The track record of EVs (Electric Vehicles) in India isn’t looking too good with all the recent fire related accidents. And now, another major incident has just surfaced as an entire Okinawa Autotech dealership got burnt down, which is believed to be caused by an EV inside the store.

According to a 91Mobiles report, this incident has caused the company to issue a recall for its Praise Pro electric scooters. Apparently, the reason for the recall is under a fault check up and redressal service. The brand had issued a recall for 3,215 units of its EVs on 16th April 2022. The units were the Okinawa Praise Pro e-scooters, which are apparently facing an issue with their battery pack, which caused the fire related accident.

For those unaware, three of the company’s e-scooters caught fire back in October 2021. This ended up causing injuries to two people. On the other hand, the fire accident in the dealership was even more intense, but it remains to be seen how extensive the damage really was. But looking at videos shared on social media, we can assume that it is unlikely that anything was left uncharred on the inside.

#Okinawa dealership in TN goes up in flames due to a reported #EVfire. Instances like this threaten to create an atmosphere of rampant skepticism about the crucial safety aspects of EVs. What do you have to say? @OkinawaAutotech pic.twitter.com/cvDzlEE1LZ

— prashant singh (@lparas69) April 16, 2022

The accident might have been caused by just one faulty battery but its flames ended up engulfing the entire dealership. As of right now, it was reported that there were no casualties and the fire was put out eventually. This marks another case of EVs and a fire accident in India. There could be many reasons for this accident like the poor design or thermal management system for the battery. But we have no way of knowing for sure at the moment.

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The post Okinawa dealership in flames after Praise Pro e-scooters catch fire, company issues recall appeared first on Gizmochina.

Although fires in electric vehicles due to the battery pack are not unique to India alone, the recent incidence involving an electric two-wheeler has brought the discussion to the fore again. The co-founder and CEO of Ather Energy, Tarun Mehta has said that many of the battery packs for electric vehicles imported into the country were not designed for Indian weather conditions.

The recent fire incident involving an e-scooter in Pune was the basis of Mehta’s statement. While there has been a spike in the production and importation of electric vehicles to India, the battery packs are mainly from China. Local EV manufacturers do not have any inputs into the battery packs that are used in these EVs. Most of these battery packs, according to the Ather CEO, are not suitable for the Indian hot weather. Average temperatures on Indian roads can hover above 45 degrees Celsius and this can create overheating of the battery pack.

Tarun Mehta also feels that the demand for high-speed electric scooters in the market could also be contributing to battery overheating issues. Powering a higher grade electric motor with the same battery pack meant for a less-powerful motor induces more thermal load on the battery. This ultimately leads to overheating and vehicle fires. Ather is however investing in the development of battery packs that are well suited for the Indian conditions.

There is a need for regulatory agencies to step up their work to ensure that only suitable battery packs are allowed in the country. There had been several fire incidents involving Okinawa products recently, and the latest incident did not have any fatalities.

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