Firefighters needed 6,000 gallons of water–about half the amount in an average household pool–to quench a fire caused by a Tesla’s batteries that started to explode while traveling down a California highway on Saturday spontaneously, NBC News reports, adding to the car maker’s problems that go beyond the highway.
As CEO Elon Musk faces legal scrutiny for allegedly misleading statements to manipulate the stock price, Tesla has seen a series of vehicle failures that lead people to question their status in the automotive industry. A similar Tesla battery fire in Pennsylvania late last year took 12,000 gallons to extinguish, as the vehicle’s batteries exploded in succession. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured in either of the Pennsylvania and California fires.
In addition to the disturbing issue of vehicle explosions, Tesla is facing increased competition: in response to Tesla reducing the price of its Model Y by as much as 20% to allow purchasers to take advantage of federal rebates for electric cars and to move inventory of the pre-exploded vehicles, Ford announced it will cut prices on its all-electric Mustang Mach-E by between $600 to $5,900, depending on the trim level.
Another issue impacting electric vehicle sales, specifically in the used car market, in the United States: car dealers’ electric vehicles from states impacted by high water, like Florida during last year’s Hurricane Ian, are being shipped and sold around the country, without notifying prospective buyers that the cars had been in a flood that can corrode battery terminals, which can cause said fires.