Model S Pole Crash.

[ecarfan]

This is definitely more than a coincidence.

Kimberly Jill Shibayama, a 34 yo physicians assistant according to Google search, crashes a black Model S with gray wheels in Murfreesboro, TN in August.
Then Dr. Juris Shibayama, a 38 yo orthopedic surgeon practicing in Murfreesboro torches a black Model S with gray wheels in November?

Doubt she's his wife (that appears to be a Dr. Libby Shibayama) but maybe kid sister?
My bet is this is the same Tesla and Kimberly was test driving big brother's car

I Googled "kimberly jill and juris shibayama murfreesboro tn" and could not find any sort of link between them, but that doesn't mean there isn't one. Same uncommon last name, both have jobs in the healthcare industry, live in the same city, and were both driving a black S85 with grey wheels.

I read Dr Shibayama's blog post and was impressed with his clear description of the accident. Mirrors the experience of the other Tesla owner in Washington who hit road debris; the car is safe and very smart!

Of course hastily written news stories designed to grab viewers attention fail to provide clear analysis and context.

 

[captain_zap]

This is definitely more than a coincidence.

Kimberly Jill Shibayama, a 34 yo physicians assistant according to Google search, crashes a black Model S with gray wheels in Murfreesboro, TN in August.
Then Dr. Juris Shibayama, a 38 yo orthopedic surgeon practicing in Murfreesboro torches a black Model S with gray wheels in November?

Doubt she's his wife (that appears to be a Dr. Libby Shibayama) but maybe kid sister?
My bet is this is the same Tesla and Kimberly was test driving big brother's car. So either the first one was totaled and replaced with an identical model or this is the same car. Which definitely brings up the issue of previous battery damage.

Surreal.

What also fascinates me....both Shibayama destructions of identical Teslas occurred within a few miles of the Nissan Leaf plant.

 

[Discoducky]

What also fascinates me....both Shibayama destructions of identical Teslas occurred within a few miles of the Nissan Leaf plant.

Only 15 miles to the Leaf plant. Crazy odds!

 

[SwedishAdvocate]

Conspiracy?

Here’s the open letter from Juris Shibayama, MD. If it somehow was a conspiracy, then I have a feeling a letter such as this one would have been phrased a little differently…

[NOTE: My underline, bold & footnote.]

November 9, 2013

From a Model S owner in Tennessee

By Juris Shibayama, MD

/.../

I was driving home from work on the interstate in the right lane at approximately 70 miles per hour, following a truck. In the middle of the lane, there was a rusty three-pronged trailer hitch that was sticking up with the ball up in the air. The truck in front of me cleared the object. I did not have enough time to swerve to avoid the hitch, and it went below my car. I felt a firm "thud" as the hitch struck the bottom of the car, and it felt as though it even lifted the car up in the air[SUP][1][/SUP]. My assistant later found a gouge in the tarmac where the item scraped into the road. Somewhat shaken, I continued to drive.

About 30-45 seconds later, there was a warning on the dashboard display saying, "Car needs service. Car may not restart." I continued to drive, hoping to get home. About one minute later, the message on the dashboard display read, "Please pull over safely. Car is shutting down." I was able to fully control the car the entire time and safely pulled off the left shoulder on the side of the road. I got out of the car, and started to get all my belongings out. About 5-10 seconds after getting out of the car, smoke started to come from the front underbody of the car. I walked away from the vehicle to a distance of about 100 yards. More smoke started to come out of the bottom of the car, and about two minutes after I walked away, the front of the car caught on fire.

I am thankful to God that I was totally uninjured in any way from this impact. Had I not been in a Tesla, that object could have punched through the floor and caused me serious harm. From the time of impact of the object until the time the car caught fire was about five minutes. During this time, the car warned me that it was damaged and instructed me to pull over. I never felt as though I was in any imminent danger. While driving after I hit the object until I pulled over, the car performed perfectly, and it was a totally controlled situation. There was never a point at which I was anywhere even close to any flames.

The firemen arrived promptly and applied water to the flames. They were about to pry open the doors, so I pressed my key button and the handles presented and everything worked even though the front of the car was on fire. No flames ever reached the cabin, and nothing inside was damaged. I was even able to get my papers and pens out of the glove compartment.

This experience does not in any way make me think that the Tesla Model S is an unsafe car. I would buy another one in a heartbeat.

Juris Shibayama, MD


[ [SUP]1[/SUP]The model S has a curb weight of approximately 4,650 lbs (!)...

Source: From a Model S owner in Tennessee | Blog | Tesla Motors ]

 

[JakeP]

Perhaps she was entirely cleared of the DUI/"Violation of Implied Consent" charge, and they removed her name. Seems like the initial "evidence" they reported of her handing her license to a firefighter instead of the policeman is not terribly indicative of her being under the influence. If I had just wrecked my brand new Model S (or worse, my big brother's brand new Model S), I would certainly be in a fairly distracted state also. Especially if it was because I was driving distracted, and not due to any external factor out of my control.

I cannot even imagine how these people feel, being the center of attention like this. If these were just two unfortunate accidents, I really feel for them. But the coincidences are just staggering!

 

[Bill D]

I cannot even imagine how these people feel, being the center of attention like this. If these were just two unfortunate accidents, I really feel for them. But the coincidences are just staggering!

The favorable story posted on Saturday by the owner of the car burned last Wednesday was picked up by many Internet news sites today so it could boost the stock on Monday.

It may be just an unfortunate coincidence, but two incidents with two seemingly identical cars and two people with the same last name, located in the same town is certainly cause to ask some questions, especially since reports about incidents like this swing the stock price so much.

I see from the pictures that the two cars had different tag numbers, but I guess it's remotely possible they were the same car.

 

[Jack6591]

Do we know if the pole crash Model S and the third fire Model S are the same car. I would think it would be germane to the NHTSA investigation.

 

[Bill D]

Do we know if the pole crash Model S and the third fire Model S are the same car. I would think it would be germane to the NHTSA investigation.

It's hard to imagine the NHTSA would miss such a key fact. I've searched but not found the relationship between these two drivers and cars explained anywhere.

 

[captain_zap]

Do we know if the pole crash Model S and the third fire Model S are the same car. I would think it would be germane to the NHTSA investigation.

From the photos of the pole crash, the first Shibayama car was likely totaled. The second could have been a replacement car (both black with grey wheels).

 

[AmpedRealtor]

It's hard to imagine the NHTSA would miss such a key fact. I've searched but not found the relationship between these two drivers and cars explained anywhere.

NHTSA is only looking at fires caused by undercarriage debris collisions. NHTSA is not including the other vehicle incidents.

 

[markb1]

NHTSA is only looking at fires caused by undercarriage debris collisions. NHTSA is not including the other vehicle incidents.

I think he's saying it's a key fact if the car that caught fire had been in a previous and serious accident. The investigators should certainly be interested in the state of the car before it hit the road debris.