Tesla in vandals’ sights

Tesla is facing a surge in vandalism against its beautiful Superchargers, specifically targeting their cables.

To address the situation, Tesla is exploring innovative solutions to combat theft of charging cables at its Supercharger stations, a growing problem that affects not only the American operator but all charging station providers.

Public charging stations for electric vehicles are already suffering from reliability and availability issues that damage the entire sector’s image. And what about the often exorbitant prices during peak times! But regardless of location and circumstances, the availability of charging cables is logically crucial. However, it is not uncommon for thieves to target these infrastructures to cut the cables and resell the metal. Yet, one might wonder whether the resale of metal is the only motive for these damages or if anti-Tesla vandalism, driven by a negative image or the brand’s popularity, is also at play.

As the main operator of fast-charging stations, Tesla is a prime target. To combat this issue, the manufacturer has recently confirmed testing new approaches. One of them involves a device called DyeDefender. These small tubes surround the cables and release indelible dye if a cut is detected. This technology has been observed at a Supercharger station in Seattle, Washington.

Tesla has also decided to add engraving on the cables, indicating that they are “Property of Tesla.” The cables are manufactured at the Buffalo factory (New York), and the goal is to encourage recycling centers to refuse these materials and report any illegal resale attempts. One might doubt the effectiveness of this last anti-theft tool…

These measures aim to discourage thieves by making resale more difficult. Although underground networks exist, the prices they offer are often less attractive, which could reduce the interest in such thefts. However, if anti-Tesla vandalism is behind some acts, this could reveal another underlying dynamic that these solutions do not directly address.

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