A reminder to replace your fuel lines
Oh no! Would opening the bonnet for better access not have helped!?
Saw this morning while sipping my coffee, pretty sad. Indeed, opening the bonnet should have helped to dump the fire extinguishing stuff effectively on the fire source. I hate to imagine what happened next.
Simply spraying into the louvres instead of from the front would have helped. The owner should bave directed the helpers. I have a feeling he was not very technically-aware. By the time he reached for the bonnet catches the driver’ side was too dangerous with the flames. I wonder if the car had Webers in the valley?
Looks like he thought it was going to blow up.
I’ll bet he bought this car in it’s current condition, pre fire anyway. If he restored it, I think the attempts to put that fire out would have looked much different.
My dad’s 71 Cadillac burned right in front of the house in about 76. A wire under the seat overheated. He was about a block away, by the time he backed up to the house and ran in to get the extinguisher from under the sink it was so involved nothing could stop it. 2 extinguishers and the garden hose were used and it went up anyway.
I happens really fast.
V12s with stock Z-S carbs are also quite fire-prone, with the carbs right over the exhaust manifolds. Just takes a leak…
Regards,
Ray L.
Indeed, plus, given the guy had a fairly large fire extinguisher, sad that no one taught how to aim it properly. It may actually have snuffed the fire.
Chances are, opening the bonnet on a burning engine can actually exacerbate the flames, giving them a wide-open source of fresh air.
On the (thankfully) few engine fires I had–one on Tweety, due to a stuck float) pointing the fire extinguisher into the louvers did the trick, or by discharging into the radiator opening, or a non-louvered car.
That’s extremely frustrating to watch. I guess they had no idea where to point the water but even so why did so many people stand around looking at it and why did they stop spraying the water on it? Dang!!!
pauls
People unaware, or with no fire suppression training, often think, “eh, no flames, fire must be out.”
You still caught fire even with the drain tubes going all the way down to the ground? What ignited the fuel?
I thought this same thing, but wondered if opening the bonnet would provide direct access to the source of the flames and therefore increase the chance of putting the fire out??
Perhaps waiting to open the hood, until extinguisher at the ready, would be the best approach?
Also, water on a petroleum based fire I thought just tended to spread the flames??
I guess I’m putting myself in this situation and trying to figure out the best strategy to deal with it. ( Fully understanding that prevention is the best cure)
The last time I saw a S3 go up in flames it was brake fluid on exhaust manifold.
Duh! The driver was asleep at the fire!
Unbeknownst to me, the fuel dump tube came unsoldered on the front bowl…BOOM!
Right on the dizzy…
I had one of those tubes break off at the bowl, so I changed all 3 of them right away before anything like that happened.
It looked to me like most of the spray from the extinguisher was being wasted on the top of the hood (bonnet). After a drive, the hood release catch is normally quite hot to the touch. If there is an engine fire, I would think that you would burn your hand trying to release the catch. I have actually thought about keeping a pair of thick leather work gloves in the car just in case I was ever in this situation. I must admit that this idea never made it past the “thought” stage.
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There was a picture from Germany on Instagram the other day of a V12, upside down in a farm field.
There was no context or explanation given…it just looked like the owner had lost control, crashed it into the field, climbed out from under it, and wandered off!!
Those European owners are really trying to thin the V12 herd 
And then there is the issue of unlatching the safety latch in the center of the bonnet - like, leaning over the fire that is about to blow up.
Haggerty paid up?