This seems to me to be a preemptive announcement.
Two fires are a PR problem, not an actual problem. But Tesla has a failure mode with their car that they need to address. It would appear that their "quarter inch armor plate" isn't thick enough to withstand a trailer hitch.
That's like saying the fire alarm waking you up at the middle of the night allowing you to safely escape does not mean it is OK that there is a fire burning your house down.
It is a true statement, but the situation is definitely preferable to having no notification.
Your analogy only holds if the fire alarm somehow started the fire.
The fact that the car alerted him to the fact that it was going to combust does not mean that it is OK that the car combusted.