One Tesla picked up their car from a body shop and not long after he hit the road, he got a lot more than what he was expecting. About ten minutes after leaving the shop, the owner of the electric car, Mr. Ali Hasan who is from Texas, reports that his Model 3 started smoking. Shortly thereafter, the car was reduced to a burnt-out shell sitting on the side of the road.

This little Model 3 has had quite an eventful life. In 2021, it was involved in an accident that left the front end with serious damage. According to the owner’s posts, the car also lost its rear bumper, wheel covers, and sustained underbody damage in deep waters back in August 2022. Unfortunately, the fire seems to have finally put the nail in the coffin of this particular Tesla. It was a complete surprise to its owner, though.

We reached out to Mr. Hasan who told Carscoops, “To my eye, everything looked just fine. While I was driving down the highway, I noticed smoke coming from the right passenger seat, and it kept getting worse as I drove it half a mile to get it off the highway.”

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As to the root cause of the fire, it’s still undetermined. Mr. Hasan isn’t blaming the body shop but still acknowledges the correlation. “As far as I know so far, nothing apart from that they replaced sensors and bumper and the cover under the car,” he said. He further elaborated on his perspective in another comment on a Facebook thread.

“There were sensors as well that they changed which now that I see it go to the passenger side and there was also a cover that goes under the frunk that they replaced as well. I’m not pointing any fingers whatsoever, I’m just saying a theory because it’s my only explanation.” Some suspect that there was an issue with the battery but Hasan says that it’s already been ruled out as a possible cause.

 Tesla Model 3 Bursts Into Flames From Inside While Driving On The Road

That seems reasonable considering that most electric vehicle battery fires result in a big pile of ash. What Mr. Hasan ended up with is basically a burnt-out interior and a largely untouched shell of a car. Mr. Hasan escaped without burns, although he reports that he’s in the hospital with breathing trouble. We’ll keep in touch with the owner and update you as we learn more.

We have also contacted Tesla for a comment and will keep you informed of any developments.