Tesla? Fine. You don't like Elon? That's fine, too. But why revel in something like this? Doing so only makes you appear petty and envious.

 

[Ron in Omaha]

We may get a bit of a biased viewpoint since this is a Volt forum, not a Tesla forum. That being said, I can't help but think the Volt would not have caught fire in any of the 3 Tesla fire situations. Fire number 2 in Mexico may not have happened simply because the Volt isn't capable of the same performance figures, but fires 1 and 3 were both directly related to having a large battery mounted in a vulnerable position down low at the front of the vehicle. I'm very glad that all 3 fires gave the occupant plenty of time to get out safely and then successfully contained the fire to only the front part of the vehicle. It's apparent that the safety engineering for Tesla is working. Unfortunately, it's been tested a few too many times in the public limelight. Still, the Volt has only managed to burn one car, and that one took 3 weeks to finally ignite. I'm happy for the Tesla owners who love their cars, but I can't really see myself ever joining that group and it's not due to budget constraints.

 

[trm2]

One wonders if and when insurance companies will be raising their comprehensive rates on Teslas...especially since three of them turned into total losses...

Insurance companies will raise comp rates when there is enough data to prove that a Tesla provides more risk. That is the thing about insurance companies, we love lots and lots of data.

 

[Mathew Hennessy]

Tesla could roll $200 into the price of every Model S to give away "free" lifetime battery fire insurance, and would probably make a profit!

 

[Zythryn]

Let's say 17,500 cars. 1 per month, so 12 debris fires per year per 17,500 vehicles. Let's say $120k per car then the annual cost is $120000*12/17500 = $82.29.

Talk about cherry picking. How about 2 vehicle fires per 110 Million miles?
I have no doubt insurance companies are paying attention and will raise, or lower fees as appropriate.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Talk about cherry picking. How about 2 vehicle fires per 110 Million miles?
I have no doubt insurance companies are paying attention and will raise, or lower fees as appropriate.

It doesn't directly matter how many miles are traveled. The insurance company just wants to know the expected annual cost and add it to the customers' premiums.

Expected annual cost of event = (expected event cost) * (probability of a car having event during year).

Small sample sizes give a large margin of error. Maybe the events are exceptional. Maybe they've been lucky. Maybe it's seasonal. Maybe they'll find the parties at fault for the debris.

 

[Zythryn]

It doesn't directly matter how many miles are traveled. The insurance company just wants to know the expected annual cost and add it to the customers' premiums.

Expected annual cost of event = (expected event cost) * (probability of a car having event during year).

Small sample sizes give a large margin of error. Maybe the events are exceptional. Maybe they've been lucky. Maybe it's seasonal. Maybe they'll find the parties at fault for the debris.

I doubt there was any driver fault in the two road debris incidents. The driver entering a turn-a-bout at 70 is most likely at fault

That said, Musk's latest blog entry is here: http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/mission-tesla