After a series of high-profile battery fires in Model S sedans last fall, CEO Elon Musk was quick to defend Tesla Motors safety record — and quick to decry the media frenzy surrounding each incident. It s looking more and more like he had a good point.
In one crash last October, a driver in Mexico slammed his Model S into a roundabout at 110 mph before careening into a concrete wall and tree. The driver walker away. (Technically, ran away, as he was allegedly drunk.) But shares in Tesla took a severe hit, thanks to that and other crashes, plunging more than 28 percent by year s end.
Tesla stock has recovered impressively this year, but are suddenly dipping again after a much-publicized July 4 crash, in which a stolen Model S split in half, sending burning and popping battery packs scattered across a Los Angeles street after plowing into cars and, ultimately, a lightpole at 100 mph.
In a predictable knee-jerk overreaction, Tesla shares have dropped more than 4 percent in the past two days, as investors freak out over the vision of burning battery packs. Tesla will likely have to go to PR damage-control mode to reassure skittish investors and potential buyers. But perhaps it s better to take a Musk-ian view of the crash:
– The driver survived. Look at the photos of the crash scene and just try to imagine that.
– While the battery packs did catch fire and explode, remember the car hit a lightpost at 100 mph and split in half. Under similar circumstances, it s a safe bet that most cars — gas or electric — would end up ablaze too.
Last year, the Model S received a 5-star safety rating by the NHTSA, the highest marks ever given to a car.
In November, Musk railed against false perception(s) about the safety of electric cars in a blog post, noting that the Model S is safer in an accident than any other vehicle without exception, and that drivers are more than four and a half times more likely to experience a fire in a gasoline car than a Model S.
Neither Musk nor Tesla has officially commented on the latest crash yet, but spokesman Simon Sproule told Bloomberg News: We ve asked to take a look at the vehicle as soon as that s possible. . . . There aren t so many S s involved in major crashes, and certainly not quite like this one, so we absolutely want to have a look to understand what happened.
Of about 30,000 Model S s that have been sold, six have caught fire in collisions. No Model S driver has been killed in a crash. In roughly 250 million gas-powered cars in the U.S., there were an average of 65,000 fires a year between 2008 and 2010, according to a federal report, with 300 killed.
Perhaps it s time for us think about this rationally. GM stock doesn t fall every time one of its cars crashes (though its stock is down more than 8 percent this year after revelations of a recall scandal that contributed to at least 13 deaths, which seems slightly worse than battery packs catching fire after a 100-mph impact).
Look, cars can be dangerous. But the Model S has proven that even if you drive it like a maniac straight out of Grand Theft Auto 5, you can walk away from a crash. There s tangible evidence that it s incredibly safe and sturdy. Personally, I tend to be dubious whenever billionaires talk about how great their product is. But in this case, I m listening to Elon.
At top: The aftermath of the July 4 crash involving a Tesla Model S (black, in center) in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
