What would you do if your Tesla ran out of juice far from one of the company’s Supercharger stations? One Tesla driver in China took matters into his own hands by plugging his Tesla Model S into a utility pole. He even snapped photos of the scene, and they’re now going viral on Weibo in China.
The Tesla driver did this bit of illegal charging during the recent Chinese New Year. As spotted by Car News China, the driver came prepared with lines and even a fuse box (transformer?) so as to feed the publicly-funded electricity into his US$120,000 all-electric car. The final component in the DIY chain is the official Tesla Mobile Connector that comes with all the cars.
The green light indicates that the Tesla is getting juiced. Thanks for the free ride, taxpayers!
Tesla’s official Weibo account replied to the viral post quickly, saying that “personally sourced power doesn’t have the right voltage regulation and is very dangerous.” Tesla then implored its drivers to stay safe during Chinese New Year and to call the free support hotline if needed.
Tesla has 59 Supercharging stations in China at present, mainly around the wealthier eastern seaboard area. It’s not clear where the illegally charged car was parked, but the license plate indicates it’s registered in Zhejiang province in eastern China, which has plenty of Tesla charging points.
The US car company launched in China in April 2014 to much fanfare, but sales dropped to alarming levels by the end of the year.
(Source: Car News China)
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