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Another Tesla Crashes in China After High-Speed Driving, Tesla Pledges Full Cooperation

Tesla has had a love-hate relationship with its Chinese customers, who sometimes complain about weird car behavior even when proven otherwise. Nevertheless, two high-speed crashes happening in similar circumstances stand out, raising questions about Tesla's safety records.
Another Tesla crashes in China after high-speed driving 6 photos
Photo: CarNewsChina via YouTube | Edited
Another Tesla crashes in China after high-speed drivingAnother Tesla crashes in China after high-speed drivingAnother Tesla crashes in China after high-speed drivingAnother Tesla crashes in China after high-speed drivingAnother Tesla crashes in China after high-speed driving
In November last year, a high-speed crash raised the eyebrows of Chinese regulators. A Tesla Model Y reportedly accelerated on its own, speeding out of control, and eventually crashed at the end of a 2.6-km (1.6-mile) mad race. Based on their testimony, the driver wrestled to regain control of the car during the entire trip, but the brakes did not respond. The Model Y was recorded speeding by several surveillance cameras, and it appears with the stoplights on in several images, a clear indication that the driver was pressing the brake pedal and not the acceleration, as Tesla subsequently declared.

The investigation has not yet concluded when another car sped out of control and crashed in China. This time, it's a Tesla Model 3, and the preliminary reports indicate similar circumstances. The car's speed was so high that the Model 3 became airborne and almost landed on its front end while passing over a bridge. Unfortunately, a passenger in the car lost their life, and the driver was badly injured.

This car's race out of control was also caught on cameras, thanks to the Chinese extensive surveillance program. Nevertheless, no brake lights are visible in the video. The driver appears to still control the steering wheel because they managed to narrowly avoid collisions with a couple of vehicles before finally hitting a bus and coming to a stop. Given that the driver is not yet able to offer their account of the situation, we cannot know what caused their Tesla to speed up.

"We are very sad about this accident, and we understand everyone's concerns about the crash," Tesla China told Shanghai Stock Exchange News. "The cause of the accident is currently under investigation by the local traffic police. We will do our best to fully cooperate with authorities on this investigation. Please also do not believe and spread unverified information."

Since an investigation is still ongoing in the case of the Tesla Model Y crash from November, we don't expect this one to conclude any time soon. In the November crash, Tesla said the driver stepped on the accelerator pedal for a long time, sometimes all the way to the floor. The EV maker also claimed that the driver never pressed the brakes, which is clearly not true based on the surveillance camera videos. In both cases, the Chinese authorities would probably need to use an independent expert to verify Tesla's claims and Autopilot data.

Other sudden unintended acceleration (SUA) incidents involving Tesla cars in China have previously been dismissed as untrue. The Chinese owners even started installing footwell cameras to have proof in case their vehicles misbehaved. Nevertheless, the two crashes happening in similar conditions should entice Chinese authorities to widen the scope of their investigation. The crash in China was shortly followed by another one in the U.S. on February 18, when a Model S struck the back of a fire truck.

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About the author: Cristian Agatie
Cristian Agatie profile photo

After his childhood dream of becoming a "tractor operator" didn't pan out, Cristian turned to journalism, first in print and later moving to online media. His top interests are electric vehicles and new energy solutions.
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