U.S. safety regulators absolve Tesla of responsibility in Model S fires

U.S. safety regulators said they closed an investigation into fires involving electric sports car maker Tesla Motors’ popular Model S sedans after finding no “defect trend,” sending the company’s shares up sharply. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began its investigation after two cars in the United States and one in Mexico caught fire.

It looks like Tesla Motors‘ brief firefight is now over. Not only has the company announced the fitment of new parts designed to deflect road debris, the cause of two fire incidents towards the end of 2013, but the NHTSA has now closed its probe into the fires–absolving the Model S of blame. Last year, Tesla had to defend its cars following three separate fire incidents in quick succession. In the first two incidents, drivers had hit debris in the road at highway speeds, which punctured the battery pack of each car which subsequently caught fire.