Elon Musk’s Tesla claims that an isolated battery fault caused a Model S vehicle to burst into flames in a Shanghai parking lot two months ago, causing widespread problems for Tesla in China.
Bloomberg reports that electric car manufacturer Tesla is blaming an isolated battery fault for causing a Model S vehicle in a Shanghai parking lot to burst into flames two months ago. An investigation by Chinese and U.S. experts reportedly found no “systematic defect” with the vehicle, Tesla claims. Initial investigations show a problem with a single battery module in the front of the vehicle, according to Tesla.
Tesla claims that the car’s safety system worked correctly and kept the rest of the battery intact. “Anyone inside the cabin would have had time to exit safely,” Tesla said. Tesla’s statement comes shortly after Chinese competitor NIO recalled 4,800 vehicles due to battery-safety issues.
Recent reports also claim that the electric car manufacturer recently lost its Vice President of Production Peter Hochholdinger who oversaw the manufacturing of vehicles at the company’s plant in Fremont, California. Hochholdinger’s departure comes just as the company is attempting to beat its delivery record from 2018, a key moment for the firm as it attempts to meet this ambitious goal.
“Hitting the 360k-400k unit demand guidance for 2019 is going to be an Everest-like task in our opinion as 350k is likely the line in the sand as street whisper numbers have continued to come down over the past few months,” Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, stated in a note. Speaking to CNBC, Ives stated: “The departure of Peter is not ideal at this juncture and adds to the executive departures in Fremont which have concerned investors over the past 6 months.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is confident, however, stating in an email this week “the reality is that we are on track to set an all-time record, but it will be very close.” Tesla stock has fell 34 percent overall this year, new production numbers are set to be revealed on July 4th.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or email him at lnolan@breitbart.com
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