Ye gods I tried to read some of the comments in that article, but I could feel my IQ dropping simply by association; makes me appreciate the level of the discussion here on the forum.
Electric cars are cool, but hybrids and fuel cells are the future. High-wattage battery chemistry is just too dangerous in such large volumes. You might point out that gasoline and other liquid fuels are also flammable, but unlike batteries, gasoline and other liquid fuels aren't pre-mixed with the chemicals necessary for them to catch fire. Gasoline isn't mixed with oxygen until a few millionths of a second before it's ignited. The chemistry and physical construction of a battery is more akin to TNT than gasoline. I'm willing to tolerate that risk in small things that don't represent an enormous financial investment on my part, but I'm not willing to tolerate it in something as big and expensive as a car.
There is one issue though: with a conventional vehicle if you notice a fire in its initial stage — all you need is a standard fire extinguisher (which is a must in EU, for example). If you notice a fire in Tesla — all you may do is evacuate in a hurry. There is no option to stop a fire when fuel and oxidizer are packed together.
Ye gods I tried to read some of the comments in that article, but I could feel my IQ dropping simply by association; makes me appreciate the level of the discussion here on the forum.
it is not that, lithium batteries can be extinguished with yellow, class D extinguisher, made for metal fires, Tesla battery is sealed in a metal case, you just can't get that spray in there.There is one issue though: with a conventional vehicle if you notice a fire in its initial stage — all you need is a standard fire extinguisher (which is a must in EU, for example). If you notice a fire in Tesla — all you may do is evacuate in a hurry. There is no option to stop a fire when fuel and oxidizer are packed together.
According to the FEMA, a gasoline-powered car catches fire in the US every 3 minutes. That rate has gone down significantly in the last few decades despite the number of total cars increasing.
While only 1.6% of those were traced to starting in the fuel tank or lines outside of the engine compartment, that is still 2700 car fires per year. Quite a few more appear to be electrical issues even in gasoline powered cars, accounting for about 37,000 car fires per year.
However, 62% of fires start in the engine, transmission, or wheel area, and flammable liquids or their piping were identified as the first material to ignite in 26% of fires where that information could be determined, which if that percentage is accurate for all fires, means 46,000 fires per year are related to fuel, oil, or similar materials. Those fuels are a disproportionate 65% of fatal vehicle fires.
None of this should be interpreted as an argument on my part against internal combustion engined vehicles. I only bring this data to the discussion to counter the unfounded assumptions that electrical vehicles represent a significantly worse fire risk than conventional vehicles.
Funny thing is, everyone will have an electric car within 20 years. Batteries will get better...