Welcome to 2024 and we’re hoping you’re having a good one so far. At least, one that’s better than the owner of this Mercedes-Benz EQB, whose car caught on fire yesterday.
According to reports, the incident happened around 245pm yesterday. The fire was successfully put out by 10 firefighters.
From photos, observed that the fire was put out while there was still significant sunlight so it must not have taken very long, which is atypical of reports of EV battery fires overseas where the fire took up to 24 hours to put out because of constant re-ignition.
So far we have been very lucky with EV fires in Malaysia, as all of the reported fires have been put out swiftly. The last one before this case was the Tesla Model Y fire in Puchong back in October 2023. Still no post mortem report from that case yet, and we suspect this EQB case will take a while too.
While we should not speculate, we think the relative ease of which the fire was put out in both cases means the battery was not involved. It was just like an ICE car fire, which by the way happens all the time too.
In case you’re wondering, comprehensive motor insurance does cover fire damage. It does not require special perils add-on which is needed for flood damage.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
Good point on the part where the battery was likely not involved in the fire (though it’s still subject to post mortem). Many people would just jump into conclusion that the batteries in EV are not safe and are causing fire, but ICE cars are just as likely to catch fire. People get the impression because ICE car fire incidents do not get as much attention as EV fire incidents. I’m sure many of us have seen a car fire on the highway but they are not being reported (as it is not exactly rare and hence not news-worthy).
Having said that, it still doesn’t take away the fact that EV fire is much harder to put out than a conventional car fire. Our bomba will need to be trained on EV car fires.
ICE’s risk = burn while moving
EV’s risk = burn while stopping + moving
Let the bashings begin
Apart from Tesla,all the EV dealers r begging Biden to tell their auto manufacturers to ditch Evs cos there r virtually few buyers n unsold inventories r skyrocketing like Kim Jong Un’s ballistic missiles.
Range anxiety,costly repairs,battery fires,battery reliability,huge battery replacement costs,lack of knowledgeable EV mechanics,higher insurance costs.,lack of infra etc r nightmares.
The Americans r going back to hybrids n ice cars.
The reason why those EV dealers are “begging Biden” to ditch EVs is because they produced shit cars that are expensive and poorly made, and they lose money on every sale, unlike Tesla. The US also has a blanket ban on China made EVs due to geopolitical issues.
It has nothing to do with the suitability of EVs as a mode of transport. EV sales has hit the million mark in 2023 in the US, breaking all previous records and is at an all time high. So your statement “The Americans r going back to hybrids n ice cars.” is incorrect and misleading
Every major technological transition has been met by resistance – eventually it becomes more widespread, everyone accepts it and moves along until the next transitional phase.
There was a time people were anti-air travel worrying the plane could fall out of the sky. Sounds ridiculous now, but it’s the same as anti-EV folks today.
well said – most people are just resistant to change.
reminds me of the group of uncles who said “downsized turbo no good” but eventually started buying the 1.5T CRV.
Are there any statistics in malaysia citing EV car on fire while charging. Also compared to ICE refuelling caught fire Vs EV cars charging that has caught fire. Would be great if there is and future buyers would consider also. Thanks
This is the “data collection” phase for the EV industry. They need to sell many more cars to collect data and analyze. hence the free road tax and other perks, to lure the customers. free test results!
For Malaysia alone no but….
“Meanwhile, EV FireSafe, an Australian company, studied global data on the reports of EV fires from 2010 to 2022, concluding that there was a 0.0012 per cent chance of a passenger EV catching fire, compared to 0.1 per cent for an ice vehicle, a far higher (but still tiny) level of risk — 80 times greater, in fact.”
Always reference data rather than gut-feel to avoid confirmation bias and availability heuristics. Too many people do this. Example: ‘There are 100 ICE fires and 2 EV fires’ but Adam only heard of the 2 EV fires and not the 100 ICE fires – now Adam thinks there are more EV fires than ICE fires and starts spouting nonsense on the internet.
There’s a report from MSB Sweden showing full ICE cars are 29x more likely to catch fire than EV/Hybrids (already adjusted for volume) and they have a fairly mature electrified market so data is substantial.
There is simply more attention on EVs at the moment because it’s gaining traction so the media gives it the limelight – ICE cars catch fire all the time for a variety of reasons but it’s stale news.
Where is your data or report?
MSB Sweden – it’s literally mentioned above, unless you’re actually illiterate hence trolling on the internet.
bodo ke ape? the report sources are all mentioned in the comment above.
rasanye some ppl just want to remain uninformed – siap bagi statistik pun xnak baca.
Well just do the Proton PR standard tell us that it is not grounded like their new Hybrid car which that also have nothing to do with the battery while we are still awaiting for their comments on the burning engine like months ago.
insurance does not cover fire for ev?
yes, it does by default.
mana all the knobheads yang bash proton x90 masa terbakar tu..hadirrrrr
My parents always thought me that do not overcharge your phone so the cars too, guess I don’t charge it everyday
Hmm I wonder ? Any theory ?
EV owners, pls don’t park yr car near buildings or other people’s cars. So many videos online of shops, houses and other parked vehicles kena bakar by nearby intensely burning EVs… Tq for yr consideration for others
Unless you are >80, the EV vs ICE tipping point will come in your lifetime and you will own an EV.
That’s unless you are a rich man and decide you must have an ICE. Think owning a mechanical watch or fountain pen.
In many tier 1 cities in China, you must wait >12 months to register a ICE car. EV registration available immediately. This is an example of how policy drives adoption.
Also, EV technology does not stay at 2023 levels forever, unlike ICE which has stagnated for decades.
That is a good point you are highlighting there. EV tech is going to be obsolete the next year you buy one? It’s a damn expensive purchase then for the majority of the Malaysian population.
All of a sudden, the EV manufacturers will start charging you annually to update the firmware/do patching to their software. Good business indeed.
yes don’t park your car near EV – pls park far far away for your own safety ya – good also then EV drivers can park peacefully and open door big big no need so cramped since Malaysia’s parking bays already so narrow.
hmmm…sounds like you must also be one of those people on the news who park ICE cars in designated EV bays.
X ramai condemn sbb bukan proton.. kalau la yang terbakar ni proton, berbondong bondong la basher yang bash..
EV is still expensive and out of reach for many middle classes
it’s not the price of the EV that’s the problem. if you live in a condo, EV will not be a viable option for you.
it’s been discussed rather extensively in owner forums – even in condos that have multiple charging bays; there will never be enough for everyone and problems arise because it’s inconvenient and you need to share it with a bunch of other people.
Not to mention the tariff is higher than normal landed residence because the condo JMB has to incur cost to install the chargers in the first place and subsequently manage/maintain it.
it’s only viable if you live in a landed property and have access to your own charger. truthfully speaking, EV ownership isn’t about affording the car, you need to afford a landed property as well.
EV cars are good.
Everyone should change to EV asap.
I have no money, sticking to ICE.
Bot a big deal. Just open your EV FB page and comfort each other, that ICE vehicle have more fire cases.
well…actually it does, ICE cars go ablaze 29x more than EVs/hybrids based on fairly recent data.
or are you the type who intentionally avoids facts and figures and trap yourself under a coconut husk?
That’s because there are more than 29X ICE vehicle on the road than EV. And ICE vehicle do not need special blanket to put off the fire and much easier to put off and once put off, no need to monitor 24 hour and worry about reignition. Until now, there’s no effective way to put off fire on EV except let it burn. This is why charging facilities need large parking lot for each EV, so that the fire doesn’t spread to nearby cars. Coconut konon.
EV sales in the US is slowing and EV will not be picking up any soon. ICE will continue to dominate the industry.
sounds like the words of an ICE car salesman from…H? T? or M?
Wow see the wall, the destruction are unimaginable powerful.
Let’s the Mercedes comes with their investigation reports and we see how…