A fire broke out in Hyundai Motor's electric TRUCK 'Porter Electric (EV)'. So far, about 18 cases of Hyundai Motor's Kona EV fire have been reported in Korea, but this is the first time a fire has occurred in Porter EV. According to the Daegu Western Fire Department on the 14th, smoke was generated from the Porter EV passing near the Maecheon Underpass in Buk-gu, Daegu, and the driver immediately stopped the car and called 911. Although there were no sparks from the vehicle, it was reported that smoke continued to come from the battery pack under the vehicle. The smoke was extinguished about an hour after the firefighters sprayed. SK Innovation's battery was installed in the accident vehicle. Although it is too early to estimate the cause of the accident, it is noteworthy in that the ignition point is similar to the electric vehicle battery fire accident so far. However, unlike the previous case where a fire occurred while charging or immediately after charging, this accident was different in that it was driving. An SK Innovation official said, "It is true that the SK Innovation battery is installed (in the vehicle). " Since SK Innovation started manufacturing electric vehicle batteries, it has been saying, "Electric vehicles equipped with SK innovation's batteries have never had a fire accident". If the cause of the accident is battery-related, it is likely to be the first case. [Source: JoongAng Ilbo] Hyundai Motor's electric truck 'Porter EV' caught fire while driving in Daegu https://news.joins.com/article/24105517
Doesn't give a lot of peace of mind to the recall 200 now starting. If even SK Innovation battery is catching fire, then why are we swapping batteries? It will be really funny to see when people get their batteries changed after months of waiting, only to find out that their Kona EVs are still catching fire.
I suspect this vehicle was used for commercial purposes and possibly DC fast charged to %100 on a regular basis (maybe even multiple times per day). Perhaps some of the LG pack fire incidents were also commercial related with similar charging practices . It is questionable as to why these events seem to be generally more prevalent in S.K. than in other parts of the planet.
The problem could have accumulated over time. Please note that there were recalls related to multiple component firmware updates on most Hyundai EVs. Even on those with SK battery packs. So there are multiple issues at play. Most problematic could have been folded anodes on LG battery packs from China, but this does not mean that was the only issue found and has accumulated damage on existing battery packs. But overall yes, problem seems to be prevalent in Korea and there seems to be some local issue there.
