It is a sad day in Tesla history as 25 original Roadsters have been destroyed in an early morning fire at Gruber Motor Company this weekend.
Gruber Motors is well known in the world of Tesla as the the go-to place if you have an original Tesla Roadster that needs some work, the biggest of which could be a dead battery.
It is not an uncommon sight to see their warehouse and shop in Phoenix, Arizona packed with dozens of the rare electric vehicles alongside other Tesla vehicles.
Image via Out of Spec Motoring /YouTubeUnfortunately their warehouse was packed with Roadsters and likely other Teslas this weekend, most if not all of which have now been destroyed or extensively damaged.
Early on Saturday morning the Phoenix Fire Department tweeted that they were battling “a 2nd alarm fire with hazardous materials in north Phoenix,” where Gruber Motors has their warehouse.
Phoenix Firefighters are battling a 2nd alarm fire with hazardous materials in north Phoenix early this morning. pic.twitter.com/hIm23eXPYh
— Phoenix Fire Dept. (@PHXFire) October 16, 2021
Although the fire department did not name the business, it was later confirmed to be Gruber Motors by TMC forum member az.andrew. Fortunately his car was not damaged as it was parked outside.
The news was also confirmed by the president of Tesla Club LA, who also received a call from Gruber himself about the fire. Based on the details of his call shared on the TMC forums, Gruber informed him of the fire and that 25 original Roadsters were destroyed.
According to Gruber, the cause of the fire is still under investigation. There have been no reports of any injuries.
UPDATE: In a statement to Drive Tesla, Peter Gruber said the fire took place at their main warehouse. Based on an initial investigation, it appears the fire started near the electrical panel. Gruber also confirmed there were no injuries.
We store Roadsters under repair in two other buildings, we had a fire in the main Service Center, in the middle of the night around 2:15 AM at Gruber Motor Company, which appeared to have started in or around an electrical panel. No one was injured, since no one was there.
However the main Service Center building is a complete loss. We lost over 20 cars.
UPDATE #2: Here is a video from Gruber Motor Company showing the extent of the damage. In another statement, Gruber has confirmed that all impacted customers have been notified.
Unbelievably, this isn’t the first fire at Gruber Motors. In 2017 another fire tore through their building after a mishap while attempting an experimental repair on a Roadster. That fire claimed six Roadsters, as well as a super-rare AC Propulsion Tzero, the car that served as the inspiration for the original Roadster.
