China’s domestically produced electric vehicles continue to experience accidents. Early this morning on October 13th, a Xiaomi SU7 caught fire and went out of control on a road in Chengdu, resulting in the unfortunate death of the driver.
Around 3:16 a.m. on October 13th, a serious traffic accident involving a Xiaomi SU7 vehicle occurred on Ren Shou Avenue at the Tianfu section in Chengdu. Videos, images, and eyewitnesses from the scene confirmed the driver’s tragic demise.
A circulated video showed the Xiaomi SU7 exhibiting abnormal driving behavior before the incident, swerving unpredictably. Some netizens claimed to have heard the driver shouting loudly inside the car while waiting at a traffic light. The vehicle then accelerated at an extremely high speed.
A dashcam footage revealed that the Xiaomi involved in the accident veered to the right side. As it approached the intersection with the traffic lights, the driver seemingly attempted to steer left to avoid a turning vehicle, leading to losing control, colliding with the roadside greenery, flipping onto the opposite lane, and quickly catching fire.
After the accident, the driver was trapped inside the vehicle, and several passersby rushed to rescue. Some people tried to break the car windows with bare hands or tools, while others brought fire extinguishers. However, they were unable to open the doors or successfully break the windows.
Firefighters arrived at the scene to extinguish the fire, with crackling sounds heard as the car burned. After the flames were put out, only the car frame remained, and rescuers had to use tools like hammers and electric saws to open the doors. Unfortunately, the trapped driver showed no signs of life.
According to a report by The Paper, on October 13th, staff from the Accident Division of the Traffic Management Sixth Branch of the Chengdu Public Security Bureau stated that they were not aware of the details of the previous night’s traffic accident and needed to consult with the investigating officers. Xiaomi customer service staff also mentioned that since the incident occurred at 3 a.m., there were no staff on duty at that time, and they did not receive any related calls for help or reports.
In recent years, the Chinese government has heavily subsidized the development of domestic electric vehicles, leading to the rapid expansion of the electric vehicle industry chain. However, a series of incidents such as electric vehicle fires, malfunctioning door locks, and fatal accidents have occurred frequently within China. Issues with so-called intelligent driving systems are also on the rise. The Chinese authorities and car manufacturers often suppress domestic criticism and even employ public security measures for stability.
On the evening of March 29th this year, a Xiaomi SU7 crashed into a concrete post on a highway section in Tongling, Anhui, and subsequently caught fire. All three female university students in the car lost their lives in the tragic incident.
On the night of June 11th, a female driver in Zhengzhou drove a Xiaomi SU7 and collided with 16 vehicles. Official reports stated that some individuals were injured but did not disclose the exact number of casualties.
Just on October 9th, a driver and their car plunged into the sea in Pingtan County, Fujian, resulting in the driver’s death. The vehicle involved was a Xiaomi SU7, with online rumors suggesting that the driver failed to stop the car. However, Xiaomi’s official customer service staff stated that they currently do not have any information regarding the incident.
On September 19th, the official website of the National Administration for Market Regulation of the Communist Party of China issued a notice stating that Xiaomi Automobile Technology Co., Ltd. recalled 116,887 units of the SU7 standard electric vehicle. This marked Xiaomi’s second recall notice for the SU7 standard version.
On January 24th of this year, Xiaomi Automobile recalled a total of 30,931 SU7 standard electric vehicles produced from February 6, 2024, to November 26, 2024. The reason for the recall was identified as software-related issues that might cause abnormal clock synchronization, impacting the intelligent parking assistance function in detecting static obstacles, thereby increasing the risk of scratches or collisions and posing safety hazards.