Feds to study fire risks in EV batteries

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Fed launching $8.75M study into fire risks from EV batteries Autoblog

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has launched an extended investigation into any possible fire risk associated with the lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles. The $8.75 million study will last through 2014 and will specifically focus on whether or not the cells can catch fire while being charged at home or when in an accident. Automotive News reports that the study was spurred by a recall initiated by computer maker Dell for potentially faulty laptop cells. In certain rare circumstances, the Sony-manufactured cells could overheat and cause a fire.

[mpt]

Good; vindication of the safety of Li-ION over gasoline... by 2014. Let's watch as armchair pundits come out and spend the next two years speculating on just how dangerous EVs are.

[richkae]

Data from here shows that in the late 90s there were about 280,000 passenger vehicle fires per year.
http://www.nfpa.org/assets/files/pdf/osvehicle.pdf
There are about 130 million cars and 110 million trucks in the US. I am not sure how many of the trucks are passenger vehicles.

That means about 1 in 900 ICE vehicles has a fire each year.

That gasoline is dangerous stuff.

[doug]

Yes, interesting. Where's the "Fed launching $8.75M study into fire risks from gasoline - Autoblognik"

[William13]

Can anyone say conspiracy? Has there actually been an electric car fire reported?

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[ckessel]

Cute video, but "4 million of us run out of gasoline every day"? I've never run out of gas nor do I ever remember talking to someone who has ever mentioned running out. Granted, it happens, but 4 million a day sounds preposterously high.

[Doug_G]

Cute video, but "4 million of us run out of gasoline every day"? I've never run out of gas nor do I ever remember talking to someone who has ever mentioned running out. Granted, it happens, but 4 million a day sounds preposterously high.

I've actually done it twice. I'm talking quite a few years ago. Once I was just stupid, the other time I had a faulty fuel gauge. I've taken to using the trip odometer instead of the fuel gauge; much more reliable.

[doug]

Cute video, but "4 million of us run out of gasoline every day"? I've never run out of gas nor do I ever remember talking to someone who has ever mentioned running out. Granted, it happens, but 4 million a day sounds preposterously high.

I did once in undergrad, driving a borrowed car with a nonfunctional fuel gauge.

But lets try to stay on topic which is fires.

[doug]

Has there actually been an electric car fire reported?

Honestly, yes. I've even seen one in person (a couple years ago at Laguna Seca).

In recent memory there was Niel Young's LincVolt which went up in a warehouse in nearby San Carlos (taking $1M in memorabilia with it), a "professionally" converted Nissan SUV that caught fire on a ferry in Europe destroying the surrounding cars and putting the company out of business, and a homebrew EV in Connecticut that also destroyed the owner's new Chevy Volt parked next to it.

The common thread is these are all conversions. Some of those fires were likely due to cheap Chinese cells and/or an inadequate BMS. I've never heard of a fire from an OEM EV. Certainly Tesla, Nissan, and GM have taken a lot of care in the design and safety of their battery packs.