Plug-in electric vehicle fire

"[10] In 2022, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, NHTSA's executive director commented on the risk of fire and reignition related to contact of a lithium-ion battery with salt water (seawater).

As a result of this incident, Korea is considering tightening its testing requirements and certification procedures.The group proceeded to discuss a way forward toward a successful resolution of Phase 2.

[22] It was determined that the cause of the fire was a short circuit in the plug of an extension cord used to charge a rebuilt Nissan Qashqai, converted into a battery electric vehicle by the Sakskøbing based company A Future EV.

[25] The city's official investigation team found the cause of the fire was the car's defective battery pack due to lack of quality control during manufacturing.

"[32][33] The NHTSA announced in November 2011 that it was working with all automakers to develop post-crash procedures to keep occupants of electric vehicles and emergency personnel who respond to crash scenes safe.

Therefore, the NHTSA opened a formal safety defect investigation on November 25, 2011, to examine the potential risks involved from intrusion damage to the battery in the Chevrolet Volt.

[34][35][36] On January 5, 2012, General Motors announced that it would offer a customer satisfaction program to provide modifications to the Chevrolet Volt to reduce the chance that the battery pack could catch fire days or weeks after a severe accident.

The agency concluded that "no discernible defect trend exists" and also found that the modifications recently developed by General Motors are sufficient to reduce the potential for battery intrusion resulting from side impacts.

The agency also announced it has developed interim guidance to increase awareness and identify appropriate safety measures regarding electric vehicles for the emergency response community, law enforcement officers, tow truck operators, storage facilities and consumers.

[47][48] In May 2012, after a Nissan GT-R crashed into a BYD e6 taxi in Shenzhen, China, the electric car caught fire after hitting a tree killing all three occupants.

All units deployed in the program were recalled due to damage sustained by three separate pickup trucks when their 12.9 kWh battery packs overheated.

The demonstration is a program jointly funded by Chrysler and the U.S. Department of Energy that includes the first-ever factory-produced vehicles capable of reverse power flow.

[66][67] In separate incidents during the storm and flooding caused by Hurricane Sandy on the night of October 29, 2012, one Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid and 16 Fisker Karmas caught fire while being parked at Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal.

[68][69] After an investigation by Fisker engineers, witnessed by NHTSA representatives, the company said that the origin of the fire was "residual salt damage inside a Vehicle Control Unit submerged in seawater for several hours.

According to the driver, he hit something while traveling in the HOV lane of Washington State Route 167, and exited because the car reported a problem and told him to stop.

[80][81] A Tesla Model S being driven on Interstate 24 near Murfreesboro, Tennessee caught fire on November 6, 2013, after it struck a tow hitch on the roadway, causing damage beneath the vehicle.

Shortly afterwards, Tesla updated the Model S firmware to reduce charging current when power fluctuations were detected[85] and replaced wall adapters with a new unit containing a thermal fuse.

[89] Tesla's response was that "[i]n this particular case, we don't yet know the precise cause, but have definitively determined that it did not originate in the battery, the charging system, the adapter or the electrical receptacle, as these components were untouched by the fire.

"[90] On March 28, 2014, the NHTSA announced that it had closed the investigation into whether the Model S design was making the electric car prone to catch fire, after the automaker said it would provide more protection to its lithium-ion batteries.

The fire department contacted Tesla who provided information about the first responder cut loop which shuts down the high voltage system and disables the SRS and air bag components.

[102][103] On August 25, 2017, the driver of a Model X lost control of the vehicle, which went over an embankment and struck a garage in Lake Forest, California, starting a fire that damaged the car and structure.

[109] On May 10, 2018, a Tesla S caught fire after hitting the guard-rail on the Swiss A2 highway on Monte Ceneri, between Lugano and Bellinzona, killing the 48-year-old German driver.

[115] On February 24, 2019, a Tesla Model S that crashed into a tree burst into flames and burned its driver beyond recognition Sunday evening along Flamingo Road in Davie, Florida, then repeatedly caught fire after being brought to the tow yard used by police.

[130] On April 10, 2022, in Nashua, New Hampshire, a brand-new Tesla Model S lost control and struck a tree at high speed, igniting the battery pack.

On July 22, 2022, Jimmy Lin was driving a Tesla Model X in Taoyuan, Taiwan, and crashed into a traffic island, then the car caught fire.

[161] On October 18, 2020, Hyundai Motor, citing an investigation by Korea's transport ministry acknowledged a battery issue that led to a worldwide recall of 77,000 Kona EVs.

It said, that “due to an error in the manufacturing process, a short circuit may occur in the battery located under the front bonnet.”[198] On June 27, 2022, a Peugeot e-208 caught fire, while being charged in a home garage in Dynin, Czech Republic.

[202] On September 17, 2021, a SAIC Roewe i6 Max crashed into a newspaper stand in Huizhou, China, and caught fire, leaving six people dead and another 13 injured.

[210] On June 10, 2017, during the filming of Series 2 for The Grand Tour, journalist and presenter Richard Hammond crashed a Rimac Concept One after crossing the finish line during his last run of a timed hill climb course during the Bergrennen Hemberg event.

[213] The Norwegian ferry MF Ytterøyningen operated by Norled was delivered in 2006 and is equipped with a Corvus Orca Energy storage system (ESS) with 1,989 kWh capacity.