Thousands of cars including Audis, Porsches adrift on burning cargo ship

The Felicity Ace, a Panama-flagged cargo ship carrying thousands of Volkswagen vehicles, caught fire near the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday afternoon.

The ship’s 22 crew members were evacuated and taken to a local hotel by the Portuguese Navy and Air Force who were deployed to help with the rescue effort, according to a statement by the Navy. The ship itself was left unmanned and adrift.

An internal e-mail from Volkswagen’s US operations revealed there were 3,965 Volkswagen vehicles aboard the ship. Headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany, the group manufactures its Volkswagen brand, as well as Porsche, Audi, and Lamborghini — all of which were aboard when the vessel caught alight, the e-mail said.

More than 100 of those cars were headed for Houston in Texas, with GTI, Golf R and ID4 models deemed to be at risk.

This latest hit comes as the automobile industry is already ensnared in ongoing supply chain issues, including pandemic labour woes and semiconductor chip shortages. Luke Vandezande, a spokesperson for Porsche, said the company estimates about 1,100 of its vehicles were among those on board the Felicity Ace at the time of the fire. He said customers affected by the incident are being contacted by their dealers.

“Our immediate thoughts are of relief that the 22 crew of the merchant ship Felicity Ace are safe and well,” Vandezande said.

It’s not the first time the manufacturer has lost merchandise at sea. When the Grande America caught fire and sank in 2019, more than 2,000 luxury cars, including Audi and Porsche, sank with it.

Some customers expressed their disappointment on social media. One Twitter user reported his custom spec’d Porsche Boxster Spyder was among the lost cargo. Standard models of the vehicle start at about $99,650 (roughly R1.5m).

A spokesperson for Lamborghini’s US branch declined to comment on the number of cars the company had on board or which models were affected, but said they are in contact with the shipping company to get more information about the incident.

The Felicity Ace is roughly the size of three football fields and was en route to a port in Davisville, US, when a distress signal was issued due to fire on one of its cargo decks. As of Wednesday night, the ship’s owner was arranging for the vessel to be towed, the Navy said.

They plan to remain on site to monitor the situation, reporting no detectable traces of pollution so far. 

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