A Cybertruck parked in an outdoor lot in Georgia burst into flames just hours before Matthew Livelsberger deliberately blew up a truck of the same model outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas.
Firefighters rushed to a Tesla store in North Decatur, outside Atlanta, in the early hours of December 31 and found the futuristic truck outside.
While they quickly extinguished the flames, the vehicle’s interior and cargo floor were completely scorched and the rear tires were melted.
Local authorities suspected that a battery fire caused the incident in Georgia.
Livelsberger, 37, rented a Cybertruck, filled it with explosives and detonated it outside Donald Trump’s hotel in Nevada.
However, both incidents come as Tesla has been quietly recalling Cybertruck batteries since September due to defects that could cause them to explode.
Owners of the futuristic electric car have reported that Tesla employees have contacted them about possible defective battery packs in their vehicles, asking them to take them to the nearest dealer.
Firefighters were called to a Tesla store in Georgia this week when a Cybetruck caught fire while parked in the outdoor lot
The explosion outside Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel on January 1 was intentional
Matt Albers claimed to have received a text message about the recall in September, leaving him without his Cybertruck for more than two weeks while engineers waited for a new battery pack.
He posted the message on Facebook to ask if other owners had a similar experience.
Another owner had a similar experience in December when he took his car to the garage to have the side mirror replaced.
“I submitted a service request to have (the mirror) replaced. Within two minutes, Tesla approved the request, but the estimate meant they were also replacing the high-voltage battery,” the owner wrote on the Cybertruck Owners Club Forum.
Tesla’s Cybertruck has been plagued by recalls since its launch in November 2023.
The biggest was last April, when the accelerator pedal got stuck in the interior trim, causing the car to accelerate uncontrollably.
The recall included every Cybertruck produced between November 13, 2023 and April 4, 2024.
Some EV experts have speculated that Tesla is conducting the current recall without making a public announcement to avoid public scrutiny.
This is reported by sources familiar with the battery recall Electricity that trucks with dents in the battery packs are returned to the Gigafactory in Texas to have the batteries replaced.
The rear tire melted during the fire, which officials suspected was caused by the battery
Law enforcement officials have identified 37-year-old Matthew Livelsberger as the person who rented a Cybertruck, filled it with explosives and detonated it outside the Las Vegas hotel on January 1.
Matt Albers claimed to have received a text message about the recall in September, leaving him without his Cybertruck for more than two weeks while engineers waited for a new battery pack
The issue has only been found on inventory vehicles, indicating no customer has filed a formal complaint about battery issues.
During the Las Vegas explosion, the Cybertruck exploded 15 seconds after the driver pulled up to the hotel entrance.
But Livelsberger shot himself in the head before the bomb went off.
The explosion caused injuries to seven people, but virtually no damage to the hotel. Livelsberger was the only fatality.
The explosion was caused by “a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck” or “very large fireworks”, according to Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Trump also responded to the incident, writing on his social media platform Truth Social: “Democrats should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to happen to our country. The CIA must get involved NOW, before it’s too late. The United States is collapsing. A violent erosion of security, national security and democracy is taking place everywhere in our country.
‘Only strength and strong leadership can stop this. See you on January 20. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!’
It’s likely Livelsberger planned a more damaging attack, but the steel-sided vehicle absorbed much of the force of the crudely built explosive device, Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill said.
Upon inspection of the wreckage, authorities found fireworks mortars and camp fuel canisters in the rear of the Cybertruck, indicating this was a planned, deliberate attack.