Salt water and EV's
 

I wonder how many Floridians thought to park their EVs outside of their garages when threatened by the hurricane. I understand that there were quite a few EV fires caused by the salt water from the coast floods. It would be bad enough to suffer flooding in the home, without the addition of a house fire due to volatile EV fire starting in the garage.

That's a tough one to know what to do. I don't have an EV nor do I have an oceanfront house. But, do you park in the driveway where you might not burn the house down, but you might increase the chances of salt water getting to the battery? Or do you park in the garage in the hopes that the car will be protected from salt water intrusion?

Maybe I could invent a bag, that you spread out on the garage floor. Drive the EV over the bag then pull up all of the sides & fasten at the top of the car. The bag might get wet, but properly designed will be impervious to salt water intrusion. I could make millions selling to waterfront or water adjacent property owners with EVs. :)

Where would salt water come from in The Villages? And yes, my Tesla is in the garage, plugged in.

Interested in a bag??? :a20:

So would your auto insurance cover replacing house damage cause that deductible would be far less than hurricane :a040:

Point taken, regarding salt water in the Villages. However, if I am not wrong, water of any kind will adversely effect lithium and make it volatile. I would hazard a guess that quality lithium batteries are sealed against moister. I have no idea what kind of EVs were related to the 30+ fires caused by the hurricane in Florida. The few golf carts I have seen that had lithium batteries, all seemed to have pretty good cases on them. They appeared to be water tight, but that was just a guess with my limited view. Not sure I would drive through a tunnel during a storm flood, though.

No doubt insurers will soon start pricing this risk into costal location policies when the policyholders own lithium powered forms of transportation. I feel for the first responders who have to deal with this very dangerous situation. The problem is not just electric cars and trucks. Fires have also been caused by lithium powered golf carts, e bikes, scooters, and wheel chairs.

Yes the batteries are sealed. Regardless, there would have to be 2-3 FEET of water in the garage before the batteries were submerged. How would that even happen in TV? Maybe on the coast in the aftermath of a brutal hurricane, but here?

Good question; not sure if that would fall under auto or HO. My guess is HO, and then the question would be if that would fall under hurricane or regular coverage. Extremely unlikely scenario, so not worth any concern IMO.

Sure. They should. A lot less likely to have hurricane damage in central FL than the coast, so rates should reflect that.

During an ice storm in Massachusetts a tree fell on my car. My auto policy paid for the car; my HO paid for everything else. Your policy could be different.

Sorry I forgot to post Sheldon sign.

I don't own an EV and most likely won't in my lifetime. But I have to say risk of fire is not the reason. This video is enlightening.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_EOvqXdABA

Why speculate, here is what actually happened in Ashville: Ex-Tesla Owner Shares How Hurricane Helene Made Him a Rivian Convert - Business Insider

"Cusick and his friend noticed what looked almost like a "lump of mud" sitting underneath an overpass, anywhere from 50 to 150 feet away from where the Rivian was originally parked. Silt and mud from the Swannanoa River, Cusick said, had engulfed his truck."

"when Cusick walked up to the Rivian, the door handle, which sits flush into the door panel much like Tesla's, popped out. Inside, the vehicle was "completely dry," Cusick said.

He was able to get inside and start his truck."

"A Rivian spokesperson told Inside EVs, which earlier reported on Cusick's truck, that Rivian battery packs are sealed to provide floodwater protection."

After discovering his silt encrusted truck he went on to help relief efforts.

"Cusick came across a distribution center that was set up by Crisis Response International, a crisis-response nonprofit based in Virginia, and asked how he could help.

"They said they needed a generator," Cusick recalled. "And I was like: 'Hey, I got one. They're built into my car.'"

Cusick said his generator helped power a food truck that was providing hot meals to residents. He said it also helped power a chainsaw he would use to clear roads"

Car fires
 

On the average 150 gas powered cars burn every day in the us