Two Tesla Cybertrucks were destroyed and several other Tesla vehicles were damaged after a fire broke out on the rooftop of a seven-story parking garage in Santa Monica on Wednesday. Neither truck was plugged in to charge at the time.
The Santa Monica Fire Department responded at approximately 3:16 p.m. to the 2200 block of Colorado Avenue, where heavy smoke was reported coming from the roof of the structure. The cause remains under investigation.
The fire
When firefighters arrived and reached the rooftop level, they found two Cybertrucks fully engulfed in flames, according to the Santa Monica Fire Department. Thick plumes of black smoke were visible from several nearby buildings and wreaked havoc on late-afternoon traffic in the area.
Crews had to carry equipment and hose lines up all seven levels of the parking structure to begin an aggressive attack on the burning vehicles. The fire was knocked down relatively quickly, and no injuries were reported among residents, visitors, or firefighters.
Both Cybertrucks were a total loss. Several other Tesla vehicles parked nearby sustained damage from the fire and heat.
The location
The parking structure at 2200 Colorado Avenue is attached to the Anara Santa Monica, a luxury apartment complex managed by Bozzuto. It is a residential building — not a Tesla facility.
However, the location is notable. Tesla operates a Service Center and Collision Center at 1100 Colorado Avenue, on the same street. The fact that multiple Cybertrucks and several other Teslas were clustered together on the rooftop of a residential garage raises questions about whether these were resident-owned vehicles or something else.
Authorities did not identify the owners of the vehicles, and it is unclear why multiple Cybertrucks were parked next to each other on the roof.
Cause unknown — trucks weren’t charging
The Santa Monica Fire Department has not released a cause for the fire, and an investigation is expected to take time. Critically, the Cybertrucks were not plugged in to charge when the fire started, ruling out a charging-related ignition as the immediate trigger.
The Cybertruck has been plagued by quality and safety issues since its launch. The vehicle has been subject to more than a dozen safety recalls since going into production, with NHTSA data showing Tesla produced roughly 63,600 Cybertrucks through October 2025.
This is not the first time Cybertrucks have caught fire under mysterious circumstances. In January 2025, a Cybertruck burned down at a Tesla lot in Atlanta, with local fire authorities suspecting a battery fire. In March 2025, four Cybertrucks caught fire at a Tesla storage lot in Seattle, though that incident occurred during a wave of suspected arson attacks on Tesla properties.
The Cybertruck also had well-documented demand issues throughout 2025. At one point, Tesla was sitting on $200 million worth of unsold Cybertruck inventory, with new inventory surging past 10,000 units.
Electrek’s Take
Top comment by ModernMarvalFan
Well, as I stopped by Tesla service center this morning to pick up my loaner for my out of pocket repair on my Model 3, two tow trucks stopped 5 minutes apart unloading two different Cybertrucks at service center. One even had nice metallic bronze wrap on it. In the service center parking lot, there are at least 5 other Cybertruck waiting for services. I guess it isn't a good sign for the rushed Cybertruck reliability. At least they are all still covered by warranty at this point.
The facts here are straightforward: two Cybertrucks caught fire on the rooftop of a residential apartment building’s parking garage, they weren’t charging, and the cause is unknown. That alone is concerning and warrants a thorough investigation.
But there’s an additional detail that caught our attention. The building at 2200 Colorado Avenue is a luxury apartment complex, not a Tesla location. Yet there were multiple Cybertrucks and several other Teslas clustered together on the rooftop. Tesla’s Service Center is on the same street, roughly a mile away at 1100 Colorado Avenue. We have no proof of this, but given Tesla’s well-documented Cybertruck inventory problems in 2025, we can’t help but wonder whether the rooftop was being used as some kind of overflow parking for Tesla inventory or service vehicles. A cluster of Cybertrucks on a residential rooftop is unusual, to say the least.
Whether these turn out to be resident-owned vehicles or not, the fire itself adds to the Cybertruck’s growing list of incidents.
Are we witnessing more violence against Tesla vehicles? Is it a technical issue? We will keep an eye on the investigation.
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