Date:         Fri, 24 May 1996 11:09:00 -0700 (PDT)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Maher, Steve (SD-MS)" <SMAHER@gi.com>
Subject:      RE: Balls O' Fire ! !


> I kinda felt for the guy who "fixed" the camper, 'cause
>I know how it is when your best laid mechanical plans go all wrong.  Of 
course
>I felt much worse for the guy who lost everything.  I imagine the camper 
was
>worth at least $2000 before the burnout.  I spoke to him in the kindest 
tones
>when I gave my condolences.  There was a hint of anger in his voice as he
>said,
>  "It Happens".
>  So I said, "Not to me man!!", drove my '71 Camper home VERY gingerly
>and promptly checked ALL fuel lines and carburetor for leaks.  I do intend
>to go to Yellowstone tomorrow, and I do not want to end up like a flaming
>marshmallow somewhere out on the Great Plains.  CHECK THOSE FUEL LINES!


...and put clamps on every single end, if they don't already have them.

An aftermarket VW mechanic once told me that the VW fuel lines on bugs
and busses from the factory, did not need clamps by design. The cloth
exterior and rubber interior provided sufficient grip, friction, etc. etc.

I asked him if he would pay for my car if it burned up, and ancillary
damages (i.e. my garage, my house, anybody who happened to be inside) if
the car proved him wrong. He then put clamps on the lines.

OTOH, I talked to a Saab mechanic, and we got to talking about VW fuel
lines. He said that, whenever he got one in, first thing he did was
look at the fuel lines. If any did not have a clamp, he pushed the car
back out of the shop without starting it, and called the owner, asking
him to please come get the car and have clamps installed on ALL lines.
He told me that, even if all he did was tune it up, if the car caught
fire later, the question would be asked, "Who last worked on this engine?",
and he could then be sued for not warning of a dangerous condition, plus
damages, and so on.

Maybe that Saab guy was a little paranoid (or maybe he had been sued
and had good reason to be paranoid). But I had a '64 convert go voooofff,
and burned up everything organic in the engine compartment before we
clobbered it with a fire extinguisher. Nothing left to indicate why the
fire started, but I had never checked the lines for clamps. Couldn't tell
you to this day, if they had them or not.

In my '69 bus back then, I put clamps on all lines. A few years later,
smelled a stong gas smell, and popped the hatch to find an old, frayed
fuel line going drip drip drip. If it hadn't had a clamp, it would have
been bonfire time.

    _______
   /\ o o o\         Steve Maher   smaher@gi.com   75461,1717
  /o \ o o o\_______   San Diego, California
 <    >------>   o /|
  \ o/  o   /_____/o|      '80 VW V6anagon
   \/______/     |oo|        '66 Mustang Coupevertible
         |   o   |o/       '89 Son Sherwin
         |_______|/
                       http://www.wp.com/IrishMafia
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 The economy's not failing-- there are plenty of jobs available!
 I have three of them!
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