Tesla owners are growing increasingly concerned and are urging Elon Musk to develop a feature for their vehicles that could deter vandals from damaging their cars. Their requests come in the wake of numerous incidents where Tesla dealerships and cars have been targeted by vandals and arsonists across the United States.
“I really hope Tesla is working on some sort of defensive measures… just something extra to make Tesla owners feel a little bit better about parking in public parking lots,” said Tesla owner Sawyer Merritt, as reported by Fortune. “Honk, flash the lights, do something.”
Merritt’s plea was made on the same day that a Tesla Collision Center in Las Vegas was set on fire, with several Tesla electric vehicles being completely consumed by flames. Authorities have labeled the incident a “targeted attack,” prompting the FBI to join in on the investigation.
Tuesday’s attack in Las Vegas is only the most recent in a series of incidents involving Tesla, which has faced growing hostility since Elon Musk’s involvement with former President Donald Trump and the current administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“Within the community, there definitely is fear right now,” said John Stringer, a Tesla owner and president of the Tesla Owners Silicon Valley club, speaking to Fortune.
“Whether you like it or not, Tesla owners are being targeted, we saw it happening with a member in San Jose,” Stringer continued. “It’s just happening all over the place right now.” He was referencing a viral video showing a Tesla being vandalized in a Costco parking lot, which led to an arrest for felony vandalism.
Stringer further explained that Tesla owners “just want to drive a car, they don’t want to have a political statement on where they stand with Elon, and they’re just worried about just driving.”
Earlier this month, Tesla owner, investor, and influencer Alexandra Merz took to X to ask if the company’s engineers could update the software to include “an alarm to protect from keying the car.” She shared footage of a Tesla that had been keyed by a vandal.
“The car could tell the criminal before they start that they are being filmed and reported to the authorities,” Merz proposed.
“Car could honk at people if you want,” Musk responded at the time.
While Tesla vehicles come equipped with Sentry Mode, a feature that records and stores video footage of suspicious activity near the car, Merritt pointed out that “a lot of people don’t know they’re being recorded, so they just key anyways.”
As Breitbart News reported, just last week, an arsonist in Seattle set fire to a Tesla EV after dousing it with gasoline in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. The police reported that the suspect poured gasoline on a Tesla Model S sedan before igniting it and fleeing the scene.
Additionally, just a few weekends ago, six Cybertrucks were vandalized with profanity and swastikas at a Tesla dealership in Lynnwood, Washington, according to KING 5 news.
On the same weekend, four Tesla Cybertrucks were either damaged or destroyed in a fire at a Seattle parking lot, raising suspicions that it might have been a targeted arson attack against Musk. This incident is still under investigation.
These attacks followed an earlier event on New Year’s Day, when a Tesla Cybertruck was seen burning in front of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas. Authorities have called this an “active crime scene.”
{Matzav.com}The post Tesla Owners Beg Elon Musk to Add Feature Warning Off Terrorists first appeared on Matzav.com.