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The ex-employee says that damaged battery modules were reworked and then used in Model 3 cars.

Former Tesla employee alleges flawed batteries are being used

[Photo: Flickr user Jakob Härter]

BY Michael Grothaus

Martin Tripp, a former Tesla employee who is currently being sued by the company for theft of proprietary information has posted a series of tweets alleging wrongdoing related to Tesla’s batteries. First, Tripp says that damaged battery modules were reworked and then used in Model 3 cars.

https://twitter.com/trippedover/status/1029851313817804800

Tripp then tweeted lists of Tesla vehicle identification numbers in which he alleges have punctured, dented, or damaged batteries in them.

https://twitter.com/trippedover/status/1029837413265231872

https://twitter.com/trippedover/status/1029837670782881792

https://twitter.com/trippedover/status/1029837786990370816

https://twitter.com/trippedover/status/1029837863179841536

Finally, Tripp tweeted pictures of trailers he says Tesla uses to store scrap and waste products instead of storing them in climate-controlled warehouses as Tesla says it does.

https://twitter.com/trippedover/status/1029838917850165248

After Tripps’s tweets, a Tesla spokesperson told Engadget:

“As we’ve said before, these claims are false and Mr. Tripp does not even have personal knowledge about the safety claims that he is making. No punctured cells have ever been used in any Model 3 vehicles in any way, and all VINs that have been identified have safe batteries. Notably, there have been zero battery safety issues in any Model 3.”

Telsa is currently suing Tripp because they allege he created software to hack the company’s manufacturing OS and sent large amounts of proprietary Tesla data to people outside the company.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael Grothaus is a novelist and author. He has written for Fast Company since 2013, where he's interviewed some of the tech industry’s most prominent leaders and writes about everything from Apple and artificial intelligence to the effects of technology on individuals and society. More


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