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Tesla investigating social media video of one of its cars catching fire in Shanghai

Electric car marker Tesla has said it is investigating a video that is circulating on Chinese social media which appears to show one of its most popular vehicles catching fire.

The video shows a stationary Tesla car, identified as the Model S, erupting into flames while in a car park in Shanghai on Sunday evening.

Tesla said: “We immediately sent a team onsite and we’re supporting local authorities to establish the facts. From what we know now, no one was harmed.”

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Tesla did not confirm whether the car was a Model S.

There have been at least 14 instances of Tesla cars catching fire since 2013, with most of the incidents occurring after a collision. 

​In 2014 Tesla installed a triple underbody shield into its Model S cars which chief executive Elon Musk said would bring the risk of fire down to "virtually zero".

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Tesla has said that its cars, which are electrically powered, are about 10 times less likely to experience a fire than petrol-powered cars, based on its fleet of more than 500,000 vehicles which have driven more than 10bn miles. It did not specify whether the statistic referred to normal use or involving accidents.