BYD EV Struck By Lightning Holds Up Fine

A BYD electric car was recently struck by lightning, three times. There was also a human driving the car at the time. The good news is that the driver and the car were fine, with only minimal damage.

First of all, let’s start with a common claim about lightning and cars. Growing up in the lightning capital of the world (the Tampa Bay region), one thing I grew up hearing is that you were safe from lightning inside of a car because of its rubber tires. The claim typically was that lightning wouldn’t strike a car because of the rubber tires. That’s not exactly true, but it’s on the edge of truth we might say. Here’s what the National Weather Service says on the matter:

“Do the rubber tires on your car protect you if you are OUTside the car and you’re leaning on it? NO! Like trees, houses, and people, anything outside is at risk of being struck by lightning when thunderstorms are in the area, including cars. The good news though is that the outer metal shell of hard-topped metal vehicles does provide protection to those inside a vehicle with the windows closed. Unfortunately though, the vehicle doesn’t always fare so well.

“A typical cloud-to-ground, actually cloud-to-vehicle, lightning strike will either strike the antenna of the vehicle or along the roofline. The lightning will then pass through the vehicle’s outer metal shell, then through the tires to the ground.

“Although every lightning strike is different, damage to the antenna, electrical system, rear windshield, and tires is common. The heat from a lightning strike is sufficient to partially melt the antenna of a vehicle and can cause what seems like a small explosion of sparks as tiny fragments of metal melt and burn. A portion of the discharge may find its way into the vehicle’s electrical system and may damage or destroy electronic components, potentially leaving the car inoperable. The lightning may also find its way into the small defrosting wires that are embedded in rear windows causing the windows to shatter. Finally, it’s very common for the lightning to destroy one or more tires as it passes through the steel belts to the ground. It’s also possible for the lightning to ignite a fire which could destroy the vehicle.”

So, let’s look at what happened to this BYD, a BYD Song Plus EV. Many people are afraid of EVs even operating in rain, so with the enormous amount of electricity packed into their large batteries, I imagine many are also concerned about lightning striking EVs and causing them to explode or something.

This BYD was actually struck by lighting while in motion. “The incident occurred on August 6 in Beihai, southern China’s Guangxi, and videos of the accident were widely shared on Chinese social media platforms,” CnEVPost shares. “Yesterday, local media outlet Chongqing Daily interviewed a mechanic who inspected the vehicle and said that the power battery pack, electronic control system, and motor showed no signs of short-circuiting.” A BYD rep actually took to Weibo to share the good news as well.

There were three small points on the roof where the lightning struck. Otherwise, it seems there was no damage or harm at all. Perhaps it’s not something you would wish for on your roof, but I imagine the driver and their family were very happy that’s all that happened. In fact, frankly, I’d rather have the damage and the experience and story to tell! Who wouldn’t love to have that story up their sleeve?