Chinese Tesla Owner Demands $1 Million After Model X Doors Fail To Open In Fiery Crash

Tesla is currently investigating an accident that happened in February in Guangzhou where a Model X crashed on the highway and caught on fire. The owner of the vehicle and her boyfriend were sitting in the second-row seat and they claim that the Falcon Wing doors were not opening after the crash resulting in them being stuck in the backseat while the car was starting to catch on fire.

They managed to exit through the front door just as the vehicle went up in flames, but not without injuries and now they are asking Tesla for 8 million Chinese yuan (~$1 million) in compensation.

Tesla China issued a statement about the accident following the owner’s demand (translated from Chinese):

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mre30 - 4/24/2017 11:35:28 AM

+5 Boost

The prospect of being imprisoned in a Tesla about to explode is just f-in SCARY.

It is also not out of the realm of possibility considering that the door are electronically actuated. It is VERY possible that if the wrong connector/circuit gets damaged in a crash, that the doors will not open.

I wonder how many times this has happened already.

I also wonder if law enforcement has tested how effective the "jaws of life" will be on quickly opening the jammed 'Falcon Doors' of a Model X.

F-in SCARY!

SanJoseDriver - 4/24/2017 1:21:00 PM

-3 Boost

The Model X hit a guardrail at high speed and then hit another car at full highway speed. In an ICE, the people inside would already be dead. Oh, and the normal car they hit on second impact exploded. If you think you are less safe in a car filled with combustible liquid and controlled explosions, you are fooling yourself and spreading fake news.

mre30 - 4/24/2017 3:24:59 PM

+6 Boost

...Well then

...Why is the Ford Focus passenger compartment seemingly intact while the Model X is like a pile of ashes that is no longer identifiable as a former vehicle? REALLY SCARY!

SanJoseDriver - 4/24/2017 10:14:02 PM

-4 Boost

If the whole pack ignites, it will vaporize the car. You do get a decent amount of time to get out of the car before that happens. I don't think anyone has died from that yet. Most of the deaths were instant on impact, one person drowned, one died in the hospital after hitting a pole dead-on at 100+ MPH.

SanJoseDriver - 4/24/2017 1:24:00 PM

-2 Boost

BTW, every single accident any Tesla is in gets a media blitz. There are 1,000 of these every day with normal cars where people actually die. Autospies, you post this but not the story of a Tesla going 500 feet down a frickin cliff and the person inside actually surviving? https://electrek.co/2017/04/19/tesla-model-s-crash-cliff-save-life/ Exactly 0 ICE cars would have made it through that fall.

mpls - 4/24/2017 5:03:40 PM

+6 Boost

SJD.. do you own shares in the company ? are you Musk in disguise ??

SanJoseDriver - 4/24/2017 10:16:53 PM

-2 Boost

I have had stock for a long time and am a big fan of the car I have owned for 4 years, not an employee unfortunately. Tesla doesn't really do traditional marketing or sales, most of the company is engineering. They have never done a TV spot or paid an employee commission on selling a car.

SanJoseDriver - 4/25/2017 6:04:44 PM

+1 Boost

Incorrect on both accounts. I am obviously biased but try to separate out the facts from my opinion. I think people working at dealerships or big oil companies are the ones that are trying to pollute the forums with misinformation--that's an opinion.