race car fires?

[mexracer10]

I know that any race car is vulnerable to a fire in the case of a roll over, but i have noticed that trucks seem to be more suseptable to fire than a buggy. I know that there are many sources where a fire can come from, but is there anything about a truck that causes flare ups of fire like hot oil, from where?, gas out of carb? fuel lines?
anybody have any experiances? The reason i ask is because i am more affrade of fire in a race car/truck than crashing or rolling over, so any extra measure to prevent accidental flare ups, could be use full.

[SPONSOR]

Membership in the largest desert racing community has its advantages - Participate in Forum Discussions - Send and Receive Private Messages - Maintain Public Photo Albums - Access to Groups - User Profile in our Social Network - Increased Access to more Sub Forums - Reduced Online Advertisements Join our community today

[Brian Mapes]

I am not super familiar with fires in cars but I would think that having a fuel cell is probably the biggest fire preventative that we have. There is also your race suits that will give you a few more seconds to get out of the car. I think that it would probably be easier to puncture a fuel cell in a truck since typically it is in the back, but since it is usually in the back separated from the drivers it would be safer that say a buggy where it is right behind your seat. Another thing that comes to my mind is fire suppression systems. I do not know if they are used on race cars, but when I build my dream class 1 I will definately have a fire suppression system where you just pull a pin.

[mgobaja]

A lot of accidents are nose first, well in a truck this would damage fluid lines, resevoirs, coolers. And buggies most of the stuff is in the rear, so a nose 1st accident doesnt normally hurt those items as quick. A lot of fires in the engine compartment are from oil leaking from breathers that falls on the exhaust and then you have a good ole oil fire.

[WoodyW]

Fire supression systems are definitely a must have in my book, unfortunately many teams neglect to include them in the safety systems that are on their vehicles. The last fire I witnessed was the result of poor fueling practices where the fueler (no helmet, hood, gloves, etc...) dumped fuel, missed the filler, and fueled up a hot exhaust/motor and lit off a bomb. Of course there were no extinguishers nearby, and the fueler torched himself as well as nearly torching the driver/ co-driver. Car burned until a well prepared hawaiian team could make it over to the car to extinguish it (took a minute or two). Anyways, fueling itself seems to me to be the most likely source of fire danger...it all could have been avoided with better preparation and practice. (and maybe not a fill neck above the headers)

[mexracer10]

All good replies and i agree about the fire supresion system, a must have, it buys a couple more seconds to get out of the car and grab the hand held extingusher. We have had a pre-runner catch fire once and the whole engine went up dure to hot oil, the fuel cell was right next to the fire and never went up, i was surprised that the vent lines did not even go up, after a ton of sand was placed on the oil we were able to extingush the flames.

[Tom_Willis]

Fire supression systems are definitely a must have in my book, unfortunately many teams neglect to include them in the safety systems that are on their vehicles. The last fire I witnessed was the result of poor fueling practices where the fueler (no helmet, hood, gloves, etc...) dumped fuel, missed the filler, and fueled up a hot exhaust/motor and lit off a bomb. Of course there were no extinguishers nearby, and the fueler torched himself as well as nearly torching the driver/ co-driver. Car burned until a well prepared hawaiian team could make it over to the car to extinguish it (took a minute or two). Anyways, fueling itself seems to me to be the most likely source of fire danger...it all could have been avoided with better preparation and practice. (and maybe not a fill neck above the headers)

That is the absolute truth. We have been extremely lucky in this sport. I have seen people do every conceivable stoopid thing in the world while fueling the vehicles, such as:

-The fuelers who wear a pair of shades and a teeshirt, flipflops and cutoffs and spill fuel on everything around them.
-The pits where children and pets stand in front of the vehicle and distract the driver
-A crewman cutting off a steel bodypanel with a sawzall and throwing sparks on the car
- An exhausted fueler late at night in Baja smoking while surrounded by a bunch of empty dump cans.

I made a decision a decade ago that if I worked for SCORE I wouldn't risk a horrible accident because I wasn't prepared. So I started wearing a firesuit and making a mental note of where the extinguishers are near me.

[Ryan_P]

I would also recommend a "flame out" system for cabin of the car/truck. They come in three different sizes. The prices below are as following:

2.5 pound system - $300
5 pound system - $330
10 pound system - $475

They are a great investment for a quick fire put out, especially when a fire extinguisher is not as handy during the race.

-Ryan

[14802]

I agree fire is one of the worst racer's nightmare's, but it is very common a truck/car/buggy will have a flash over type fuel fire in route, or a fire while re-fueling without anyone knowing.(were talking about the little one's ie: fuel running down a rail to the header little flash and then it is out.) One of the worst is a oil,ps,tranny oil fire, cause it will usually be in your face(truck guy's). A 4 nozzle flame-out system is one of the best ways to go. Other than that find your nearest watering hole and drive in ))

[Ryan_P]

Yeah, a flame out system IMO is a must for any race vehicle, because you are better safe than sorry. I am thinking about installing one in my play car that is being built. Even though its a Baja, stuff can still go wrong, just in case of a roll-over! =)

-Ryan

[pphat]

Any thoughts on Safecraft vs. Deist?

http://www.safecraft.com/MextInstalled.asp

http://www.deist.com/Fire_Systems/fire_systems.html