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Is there a Tesla show room near your home town? You will definitely want to read up on the startup’s most recent scandal.

If you’ve ever worked on your own car, you know it’s loaded with toxic fluids. You need to follow local guidelines when you dispose of your used oil, gear oil, transmission fluid, and antifreeze. You can imagine that there are even worse chemicals involved in many steps of building a car, from welding to painting.

Tesla has eco-friendly marketing. You might think the startup would lead the charge in environmentally-conscious disposal of toxic materials. But on the other hand, Tesla has often acted as if the rules don’t apply to it. Recent examples include lying about vehicle ranges and spying on owners with in-car cameras. California District Attorneys began to suspect Tesla was flouting hazardous waste disposal laws.

Twenty-five district attorneys from across California began to put together a case in 2018, which included conducting undercover inspections of dumpsters at Tesla service centers and the factory in Fremont.

Dumpster against a brick wall.
Dumpster | Kevin Butz via Unsplash

Investigators found Tesla illegally disposing of the following substances at service centers:

  • Oils
  • Brake cleaner
  • Lead-acid batteries
  • Solvents
  • Electroncis

But that’s not all, the toxins tossed in the regular trash at the Fremont factory were even worse:

  • Paint mixing cups
  • Contaminated debris
  • Potentially toxic welding splatter

The state is fining Tesla $1.5 million for all these infractions. But that’s barely a slap on the wrist for a company that made $96 billion last year.

Tesla does not have a media department, but the district attorneys report that it is cooperating with further inspections:

“After Tesla was notified of the issues, they began quarantining and screening trash containers for hazardous waste at all of its service centers before trash was brought to the landfill.” Tesla will also train either its own employees, or outside inspectors, to audit the trash containers in the future.

Next, read how Tesla admitted to engineering infotainment screens to fail, or learn more about its toxic waste disposal problems in the video below:

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Staff Writer

Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.