Have you ever wanted to see a Tesla take on a tornado, like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz? Okay, maybe you haven’t thought, “I’d really love to see a Tesla in a Tornado,” but knowing that it’s happened – and there’s video! – makes it a must-see. Of course, it helps that the Tesla owner is okay, otherwise, it might be a different story. 

Where was the tornado?

Tesla versus the tornado (there’s a movie title here somewhere) happened in Canada, specifically Ontario, on July 15, 2021. According to Yahoo News, the tornado was a 2 on the Enhanced Fujita scale. It did touch down near businesses in Barrie, Ontario – and of course near the Tesla. 

Altogether, it was a pretty serious tornado. According to CP24, 100 people were displaced and 20 homes are uninhabitable because of the tornado. Additionally, ten people were taken to the hospital. 

What happened between the Tesla and the Tornado?

It was a Tesla Model X involved in the tornado. According to the video owner on Reddit, the Tesla driver was safe inside a business when the tornado touched down. The video footage shows what it was like inside of the tornado, without having to risk anybody’s life. 

In the video, heavy wind is visible thanks to the debris it’s carrying with it. There’s rain falling pretty heavily as well. You can see the rear of another SUV parked nearby pushed toward the Tesla Model X. Traffic cones are also seen being thrown by the wind through the parking lot. 

Is there video footage?

Teslas are filled with cameras – they have cameras pointing inside, outside, and replacing sensors that were previously operated by radar and lidar. So of course there’s video footage of the tornado.

It was the driver’s side camera that captured the footage of the tornado, and it’s pretty unbelievable to see, like a real-life (and therefore more terrifying) version of the movie Twister. 

The Tesla owner goes by Vanilla Gorilla on Reddit. They wrote, “The paint is pretty scuffed up pretty bad and a few dents, but it survived pretty well compared to other cars in the parking lot.”

Not only is there a video, but there are also pictures of the tornado damage after the fact. Vanilla Gorilla shared these, and they show how the Tesla survived the tornado. There are scuff marks all over the Model X’s body, and the side mirror was essentially ripped off. It’s pretty clear that the Tesla must have been hit by a good number of things during the tornado. From the look of things, it will likely need a full paint job. 

Seeing what the inside of the tornado is like is pretty wild, and kind of cool. Considering there were a total of five tornados in the area on the day of this tornado, it’s also pretty lucky that no one was more seriously injured. Hopefully the Tesla owner will be able to get their car good as new soon.