I get that statistically, Teslas are much less likely than ICE cars to catch fire, the media attention to EV fires is disproportionate, etc.
I think if Tesla could give a reason for the fires, rather than simply pointing out how rare they are, these stories would be much less compelling. It's the sense of the unknown which makes people paranoid. I suspect it has to do with Model S battery chemistry and they don't want to make the S even less competitive against the 3 than it already is.
It's also that if a Lithium battery catches fire, it's not going to be stoppable by a common extinguisher. The only thing you can really do is put a shield around the fire, or drop a tungsten dome around it and pray it doesn't fly off.
What I get though is that ICEs might be subject to more stringent regulation at least for charging in the future.
At least in EU, cars with a compressed fuel tank (hydrogen, GPL or methane) cannot be parked in a closed or underground parking lot for one safety reason: risk of explosion. The risk is pretty low, and if you have such a tank you're also subjected to scheduled regular inspections and replacement of the tank, but you still cannot park underground. Not many people are aware or respect this limit, thanks to the fact that it's not easy to distinguish a car which has a dual fuel option.
Now imagine a lithium fire in a garage (maybe... your garage?).
>Teslas are much less likely than ICE cars to catch fire
I wonder how many of those ICE cars were new, or at least within the same life time of Tesla?
If we are talking about good old 20 years classic, then we all expect them to fail some day right? Or exotic cars that were be pushed to the limits and caught fire. ( From a few Lamborghini )
It is extremely rare ( if at all ), that a well maintained, newer ICE cars goes into flame just by filling up with petrol.
Most likely, something is occasionally going wrong with the whole "Super" part of supercharging. Quick-charging a lithium battery is a lot more fiddly than just slowly feeding it a trickle of charge, and the Superchargers push the "quick" aspect to the extreme, since it's one of the most problematic parts of EV use.
A quick google seems to show that’s fairly standard[0]:
> A small Li-ion fire can be handled like any other combustible fire. For best result use a foam extinguisher, CO2, ABC dry chemical, powdered graphite, copper powder or soda (sodium carbonate). If the fire occurs in an airplane cabin, the FAA instructs flight attendants to use water or soda pop. Water-based products are most readily available and are appropriate since Li-ion contains very little lithium metal that reacts with water. Water also cools the adjacent area and prevents the fire from spreading. Research laboratories and factories also use water to extinguish Li-ion battery fires.
[+] [-] Pulletwee12549|6 years ago|reply
I think if Tesla could give a reason for the fires, rather than simply pointing out how rare they are, these stories would be much less compelling. It's the sense of the unknown which makes people paranoid. I suspect it has to do with Model S battery chemistry and they don't want to make the S even less competitive against the 3 than it already is.
[+] [-] monibis|6 years ago|reply
The comparison with ICE cars should be to cars of a similar age.
Comparing them to the entire population of ICE cars, some of which would be old and poorly maintained, seems wrong
[+] [-] pieterk|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thatsaguy|6 years ago|reply
At least in EU, cars with a compressed fuel tank (hydrogen, GPL or methane) cannot be parked in a closed or underground parking lot for one safety reason: risk of explosion. The risk is pretty low, and if you have such a tank you're also subjected to scheduled regular inspections and replacement of the tank, but you still cannot park underground. Not many people are aware or respect this limit, thanks to the fact that it's not easy to distinguish a car which has a dual fuel option.
Now imagine a lithium fire in a garage (maybe... your garage?).
[+] [-] Hamuko|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ksec|6 years ago|reply
I wonder how many of those ICE cars were new, or at least within the same life time of Tesla?
If we are talking about good old 20 years classic, then we all expect them to fail some day right? Or exotic cars that were be pushed to the limits and caught fire. ( From a few Lamborghini )
It is extremely rare ( if at all ), that a well maintained, newer ICE cars goes into flame just by filling up with petrol.
[+] [-] 0815test|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] anticensor|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Havoc|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] brennebeck|6 years ago|reply
> A small Li-ion fire can be handled like any other combustible fire. For best result use a foam extinguisher, CO2, ABC dry chemical, powdered graphite, copper powder or soda (sodium carbonate). If the fire occurs in an airplane cabin, the FAA instructs flight attendants to use water or soda pop. Water-based products are most readily available and are appropriate since Li-ion contains very little lithium metal that reacts with water. Water also cools the adjacent area and prevents the fire from spreading. Research laboratories and factories also use water to extinguish Li-ion battery fires.
[0]: https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/safety_concerns_...
[+] [-] williesleg|6 years ago|reply
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