A Texas driver has died after his Tesla cybertruck crashed early Monday morning and went up in flames, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).
The cybertruck lost control, leaving the road and crashing into a culvert before bursting into flames, leaving just a shell of the car remaining, officials said.
The driver, who was pronounced dead at the scene, has not been identified by authorities due to severe burns and investigators are unclear as to why he lost control of the vehicle.
The crash took place in Southeast Texas in Chambers County, Baytown, near the intersection of Fisher Road and Cedar Port Parkway, approximately 30 miles from Houston.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk introduces Tesla cybertruck at Tesla Design Center in Hawthorne, California on November 21, 2019. Musk has had to recall models of the cybertruck twice due to issues with faulty parts.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk introduces Tesla cybertruck at Tesla Design Center in Hawthorne, California on November 21, 2019. Musk has had to recall models of the cybertruck twice due to issues with faulty parts.
Frederic J. Brown/Getty Images
Newsweek reached out to Tesla for comment.
As the latest new Tesla electric vehicle released in 2023, the cybertruck features shatter-resistant acoustic glass, a range of 340 miles, and an 11,000-pound towing capacity.
While Tesla’s automobile issues are typically solved through over-the-air software updates, the electric vehicle company has had two recent physical recalls of cybertrucks for maintenance issues.
It was forced to recall approximately 4,000 cybertrucks, produced from November 2023 until April 2024, due to faulty accelerator pedals that could get stuck when pressed down.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) stated the reason for the recall was, “An unapproved change introduced lubricant (soap) to aid in the component assembly of the pad onto the accelerator pedal. Residual lubricant reduced the retention of the pad to the pedal,” according to the recall document obtained by ABC13 Eyewitness News.
This was due to soap being “improperly” used by workers at Tesla’s factory near Austin, Texas, when assembling pieces of the accelerator pedal, according to a safety regulator who spoke to ABC13 Eyewitness News.
Tesla also recalled more than 11,000 cybertrucks in the U.S. in June due to issues with the non-functional windshield wipers and improperly attached trunk bed exterior trim, according to Reuters.
This Texas cybertruck crash is the most recent in a series of fatal crashes, as an investigation by the NHSTA concluded in April that the Tesla Autopilot feature was responsible for approximately 13 fatal car crashes, involving at least one death and many more serious injuries, The Guardian reported.
Most recently, a cybertruck crashed into the Beverly Hills Hotel sign in March. Police told ABC7 that no one was injured, and no arrests were made.
A friend of the vehicle owner alleged the hotel’s valet had crashed the car, and reached out to Tesla CEO Elon Musk on X, formerly known as Twitter, to get a new one.
Musk responded to the incident and said, “Cyberbeast is faster than a Porsche 911, but looks like a truck, so perhaps the valet wasn’t expecting so much acceleration.”
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Publish date : 2024-08-05 10:02:00
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