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There are simple steps owners of electric and hybrid cars can take to avoid batteries catching fire, writes RALPH COONEY.

- RALPH COONEY

An electric vehicle recently burst into flames on the Auckland Harbour Bridge. On the same night, there was also a fire on a bus (presumably an internal combustion vehicle). The probability of a fire in your vehicle, irrespective of the type, is unusual but not new or exceptional. Simple owner precautions A can minimise that risk.

There are three types of electric vehicles: battery-electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVS) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVS). All involve electric motors, but the two hybrid varieties include a petrol combustion motor as well. The liquid medium inside a lithium-ion battery is flammable at room temperature and the cathode of the battery is a source of oxygen, so that if internal parts of the battery or the terminals are damaged by shock or collision, the possibility of ignition occurs.

US comparative data for the year 2021, per 100,000 sales, indicates that about 1530 petrol internal combustion vehicles caught fire, and this compares with 3475 hybrid cars and only 25 battery-electric vehicles. Clearly, electric cars are much safer in this respect than either petrol-combustion cars or hybrids.