Setting A Tesla Model S On Fire Is Probably The Worst Way To End A Test Drive

When it comes to bad test drives, it's fair to say that things can get pretty hairy. A quick look online will give you an idea of how bad things can get but in most cases, it's the fault of the driver and not the automaker. Not so for this poor Tesla Model S that, as Elektrek reported, was burnt to a crisp while being taken for a test drive in Biarritz, France. Making matters worse for the growing electric automaker is the fact that the test drive was a part of its summer Electric Road Trip.

The tour is intended to celebrate 2 billion miles of gas-free and environmentally-friendly driving done by the collective number of Teslas in the world. Even so, we can't imagine that Model S vapors are too healthy for the atmosphere. It was reported that the trouble with the Model S P90D began when the car made a strange loud noise before flashing a charging error warning to the dashboard. The Tesla employee told the driver to stop, and once everyone exited the vehicle, it promptly and conveniently went up in flames. Luckily, someone was around to catch the moment on camera for the world to see. Unfortunately, the cause of the fire remains undiscovered and/or undisclosed but Tesla mentioned that nobody was hurt in the fire.

It's important to make note that as a new automaker, Tesla is under the spotlight, so any incidents like this flaming test drive tend to be put under the microscope, but by no means does it indicate that electric cars catch fire more frequently than gasoline-powered vehicles. Elektrek elaborates by saying that past Tesla fires have involved crashes where the battery pack gets punctured, a problem that was amended when Tesla began installing titanium shields under the battery pack. So far, it appears that the Model S didn't crash or hit anything that could cause the fire, but as with past problems, we can expect Tesla to look into the matter and get back to the automotive community quickly. Thanks to Redditor 3dkSdkvDskReddit for the photo.