Fire at GM Design Studio Destroys Concept Car as Mystery Surrounds the Cause
A fire at General Motors’ newly opened design centre in California destroyed a concept car and kept nearly a hundred firefighters busy for two hours. The company confirmed the incident but declined to say whether the car consumed by the flames was electric.
The blaze broke out at GM’s Pasadena studio, which only opened in 2024. Local authorities described it as one of the largest fires in the area in recent years. It took firefighters two hours to contain the flames, with more than a hundred personnel called to the scene, underscoring the seriousness of the situation.
GM said the fire affected only one vehicle and did not spread to nearby buildings or other prototypes. One firefighter was briefly trapped inside but was rescued without injury.
The new design complex consists of three buildings covering roughly 14,000 square metres. It cost GM 71 million dollars (about 67.3 million euros) to build and was meant to symbolise a new creative era for the American car giant, blending physical modelling with virtual prototyping in a single space.
While the official cause has not been released, several sources suggest the destroyed car was an early-stage prototype. GM remains tight-lipped about whether it was powered by batteries or a combustion engine, leaving plenty of room for speculation. Some believe the fire may have started in the battery system, a theory consistent with the growing trend of manufacturers testing new electric platforms in dense laboratory environments.
The Pasadena studio recently hinted at a next-generation Chevrolet Camaro. If the blaze did indeed begin with a future Camaro prototype, one could say that more than a car went up in flames — a small piece of American muscle car history did too.
The incident highlights a broader concern across the automotive industry: the increasing safety risks tied to developing electric prototypes. Rapid advances in battery technology bring undeniable progress but also unpredictable side effects that even corporations the size of GM struggle to foresee. Experts suggest this fire may prompt manufacturers to re-examine safety standards in their design studios, particularly where the cars of the future take shape.
The flames may be out, but questions about how they started and what they might mean for the industry, continue to smoulder.
