⁉ Man says his steering wheel just fell off his Tesla while driving
🔴 Tesla has less than kind response
🔵 NJ pushing for more Evs


A man driving his family home in his Tesla from an outing at the Woodbridge Mall says they are all lucky to be alive after the car's steering wheel just fell off.

Prerak Patel is recounting the terrifying ordeal in series of tweets.

Patel says his family was excited to take delivery of his new Tesla Y on Jan. 24. Just a few days later, as they were coming home from the mall, the wheel just popped off.

He called the incident "horrific," and wondered what would have happened if there were cars behind him when it happened.

attachment-Untitled design - 2023-02-02T050452.038
loading...
attachment-Untitled design - 2023-02-02T050332.332
loading...

"Was lucky enough there was no car behind and I was able to pull on divider," Patel wrote.

After he got the car stopped, he called Woodbridge Police.

attachment-Untitled design - 2023-02-02T050605.454
loading...
attachment-Untitled design - 2023-02-02T050649.703
loading...

He thanked officers for responding and keeping his family safe while they waited to have the Tesla towed.

The ordeal did not end there, however.

Patel says the dealership apologized for the incident, but that Tesla is taking no responsibility for the steering wheel falling off. They even tried to charges him, he says, for the repair.

Now, Patel says he and his family have "lost trust" in the vehicle, and just don't feel safe driving it anymore. He is trying to decide what to do next.
New Jersey has been one of the strongest growth markets for Tesla and other electric vehicles.

Gov. Phil Murphy has set a goal of 330,000 EVs being registered in New Jersey by 2025 as part of his Energy master Plan.

In August of 2022, Murphy announced the launch of year three of the State's Charge Up New Jersey electric vehicle (EV) incentive program and also unveiled the State's new residential EV charger program.

"The Charge Up Program is currently the country's largest cash-on-the-hood incentive program," Murphy said at the time. Residents can receive up to $4,000 from the state toward the purchase of an EV. The governor's office claims "over 13,000 EVs were purchased or leased with this incentive."

New Jersey has also invested heavily in charging stations. “New Jersey DEP has awarded nearly $10 million for 1,970 EV charging stations with 3,229 plugs on our corridors, and in our communities,” according to Commissioner of Environmental Protection Shawn M. LaTourette.

 

OMG! Cutest pets in New Jersey!

Is your pet cuter? Enter the New Jersey 101.5 Cutest Pets Contest until Feb. 12, 2023. Here are some entries so far.

Eric Scott is the senior political director and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at eric.scott@townsquaremedia.com

Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story.

LOOK: These Are the 50 biggest retailers in America

Stacker compiled a list of the 50 biggest retailers in the country, using retail sales data from Kantar, provided by the National Retail Federation.

LOOK: 31 breathtaking images from NASA's public library

In 2017, NASA opened the digital doors to its image and video library website, allowing the public to access more than 140,000 images, videos, and audio files. The collection provides unprecedented views of space. Stacker reviewed the collection to select 31 of the most breathtaking images, including the first from the James Webb Space Telescope. Keep reading to see these stunning images, curated with further information about the captured scenes.

More From New Jersey 101.5 FM