Tesla vandal caught on camera

EV owners ask ‘is it always Boomers’ as another battery-powered car is keyed in public.

Tesla owners continue to fall victim to vandalism in Australia – despite “sentry” cameras recording video evidence that lands offenders in trouble with the law.

An Australian Tesla owner posted security footage of their car being vandalised by an upset pedestrian last week.

The member of the Tesla Owners Australia Facebook page posted video of their car being keyed, stating that “I had a deep scratch from the rear passenger door all the way through to the left guard”.

The Tesla Owners Australia Facebook page has posted vision of a car being vandalised. Picture: Facebook

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“Reviewed footage and realised an elderly lady has keyed my car. Not sure if it is worth going through insurance.”

The incident is reported to have occurred in Epping, Victoria.

Fellow Tesla owners were outraged by the incident, voicing concerns in Facebook comments.

Some asked “what’s with all the hate for teslas in Australia? These videos get posted weekly”, “do we know about them because they can catch it with cameras”, and “WTF is wrong with all these old people keying cars for no reason?”.

Others pointed to the culprit’s apparent age, asking “is it always Boomers” and wondering why “this type of behaviour is increasing and far too common here in Australia”.

This week’s incident is by no means isolated.

There are many documented instances of Teslas being vandalised in Australia, caught by on-board cameras that form part of the car’s driver assistance package.

Many Tesla models feature cameras on the front, rear and sides of the vehicle. Picture: Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP

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Tesla’s Sentry Mode allows owners to monitor activities around the vehicle when it is parked and locked.

When suspicious motion is detected, the vehicle can automatically flash its lights and honk its horn to warn them away.

Owners can also manually activate warnings and review security footage if they are suspicious of its surroundings.

While handy, the feature does have a downside in that it uses the car’s battery to maintain a constant state of surveillance, which leads to reduced driving range.