Tornado Alley (PROG)

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While Tesla fires are rare, some incidents have involved vehicles spontaneously catching fire, particularly due to battery issues, though Tesla's safety-first design and engineering make them less likely to catch fire than average cars.

Here's a breakdown of the issue:

Tesla Fires are Rare, but Occur:

While Tesla vehicles are engineered with safety in mind, reports of Tesla fires, some of which are "spontaneous," do exist.

Battery Issues are a Factor:

Many Tesla fires, including those that are described as "spontaneous," are linked to battery issues, such as thermal runaway, where the battery cells overheat and ignite.

Extinguishing Tesla Fires is Challenging:

Lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles can be difficult to extinguish because they continue burning until all stored energy is released, requiring a large amount of water and potentially multiple days to fully douse.

Examples of Tesla Fires:

A Tesla Model S caught fire on a California freeway, requiring 6,000 gallons of water to extinguish.
Another Tesla Model S caught fire in a junkyard in Rancho Cordova, California, after being salvaged from flooding in Florida.

A Tesla Model Y in Canada started smoking while driving, prompting the driver to escape before the car went up in flames.
A Tesla Semi fire after a crash required 50,000 gallons of water to extinguish.

Tesla's Response:

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has stated that only 0.01% of Teslas have ever caught fire, while the annual rate for all passenger and heavy-duty vehicles is 0.08%.

Other Electric Vehicle Fires:

Incidents of electric vehicle fires have led to recalls of other electric vehicles, including the Chevrolet Bolt, Audi and Hyundai vehicles.

Tesla's Safety Claims:
Tesla claims that its vehicles are nearly 8 times less likely to catch fire than the average car due to its advanced engineering and safety-first design.

Las Vegas Incident:
In March 2025, at least five Tesla vehicles in Las Vegas were damaged in a "targeted attack," with two vehicles fully engulfed in flames.

Tesla car battery 'spontaneously' catches fire, requiring 6,000 gallons of water to put it out
Jan 30, 2023

NBC News
Tesla "spontaneously" catches fire in Rancho Cordova high-end vehicle scrap yard - CBS Sacramento
Aug 3, 2023

CBS News
Why Teslas keep catching on fire - Vox
Jan 27, 2023 — But as thermal runaway takes hold, bright orange flames can quickly engulf an entire car. And because EV batteries are...