Tesla Says France Fire Caused By Badly Tightened Connection

Tesla says that a fire in one of its electric cars in France broke out because an electrical connection had not been tightened properly.

The company said in a statement to The Associated Press Wednesday that "usually, these electrical connections are installed by a robot, but for this car this connection was installed manually."

The three people aboard the Model S sedan escaped unharmed when it caught fire during a promotional tour last month in the resort city of Biarritz.

(Image credit: Tesla Motors)

Tesla said it was the only time such an incident had occurred. It did not elaborate on how the loose connection sparked a fire.

The U.S. government investigated Tesla in 2013 after two fires in Model S sedans, but closed the investigation after Tesla made changes to the cars.