Parked in the basement of a compound in the East China municipality, the vehicle erupted into a ball of fire about 8 pm and burned nearby cars, Xinmin Evening News reported on Monday.
The car owner told the daily city newspaper that he was not in the car and that the car was not charged that night.
"I left the Tesla only 30 minutes before it burst into fire. I could not imagine what would have happened if I was still in the car during the emergency," the owner was quoted as saying. He was not fully named.
Firefighters were at first unable to enter the parking lot due to the pungent smoke, and could only pour water into the garage, the report said.
The fire was finally put out after about 80 minutes, according to Xinmin.
A surveillance video posted on Sina Weibo prompted users to express concerns about the safety of Tesla and new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China.
Tesla responded via its official Weibo account on Monday morning that there were no casualties reported so far and they were cooperating with the authorities.
Tesla has had other accidents involving alleged spontaneous combustion.