If a vehicle has been subjected to flood conditions, it needs to be inspected very carefully, Greg Brannon of the American Automobile Association told Newsweek.
News that his team had encountered nine instances of flooded EVs spontaneously combusting—in some cases, reigniting hours after being doused.
"The fact that it's saltwater or freshwater makes some difference, but not all the difference—the truth is any water is problematic and can cause shorting and damage to EV batteries," Brannon said. According to the latest research by AutoinsuranceEZ, generally there are over 1,500 fires for every 100,000 gas cars sold in the U.S., compared with 25 per 100,000 for EVs. The most common to catch fire were hybrid vehicles, it found.
"In an electric vehicle, what can happen is that a short circuit can turn into a battery fire, and once an EV catches on fire and the main battery pack starts to burn, you can get into a situation which involves thermal runaway—which is basically a fancy way of saying that the battery is not only on fire but is also making oxygen that contributes to the fire," Brannon explained.
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