But sometimes if goes astray.

in this case, the presumed stuck accelerator stuck just on the bridge–TO ANOTHER COUNTRY–of all the stop lights and stop signs in its history to this point. Just….HERE. Could happen but putting the mortgage on it would be unwise…considering all the stop signs and stop lights up to this point. THIS point?

I am not necessarily buying it, but I wouldn’t give someone with a raised eyebrow a hard time about it.

That said, I once had a rental car which, due to the placement of the brake pedal and the accelerator, plus the size 14, had a tendency to a mysterious surge at red lights. Unlikely a luxury car was arranged that way but if it was, in some fashion, susceptible to an unlikely foot position–guy’s yelling at his wife and turning to look at her, reaching into the back seat for something, noting they’d been called to a secondary inspection might have made somebody nervous for some reason and once the car jumped, panic led to mashing whatever was under his foot.

Strictly speaking, an unconfined vapor flash is not an explosion with a sharp, brutal wave front/over pressure. It’s not going to throw loose objects very far nor blow apart structures of any kind.

Initial reports were that there were explosives “in the car”. Most professional grade, military grade explosives are, oddly, hard to detonate. You need a blasting cap. So, in Viet Nam, the line guys might pry a few flakes of explosive out of the Claymore mine to heat their rations. Burned nicely. If there really were explosives and they were securely enclosed, a flashover might not set them off.

You’d expect a terrorist to be better armed and/or better organized. Just driving up to something and running into it doesn’t put you in the big leagues. So…maybe not.

Well, that’s certainly better than paying a trivial sum for a mobile wreck and having it malfunction and kill them all… 😀

Seriously — oddball issues have occurred many times for many vehicles — most of them exceptionally unusual. Anyone else remember the issue with sudden acceleration by Toyotas, about 15-odd years ago, ca. 2005-2010? It tarnished the Toyota reputation for safety and reliability considerably, even though only a small fraction of a percentage point of cars ever had an issue.

From 2021: Bentley models recalled for sticking accelerator.

https://www.drive.com.au/news/2018-2021-bentley-continental-gt-and-flying-spur-recalled/

…““Due to inconsistent fitment of the fuse box and the electrical harness the A-post lower trim can protrude into the cabin reducing clearance to the accelerator pedal. If the accelerator pedal is fully pressed whilst driving and is unable to return to its resting position, the vehicle will continue to accelerate, even when the driver’s foot is removed from the accelerator pedal.”

Also: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12781829/niagara-bridge-usa-canada-terrorism-explosion-gambling.html

What about Li batteries? I’m not sure that they “explode” but I believe they have caused some dramatic fires, not just a burning engine but the entire vehicle engulfed in flames. If they are not still trying to cover up some terrorist incident it almost certainly was an EV.

One thing is certain: That’s it, NO Bentleys for me…
(Though I suppose one COULD argue that if you miss your LAST CHANCE to see KISS because THEY canceled the concert—how much were those tix again?—then it’s reasonable to conclude that your life is TRULY over…and your spouse’s, too…)

Also reports say the car stopped at the Seneca Niagara Casino in the USA shortly before the crash.

Yes, the Daily Mail story had conflicting info–surprise! /sarc
The media can’t clearly report a basic element of the story. Sad.