Tesla bursts into flames yet again & again

We have that stunning scene that was caught on tape now, a Tesla crashing, bursting into a ball of flames. Thankfully everyone made it out there were serious injuries though. There are certain because the car was reportedly in auto pilot before the wreck. Paula Faris is here with that Good morning, everyone.

That video is something, isn’t it? The driver was traveling 60 miles an hour when he slammed into a parked tow truck that he claims he didn’t see and says his hands were on the wheel at the time of that incident. This morning, an alarming incident involving an Tesla, this time on a packed highway in Russian.

A Tesla model 3 electric car became engulfed in flames after it crashed into a parked tow truck on the highway at more than 60 miles per hour. This video which aired on Russian state TV showed the moments after the crash when the Tesla erupts. Reports out of Moscow now say the owner was in drive sass mode, holding the steering wheel and says he did not see that the driver escaped before the flames erupted along with his two children who were rushed to the hospital grateful to be alive.

Tesla features an auto pilot mode which is not a self-driving system. It enables the car to steer, accelerate and brake automatically within its lanes but still requires active driver supervision. It’s touted by Tesla as an advanced driver assistance system that enhances safety and convenience behind the wheel. Questions remain about the general safety of automation in vehicles. Earlier this month Tesla was hit with a lawsuit after a 50-year-old man died allegedly after his model X crashed into an off-ramp divider at nearly 70 miles an hour.

Auto pilot had been turned on ten seconds before that crash, according to the NTSB. And in December, an owner said that his Tesla model S caught fire twice in one day, six hours apart, in northern California. No one was injured in that incident. Tesla says they investigated. This, however, was a battery issue, not an automation issue. Now, we reached out to Tesla.

They are not commenting but in regards to that fatal incident, they say the drivers supported by auto pilot are safer than those without. The metal frame is all that remains of this vehicle. Glad they were okay. All right, Paula, thanks.

FACTS

What type of batteries do Tesla cars use?

The batteries that Tesla has been using, sourced from Panasonic, for its Model S electric car are a lithium-ion battery with a cathode that is a combination of a lithium, nickel, cobalt, aluminum oxide.

 

Why do lithium ion batteries explode?

The chemicals inside the lithium-ion battery begin to heat up on any forceful impacts, which then causes further degradation of the separator inside the unit. The battery can eventually hit temperatures of more than 1,000° F. At that point the flammable electrolyte ignites and then explodes when exposed to the oxygen in the air.