Date: Sun, 10 Jun 2001 11:47:04 +1200
Reply-To: Andrew Grebneff <andrew.grebneff@STONEBOW.OTAGO.AC.NZ>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Andrew Grebneff <andrew.grebneff@STONEBOW.OTAGO.AC.NZ>
Subject: Re: ENGINE FIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Back in the early 80s I had a Fiat 850 Sport (two, actually; a 69 driver,
REALLY rough, and a 70 parts car which had hit a bridge; paper-thin outer
pAnels but surprisingly strong stucturally).
I was driving up one of Dunedin's long steep hills and the engine developed
an intermittent miss, which grew worse. Eventually a car behind began to
honk, and I looked in my rear-view mirror. All I could see was thick
billowing yellowish smoke. I pulled over, parked and switched the engine
off, but the starter lead insulation had burned through and the starter
began to turn the engine over, pumping gas out of the burned-through fuel
line into the fire (the gas tank lives in there too, with a plastic cap). I
popped the hood and ripped the battery connectors off. This is not so
dangerous... contrary to "common knowledge", car gas tanks (excepting
CNG/LPG) do NOT explode; they are not opressure vessels, are structurally
weak and have plenty of vents etc which will blow out. What happens is that
they burn very rapidly and violently, but they do NOT explode, they do not
burst into pieces of hot shrapnel or spray burning fuel for many meters.
Don't believe Hollywood!
Just then a security van pulled up and cooled things off with their
extinguisher, then a fire truck paid a visit. I was not unhappy when the
security company sent me a (small) bill for recharging their dry-powder
extinguisher.
There ARE people out there who are glad to lend a hand... but you have to
be luck enough to have them come by at the right moment.
The fire was caused, I think, by faulty ignition wiring. Had to swap the
spare car's wiring loom in, but I never did get the car's charging system
to work after that...
Anyway, this case illustrates a BIG problem with rear-engined vehicles: If
you have an engine-bay fire, the first you may know about it is when a) the
engine starts missing or stops due to lack of fuel or
short-circuited/burned ignition wiring or electronics b) the fire burns
through into the passenger compartment!
As to extinguishers which become involved in the fire itself, yes, in
theory any of these CAN explode. They are all gas-charged pressure bottles,
but in actual fact they may not be charged at a high-enough pressure to
blow, even when the pressure is drastically increased by the heat. Best ask
your fire department.
VWC: the honking car was a Scirocco TS.
Andrew Grebneff
165 Evans St, Dunedin, New Zealand
ph 64 (3) 473-8863
fax 64 (3) 479-7527
<andrew.grebneff@stonebow.otago.ac.nz>
www.goingplatinum.com/member/vw1
www.highyieldcrusaders.ws/ref.html?ref=vw
www.aciimoney.com/index.shtml?vw1
VW & Toyota vans, Toyota diesels and Macintoshes rule
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