Tesla (TSLA – Get Report) said Monday it has sent a team of investigators to take a closer look at a parked Model S sedan that appears to have self-combusted in a ball of flames.
In a video, time stamped Sunday evening and widely shared on China’s Twitter-like Weibo, a first-generation Model S sedan parked in a Shanghai garage appears to begin to emit smoke, and seconds later bursts into flames.
The video began circulating Sunday night (April 21), and posts with the hashtag #Tesla self-ignites” or 特斯拉自燃, had drawn nearly 18 million views as of early Monday.
Good or bad, negative or positive I will post anything about Tesla or EVs in China. This happened today in Shanghai, China 🇨🇳 1st generation Tesla Model S caught Fire 🔥 underground car park.#Tesla #TeslaChina #ModelS #Fire #China #Shanghai #特斯拉 #中国 $TSLA pic.twitter.com/HOwMcvulV1
— Jay in Shanghai (@ShanghaiJayin) April 21, 2019
We immediately sent a team onsite and we’re supporting local authorities to establish the facts. From what we know now, no one was harmed,” Tesla said in a statement on Monday.
There have been at least 14 instances of Tesla cars catching fire since 2013, with the majority occurring after a crash.
Tesla shares were down 2.07% to $267.60 in premarket trading on Monday after ending the trading day Thursday at $273.26 (U.S. stock markets were closed Friday for Good Friday).