Parked Tesla Goes Up in Flames Moments After Owner Hears ‘Almighty Explosion’
A quiet residential street in rural England turned into a dramatic scene when a parked electric vehicle suddenly burst into flames, stunning its owner and raising new questions about the risks associated with previously damaged EVs.
The incident involved a Tesla belonging to Rich Farrant, a 56-year-old resident of Compton Dando in Somerset. According to the owner, the car exploded while parked on the roadside in front of his house in November, creating a huge explosion that could be heard from inside the house.
The nature of explosion mirrors our previous report It’s about a Mercedes GLS SUV that suddenly exploded in a parking lot just minutes after its owner got out of the vehicle for a dentist appointment.
Farrant said the explosion occurred without any warning.
He was sitting inside when he heard what he described as a strange hissing noise coming from outside. After a few minutes, the noise escalated into what he called a “magnificent explosion.” Panicked, he ran outside and saw his car engulfed in flames.
“I ran and the car of my dreams was on fire,” he recalled. “It was just parked there.”
A Dream Car in Flames
Image Credit: Chanokchon – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia.
“Dream car” is a Tesla Model 3 PerformanceIt’s a high-performance version of the company’s popular electric sedan. Farrant had bought the car just a month earlier for around £12,000, which equates to roughly $15,000.
The price reflected the fact that it was purchased through Copart, a global online auto auction platform that frequently sells insurance write-offs and accident-damaged vehicles.
Farrant said he was already having problems charging the car before the fire. Problems arose occasionally but were concerning. Still, there was no sign that the situation would escalate into a major conflagration.
When the explosion occurred on November 17, flames quickly spread from the parked sedan. Luckily, there was no one around at the time of the explosion. Farrant believes the outcome could have been much worse if pedestrians had crossed there.
“If someone had been driving past the car when this happened, it would have been horrific,” he said.
A neighbor rushed to the scene with a fire extinguisher and managed to extinguish most of the fire before emergency services arrived. Fire crews later examined the scene to ensure that the fire was completely under control and did not pose any additional risk.
The vehicle was ultimately declared a total loss.
A Troubled History and an Unanswered Question
Image Credit: James Young – CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia.
An important detail about the history of the car will soon emerge. The Model 3 was previously involved in an accident before being resold at auction.
Cars sold through salvage auctions often undergo repairs before hitting the road, but experts say improperly repaired battery systems or structural damage can pose serious safety risks, especially in electric vehicles that can catch fire if their lithium-ion battery packs are compromised.
Tesla said it could not determine the exact cause of the fire. In its correspondence with Farrant, the company explained that the vehicle was not inspected at a Tesla facility before the incident and therefore its technical teams were not able to directly investigate the damage.
Due to these circumstances, Tesla also refused to offer compensation or goodwill support regarding software features in the replacement vehicle.
Farrant bought another Tesla through Copart for about £9,000 (about $12,200) after losing the car in the fire. But he says the new model lacks the software options he used in the original car, including Enhanced Autopilot and Full Self-Driving features.
He asked Tesla if these features could be transferred to the new vehicle for free, but the company rejected the request. Tesla said the previous car was purchased through a third party and could not confirm the condition or cause of the fire.
Warning for the Second-Hand Electric Vehicle Market
Farrant’s experience highlights a growing problem in the used EV market. As electric vehicles age and enter salvage auctions, more buyers are purchasing them at deep discounts. While the low price may be appealing, shoppers need to keep in mind that EV battery systems are complex and expensive to repair properly.
When these systems are damaged in an accident or modified outside of manufacturer standards, the risk profile can change significantly.
In Farrant’s case, the experience was as disappointing as it was shocking. His dream car burst into flames on a quiet neighborhood street, and no one knows or can tell him exactly why. But as more electric vehicles circulate on the second-hand market, this lesson becomes clearer.
Sources: SWNS
Read more
