A Tesla Model 3 burst into flames over the weekend after crashing into a tow truck parked on a highway shoulder. The incident occurred in Moscow and the driver — named Alexei Tretyakov — noted that the car was on Autopilot at the time of the crash. Incidentally, Tretyakov made a point of noting that his hands were on the steering wheel at the time, per Tesla’s guidelines.
As to the specifics of the crash, Tretyakov said he was driving at about 60 miles per hour when he abruptly collided with a tow truck that had escaped his line of sight for some reason. Shortly thereafter, the Tesla caught fire with the flames ultimately destroying the car entirely. Incidentally, there were also two explosions that rattled the car following the accident.
At the time of the incident, Tretyakov was in the car with his family. Thankfully, Tretyakov managed to escape with only a broken leg while the rest of his family — which included two children in the back — managed to escape with just a few minor bruises.
The collision itself was captured on video and can be seen below. If you watch closely, you’ll note that the Model 3 didn’t veer to the left or do anything unusual. If anything, the Model 3 was exactly in the middle of the lane as it approached a tow truck that was jutting out from the shoulder of the road into the highway.
A more detailed video of the aftermath, along with the resulting fire and explosion, can be seen below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reTFVSlXTfA
Another angle of the incident, along with the aftermath of the fire, can be seen via the video below.
