Hyperdrive
Tesla Fires Sound Alarms About Electric-Car Battery Safety
- Company updates software after Hong Kong vehicle blaze
- Battery fires could turn off consumers, manufacturer says
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Electric vehicles may be less prone to catch fire than gas guzzlers, but recent blazes involving Tesla Inc. and NIO Inc. cars in Greater China are prompting the industry to take steps to alleviate concerns from potential customers.
Worries heightened after reports emerged of a fire involving a Tesla in a Hong Kong parking lot. Weeks earlier, a video on Chinese social media platforms showed a Tesla bursting into flames in a Shanghai garage. Separately, NIO said last month that one of its ES8 vehicles caught fire in the northwestern city of Xi’an while being repaired, and on Thursday disclosed that smoke came out of the same model of car in Shanghai, with firefighters extinguishing it.