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It's shocking to see how easily the car went up in flames. Would this happen with any kind of vehicle, given the energy contained within a tire? Or is this part

It's shocking to see how easily the car went up in flames. Would this happen with any kind of vehicle, given the energy contained within a tire? Or is this partly because of where the most-flammable bits are inside a Tesla?

iknowstuff 3y ago
Where did you see how quickly it got on fire? BEV fires are less likely than ICE fires. That being said when batteries get on fire they burn long but slowly. Gas explodes.
- gnicholas 3y ago
  https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/tesla-car-fires-burned-san-francisco-soma-18689506.php https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/tesla-car-fires-burned-s... > BEV fires are less likely than ICE fires. I feel like I hear about more fires affecting EVs that are parked/off than similar-age ICE vehicles that are parked/off. Is that just reporting bias, or is it that ICE vehicles are more likely to burn in collisions, and that outweighs the parked/off fires?
  - iknowstuff 3y ago
    Reporting bias
- JoeMattiello 3y ago
  Gas doesn’t explode, not very easily, at least. Lithium batteries are much more likely to combust or explode spontaneously in the absence of spark. Also, lithium batteries only burn as slowly as their designs allow. Poorly made Lion packs will burn faster than equivalent energy-dense amount of liquid gasoline exposed to standard atmosphere. Where is the data suggesting that EVs are less likely to happen than ICE?
  - jaybeavers 3y ago
    Spoken like someone who hasn’t put a match to gasoline. Having recently used gas to help start a wood slashings pile on fire, gasoline is very explosive and dangerous. Diesel will burn in place when lit. Gasoline vaporizes when let out if its container in ‘room temperature’ conditions and creates a vapor fireball when it finds a nearby ignition source. Never use gasoline as an ‘accelerant’ to start something else on fire —- it’s way too dangerous.
stephen_g 3y ago
Probably - I knew somebody whose Rav 4 spontaneously started smoking from under the hood while she was driving on the freeway (this was probably 15 years ago), she pulled over and got out and within a few minutes the whole thing was completely up in flames. Tyres are part of it, but then think of the oily residues that build up around the engine, the rubber hoses, plastic bumpers, etc. - not to mention the entire interior all being quite flammable.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]

iknowstuff 3y ago

Where did you see how quickly it got on fire? BEV fires are less likely than ICE fires. That being said when batteries get on fire they burn long but slowly. Gas explodes.

gnicholas 3y ago
https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/tesla-car-fires-burned-san-francisco-soma-18689506.php https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/tesla-car-fires-burned-s... > BEV fires are less likely than ICE fires. I feel like I hear about more fires affecting EVs that are parked/off than similar-age ICE vehicles that are parked/off. Is that just reporting bias, or is it that ICE vehicles are more likely to burn in collisions, and that outweighs the parked/off fires?
- iknowstuff 3y ago
  Reporting bias
JoeMattiello 3y ago
Gas doesn’t explode, not very easily, at least. Lithium batteries are much more likely to combust or explode spontaneously in the absence of spark. Also, lithium batteries only burn as slowly as their designs allow. Poorly made Lion packs will burn faster than equivalent energy-dense amount of liquid gasoline exposed to standard atmosphere. Where is the data suggesting that EVs are less likely to happen than ICE?
- jaybeavers 3y ago
  Spoken like someone who hasn’t put a match to gasoline. Having recently used gas to help start a wood slashings pile on fire, gasoline is very explosive and dangerous. Diesel will burn in place when lit. Gasoline vaporizes when let out if its container in ‘room temperature’ conditions and creates a vapor fireball when it finds a nearby ignition source. Never use gasoline as an ‘accelerant’ to start something else on fire —- it’s way too dangerous.

stephen_g 3y ago

Probably - I knew somebody whose Rav 4 spontaneously started smoking from under the hood while she was driving on the freeway (this was probably 15 years ago), she pulled over and got out and within a few minutes the whole thing was completely up in flames. Tyres are part of it, but then think of the oily residues that build up around the engine, the rubber hoses, plastic bumpers, etc. - not to mention the entire interior all being quite flammable.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]