Similar to before in Germany and parts of Europe, the consequences of the heaviest rainfall in the Chinese province of Henan have cost many lives and have left devastation since last week. Early on in the flood chaos made a video of a Tesla Model 3 , the driver of which drove courageously into a flooded street and apparently moved on, partly by swimming. Several recordings of this type have been released since then – but now Tesla has warned China not to overdo it. Tesla warns against too much trust This was pointed out on Monday by the observer @ ray4tesla on Twitter, who had previously distributed several videos of Teslas on Chinese flood roads. One of them comes from TikTok and shows, filmed from the inside, how two people in a Tesla drive over or through something that looks more like a low river than a road. The electric car pushes a bow wave in front of it, which sometimes sloshes onto the windshield (see photo above). In another TikTok video, an excited observer comments on the drive of another Tesla through a waterway, in which the Model 3 even evades another stationary car. Even if in at least one case on Twitter old video of a Tesla in the flood from another area was shared, so obviously a larger number of Chinese have dared to venture into flooded streets with their Tesla. In any case, according to the video excerpts published so far, none of them got stuck. Nevertheless, Tesla seems to be taking the trust of some customers in the water resistance of their electric cars too far: The company published a post in the Chinese social media Weibo according to which its own vehicles are neither designed as electric boats nor even as submarines. Another Tesla seen from inside wading on a flooded highway in China. Not recommended but works. [@elonmusk] [pic.twitter.com/EGnIrQKynK] — Ray4Tesla?????? (@ray4tesla) [July 25, 2021] @ Ray4tesla pointed this out on Twitter and steered a translation of the Weibo contribution from the Chinese at. It is designed as a customer’s answer to the question of whether you can still drive a Tesla when there is water on the road. According to the answer, the company can guarantee the safety and functionality of the high-voltage battery even in heavy rain. But that doesn’t mean that Teslas can become a boat. Boot mode only for Cybertruck Specifically, the manufacturer also explains when you should think more carefully, even with a Tesla, before you plunge into street floods, and why: “If the water on a road reaches or exceeds the center of the rims, you shouldn’t drive through it with force “, It says according to @ ray4tesla in the post. This is because the battery pack is equipped with a ventilation valve at this height, through which water can penetrate in such cases, which creates the risk of serious problems. It remains to be seen whether this warning will help. In any case, Tesla does not seem to be planning to repair any late damage to its electric cars that may have been caused by courageous flood trips free of charge. CEO Elon Musk has to similar videos from the USA comments that the Model S could actually swim briefly, but strongly advised against trying it out. According to him, only the cybertruck could actually get something like an official boot mode.
