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by thomasfedb 2927 days ago
Being on fire is surely — by definition — not part of normal operation.

Both electric and internal combustion vehicles have failure modes that involve fire.
1 comments
zajd 2927 days ago
No, but the activities that led to the fire were. There was no accident, there was no impact of any kind. It was a question, not a condemnation. When is the last time an ICE car burst into flames during normal operation?
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torpfactory 2927 days ago
It happens surprisingly regularly, but it doesn't get reported by the BBC. I was driving through Portland OR ~4 weeks ago and noticed an RV pull of the side of I5 southbound with the engine smoking. After a few minutes, flames were leaping from the engine compartment. I didn't see any indication that there had been an accident (no body damage, etc), so I assume there was no impact.

Its not surprising really, ICEs are powered and lubricated by highly flammable liquids. They are certainly very reliable these days, but fire is still a failure mode.

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cfadvan 2927 days ago
What percentage of those cars were less than three years old, or a supercar?
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thomasfedb 2927 days ago
Given the number of cars that exist, it's almost guaranteed that the answer to that is "today" if you look hard enough.
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