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Tesla asks NHTSA to investigate fires

In response to concerns following a recent accident which appeared to result from road debris damaging the underside of a battery compartment of a Tesla Model S, causing a fire in the engine compartment, the company has announced that it has requested that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conduct a full investigation into the fire incidents. In a blog post, Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote the following about the investigation: "While we think it is highly unlikely, if something is discovered that would result in a material improvement in occupant fire safety, we will immediately apply that change to new cars and offer it as a free retrofit to all existing cars. Given that the incidence of fires in the Model S is far lower than combustion cars and that there have been no resulting injuries, this did not at first seem like a good use of NHTSA's time compared to the hundreds of gasoline fire deaths per year that warrant their attention." Tesla has also released a software update to the cars which will maintain their standard ride height at highway speeds, preventing the air suspension from lowering the car an extra inch at highway speeds for greater aerodynamic efficiency.

CDN launches Studio Photos

Car Design News is today launching 'Studio Photos', an extensive new library of high quality car photos taken in a photography studio. Developed in conjunction with automotive design research consultancy Car Men, it is a unique CDN member service created specifically as a visual benchmarking tool for design studios and consultancies who require directly comparable photos of production cars. Most designers or researchers will be familiar with the task of quickly finding good images of specific cars, details of some new model's tail lamp, or the side view of a particular class-leading competitor.

Honda Civic Wagon estate concept to debut at Geneva

Honda has released the first image of its Civic Wagon estate car ahead of its unveiling at next month's Geneva motor show. From what the sketch shows us, we can see a prominent crease hanging over the rear wheelarches along with a sloping roofline with integrated rear spoiler. At the rear we also get a glimpse the lamp arrangement, which runs the width of the car.