Date:         Sat, 4 Mar 2006 01:51:04 -0500
Reply-To:     robertmstewart <robertmstewart@MAC.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         robertmstewart <robertmstewart@MAC.COM>
Subject:      Re: Burnt Vanagon of the Week - Best replacements for the lines?
In-Reply-To:  <008b01c63f4e$f5e6cb20$39c3e404@desktop>
Content-type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

As an owner a Vanagon that became burnt toast from a suspected crack
somewhere in the fuel line in the engine bay, I can tell you that the
plastic lid survived. It is actually very resilient to flame, in my case my
rear hatch was opened and hence the flame rose up around the outside of the
van and hit the interior of the van which caught on fire and that was all
she wrote, once it caught she was a goner.

http://homepage.mac.com/rmstewart/PhotoAlbum21.html

Which brings up another long discussed thread, what the best replacement?
Rubber, steel braided lines used in auto racing, copper or stainless steel?

Okay, waiting to hear the weigh in....


--
Rob
NYC/Long Beach, NY
88 Wolfsburg, Silver



on 3/4/06 12:46 AM, John Brush at vanagonvw@GMAIL.COM wrote:

> mark drillock wrote:
>> damage and the Syncro is history. Kid yourself all you want about
>> metal or insulation to limit the damage done to the interior, the
>> only way to save your Vanagon from fire is to PREVENT the fire in the
>> first place.
>
> Mark, you are right, but I just want to add to the conversation and mention
> the obvious, that that prevention is the best thing, but it is not 100%, so
> just as with preventing fires in the home is the most important step, early
> detection with fire detectors is also highly recommended, as even new hoses
> can split, clamps can cut into them, and all the other murphy things will
> conspire against the best of our efforts.
>
> A metal deck is surely better than a plastic one, but I would submit that if
> the fire is going well enough to melt the plastic deck, its time to call the
> insurance company, as that fire is gonna take the van with it unless you can
> drive it into the lake, or you have a fire engine right there with all its
> extinguishers aimed right at it. I would not think that one or two portable
> ones are not gonna do much good, unless you get a very good head start on
> it. That is why I was asking about detection devices.
>
> Again as  you said, prevention is first and foremost, but as with most
> things, if we can get an early warning, there is a much better chance of
> salvaging our favorite vehicles. Don't know if such detectors are practical,
> but it seems a logical progression, after all prevention efforts are in
> place.
>
> Is there anyone on the list with first hand experience with a fire who
> managed to get it out with minimal damage? The stories I hear are pretty
> much total losses.......
>
> Scary subject.
>
> As an aside:
>
> Before I awoke my van from its winter nap this afternoon, I opened the lid,
> motivated by this thread, and looked at the lines, and was reminded that my
> fuel lines are metal all the way around the engine compartment. There is one
> small piece of  hose I replaced a few years ago, joining the two pieces, and
> another about that size on the right side, where the line dips down and
> heads up towards the pump, (I need to replace that, so thanks to all for the
> constant banter which keeps us thinking) so there is only about two inches
> of rubber line that can fail. Is this the way all vanagons are, or do some
> of them have a lot more rubber lines than that? Mine is an 81.
>
> John