Underside Protection

[eplantz]

With the news about Tesla S fires from road debris, I was wondering what underside protection our Rav4EV has. Does anyone know???

Gene

 

[Ampster]

With the news about Tesla S fires from road debris, I was wondering what underside protection our Rav4EV has. Does anyone know???

Gene

I don't know about the protection being any different than a Tesla, but I do know the RAV4EV rides higher than a
Tesla so there is more road clearance.

 

[keith5885]

Someone here has to know for sure... Is it the same protection as the Model S????????

 

[TonyWilliams]

Someone here has to know for sure... Is it the same protection as the Model S????????

Yes, pretty much the same protection. If you run over a trailer hitch or other large metal piece that may have damaged the underside of your car, you might want to get off the off and visually inspect for smoke!!!

 

[Dianne]

Tony! Stop scaring them LOL!
I am sure Tesla will come up with some titanium or other type skidplates under the vulnerable areas shortly... this Tesla flambe thing is kind of sensational but all kinds of cars catch fire on the roadways year after year. It's just that Tesla is this year's target after 3 in 6 weeks... and one of them in Mexico after slamming into a cement barrier wall - which would have caught a fuel-powered car on fire according to technical folks...

Someone here has to know for sure... Is it the same protection as the Model S????????

Yes, pretty much the same protection. If you run over a trailer hitch or other large metal piece that may have damaged the underside of your car, you might want to get off the off and visually inspect for smoke!!!

 

[TonyWilliams]

Part of the problem with the Model S is that the car is VERY low to the ground when at speed for maximum efficiency. So, anything on the road can end up jammed in the battery. This is not an issue with the Rav4, as it has tons of ground clearance.

Currently, there is a 1/4 inch thick aluminum on the bottom of Model S, and I suspect either titanium or Kevlar would fix this.

 

[jzj]

http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/tesla-adds-titanium-underbody-shield-and-aluminum-deflector-plates-model-s

Given that Tesla is providing its Model S owners the opportunity to provide these extra battery pack underside protections upon request at regular services, does anyone know whether Toyota -- given that the RAV4 runs the identical risk -- will be doing the same? If not, does anyone have any suggestions as to how to get Toyota to agree to do this?

Thanks.

 

[jspearman]

It would take a large object to reach up and punch a hole in the battery on our car. That said, I nearly ran over a wheelbarrow on the highway last year in my wife's RAV, so it's unlikely, but still possible to hit something that would damage the battery. I wouldn't mind a bit of extra protection at the cost of .01% of range.

 

[sierrabill]

Titanium, kevlar, yikes...sounds like more expense. I say we wait and see just how much of a problem the issue of penetrating the battery compartment is. As has already been said, many, many more fires have happened in oil burners than EVs...we need a larger/longer data set to extrapolate anything definitive.

It may turn out that the 1/4" aluminum protecting our batteries used now is overkill (excuse the expression). I would certainly rather have that than 16 gauge steel protecting 20 gallons of gasoline under my rear end. It seems more likely that I would have more time exiting my RAV after the battery compartment was compromised than if something punched a hole in my gasoline tank, as has been demonstrated in the few model S fires.