Last year’s accident of the NIO electric car attracted attention, because it happened on the exhibition grounds during the fair. In order to prevent anything similar from happening again at the e-Salon this year, the cars have charging cables plugged into the connectors, which they cannot start with, or even carefully hidden keys. For the importer of the NIO brand, the whole event had a bitter ending. He had to pay for the repair, which cost around a quarter of a million crowns, out of his own money.
“In the morning, the director of the exhibition, Jana Nosálová, came to see us to check the arrangements,” describes Jakub Geršl, owner of the Cario company, on the first day at the exhibition. It imports Chinese cars to the Czech Republic and specializes mainly in the NIO brand, but also Rising and BYD. “We prepared for it and tested various situations that could arise. All cars have cables or at least connectors in their plugs. And we preferred to hide the keys from the NIO cars completely,” he adds.
Thanks to this, the car should not start even if a curious visitor manipulates the gear selector and steps on the gas. At the same time, it can be in the so-called “stand-by” mode, so that its lights are on and people can browse the infotainment menu after sitting behind the wheel and thus get a better look at the car.
Security is being addressed more at this year’s e-Salon exhibition precisely because of last year’s event. A student of the Secondary Technical School of Transport, who arrived at the event as part of a school event, sat in the car to inspect it, inadvertently engaged mode D, stepped on the accelerator pedal, and the car suddenly sped forward.
During the 20-meter journey, it knocked over a flower pot and ended up wedged in an Iveco electric van. The Nio ET5 Touring had a damaged nose and hood, the Iveco was also damaged. Photos at the time were provided by Radovan Skokan to Aktuálně.cz.
At the same time, the car arrived in the Czech Republic only a few days before the exhibition, after which the customer was supposed to take it over. “So I actually took it back to Germany for repairs after a week,” describes Geršl.
Although it was not a big damage, it was necessary to replace the headlights, mask, mudguard, front sensors, the rear-view mirror, door and handle were damaged by the flower pot. In the end, the repair cost roughly a quarter of a million crowns.
In addition, the whole event had an unpleasant outcome for the owner. “Although it was a student and he was there with the class as part of the lesson, the principal of the school, which is insured for such events after all, refused to talk to me, saying that we should recover damages from the boy’s parents. We did not want to spend additional resources on lawyers and mainly we didn’t want to claim damages from the family, who were very unhappy about it, so we took it as it is,” he adds.
This is also why this year the exhibitor did everything possible to secure the car. “The NIO is the only one for which it is enough for a person to stand nearby with the key in their pocket, and if someone in the meantime engages mode D, it can start even after half an hour. That is why we deleted all digital access from the application on our mobile phones, hid the physical keys Although the car company has even integrated an exhibition mode, it is managed by the administrator at NIO drive away,” describes Geršl’s lap with modern cars.
The car, repaired after last year’s accident, eventually remained in the ownership of the Cario company and is used for test drives. “Although they say that even negative PR is good PR, if I could return it, I would of course return it,” concludes Geršl.
The Great NIO Car Fiasco: An Electric Misadventure at the e-Salon
Ah, the marvels of modern technology! You’d think with the rise of electric cars, especially sleek models from NIO, we’d be zipping around roads like Captain America on a shield. But instead, we’ve got a situation that can only be described as a comedy of errors—and that’s putting it mildly!
Last year at the e-Salon, an incident turned the spotlight on NIO for all the wrong reasons. Picture this: A student, clearly more interested in his graduation paper than the safety features of an electric car, happened upon a parked NIO, hopped in, and before anyone could say “autonomous vehicle,” he engaged the gear—BAM! A wild ride to the nearest flower pot followed by a crash with an Iveco van. Move over Fast & Furious, this was Fast & Curious.
With damages tallying up to a staggering quarter of a million crowns, the aftermath was as bitter as the last slice of chocolate cake that everyone’s too polite to finish. The director of the exhibition, Jana Nosálová, must have thought she was running a car show, not a demolition derby!
But this time around, the people at Cario—who import these lovely electric chariots—were not going to let history repeat itself. According to Jakub Geršl, the owner of Cario, they decided to play it safe this year, opting for a setup that would make Fort Knox look like a candy store. Cars were equipped with charging cables that could give a toddler a workout, and, in a move that would make Houdini proud, they hid the keys so well even Sherlock Holmes would’ve needed a magnifying glass.
Thankfully, the new precautions should keep the NIOs in “stand-by” mode while allowing curious visitors to explore their snazzy infotainment systems without inadvertently discovering the accelerate feature—because let’s face it, nobody wants a repeat of last year!
Now, back to that unfortunate student: he didn’t mean to turn a luxury electric vehicle into a makeshift bumper car on exhibit. It’s a shame the school principal opted for the “ignore it and hope it goes away” strategy rather than owning up to the mishap. I mean, can you imagine the conversation tripling behind that “let’s not involve lawyers” sentiment? No one wants to be the villain in an episode of ‘The Parent Trap: Electric Boogaloo.’
Fortunately, the repaired NIO, now dubbed the “NIO Survivor,” remains safely tucked in the Cario’s stable, ready for test drives and probably a few “let’s not touch that” disclaimers.
So, as we navigate this electric car saga, one thing’s for sure: Whether we love them or fear them, these NIO vehicles have managed to drive home one comprehensive truth—sometimes, maintaining control is as much about physical security as it is about human curiosity. Let’s just hope next year’s e-Salon doesn’t turn into an episode of “Wacky Races!”
In the end, if you ever find yourself at an exhibition, remember: Look, but don’t touch—or you might just end up in a pot-hole of trouble!
Last year’s incident involving a NIO electric car at an exhibition captured widespread attention due to its unusual location on the fairgrounds. To mitigate the risk of a similar occurrence at this year’s e-Salon, the organizers implemented stringent safety measures, including ensuring that all vehicles had charging cables firmly connected to their sockets, preventing any possibility of operation. Additionally, the keys for the cars were meticulously concealed to further enhance security. For the NIO brand importer, the repercussions of last year’s mishap were quite severe, as he was forced to personally cover repair expenses that amounted to approximately a quarter of a million crowns.
On the opening day of the exhibition, Jakub Geršl, owner of the Cario company which imports Chinese vehicles to the Czech Republic, recalled, “In the morning, the director of the exhibition, Jana Nosálová, came to check our preparations.” Cario specializes in the NIO brand while also importing Rising and BYD models. “We carefully planned and rehearsed various scenarios that could arise during the event. All vehicles are equipped with either cables or at the very least, secured connectors. Additionally, we took extra precautions by hiding the keys of the NIO cars entirely,” he elaborated.
This year, the cars will not start even if a curious onlooker attempts to manipulate the gear selector and press the accelerator. Nonetheless, the vehicles can still be put into a “stand-by” mode, where the lights remain illuminated and visitors are able to navigate the infotainment menu while seated inside, providing a fuller experience of the car’s features.
Security enhancements at this year’s e-Salon are directly influenced by last year’s unintended incident. A student from the Secondary Technical School of Transport, attending the fair as part of a class outing, innocently climbed into the car, unintentionally engaged drive mode (D), and pressed the accelerator, causing the vehicle to lurch forward unexpectedly.
During its brief, unplanned 20-meter journey, the car collided with a flower pot and became wedged against an Iveco electric van. The NIO ET5 Touring sustained damage to its front end, while the Iveco also incurred repairable harm. Eyewitness photos of the aftermath were later shared by Radovan Skokan with Aktuálně.cz.
Compounding the situation, the car arrived in the Czech Republic just days before the exhibition, with an intended customer expecting to take delivery shortly thereafter. “I actually had to send it back to Germany for repairs after just a week,” Geršl recounted. Although the damage was not catastrophic, repairs necessitated the replacement of several components, including headlights, the front mask, mudguard, front sensors, and a rear-view mirror, as well as repairs to the door and handle affected by the flower pot. Ultimately, the cost of repairs reached roughly a quarter of a million crowns.
The incident yielded not only financial challenges but also an uncomfortable experience for Geršl. “Despite the fact that it was a student attending with his class, the principal of the school, which holds insurance for incidents of this nature, declined to engage in conversation, insisting that we seek reimbursement from the boy’s parents. We chose not to expend additional resources on legal matters and were reluctant to pursue damages from a family that was already distressed about the incident, so we accepted the situation,” he explained.
This year, to prevent similar issues, the exhibitor has taken every conceivable precaution to secure the vehicles. “The NIO is unique in that merely having a person nearby with the key in their pocket makes it possible for someone to start it, even if it’s been half an hour since being placed in drive mode. As a result, we disabled all digital access from our mobile apps and hid the physical keys. While the car manufacturer has provided an exhibition mode, it is overseen by an administrator at NIO to prevent unauthorized operation,” Geršl described regarding precautions in handling contemporary vehicles.
After undergoing repairs from last year’s incident, the car ultimately remained within the Cario company’s fleet and is now utilized for test drives. “While they say any publicity, even negative, can be beneficial, I would definitely opt to reverse the situation if given the chance,” Geršl concluded.
Replacement of several components, including the headlights, front mask, mudguard, front sensors, and rear-view mirror, as well as the door and handle, which were damaged by the flower pot. The total repair cost amounted to approximately a quarter of a million crowns, a significant financial blow for Cario.
Despite the severity of the incident, the real disappointment lay in the aftermath. The student involved, while not acting with malicious intent, inadvertently created chaos and cost implications. Geršl expressed frustration regarding the handling of the situation by the school’s leadership. “Even though the student was just a boy on a class excursion, the principal flatly refused to discuss the matter, claiming we should approach the boy’s parents for damages. We were unwilling to escalate the situation with legal action or involve the family, who were already distressed by the incident, so we decided to absorb the loss,” he explained.
This year, with lessons learned, Cario took stringent measures to safeguard their vehicles from further misadventures. The NIO features a unique design that allowed it to start inadvertently; thus, all digital access was removed, and physical keys were thoroughly hidden away. Even with NIO’s exhibition mode, which would ideally keep the cars from accidentally being put into gear, the responsibility ultimately fell on Geršl and his team to ensure no such risks were taken.
Now, with last year’s mishap behind them, Cario’s NIOs are once again on display at the e-Salon—but this time under tighter control. The repaired vehicle, now humorously referred to as the “NIO Survivor,” serves as both a reminder of what transpired and a testament to how organizations can adapt and safeguard their exhibitions.
As the event unfolds, it appears that the combination of advanced electric vehicle technology and human curiosity can create a perfect storm when safety measures are not rigorously enforced. However, the organizers and exhibitors remain hopeful that their reinforced strategies will ensure a safer, smoother experience as they showcase the future of automotive innovation.
Thus, with a bit of luck and a lot of caution, the next e-Salon might just showcase a display of electrifying vehicles without any unexpected detours into gardening territory—or worse, the realm of petty accidents. After all, even in the world of cutting-edge technology, a dash of old-fashioned prudence can go a long way.