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 XXX-1.8T
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 posted on November 26th, 2002 at 10:47 PM |
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GUTTED
Went for a cruise to Bondi with Shazza (VW Beetle) 2nite and the car started smelling of fuel didnt think much of it did a lap of Bondi car park all
of the sudden the car stalls and the lights came on then everyones beeping at me and yelling (thought they were writing me off) then i hear
"THE CARS ON FIRE"
me and my mate jump out i was waiting for it to blow but then realised the fuel tank was at the front. Ran to Bondi Hotel grrabbed an extinguisher and
put it out with heaps of bystanders.
All in all the fire burnt for 5 mins but just burned where the fuelline collapsed and the rear grill. Its amazing the engine is mostly ok and the rear
grill has burnt paint. I think max cost of damage is $100 but im sorting it out with my family mechanic cos he serviced the car 2day
Good thing it could been much worse i was expecting a big bonfire, also that no one got hurt.
damn just when i got it regoed with the new euro plates
but its all good, was close to shedding a tear seeing it towed to my uncles work shop
could of been much worse, now where do i buy an extinguisher from
:jesus:alien
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Che Castro
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| posted on November 26th, 2002 at 11:23 PM |
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oooh... im so sorry for u... i'm always paranoid about engine fires. So have u figured out how it started? cracked fuel hose? or was the
grommet on the front tin missing?
Jon
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Herbie Down Under
A.k.a.: Richard Graham
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| posted on November 26th, 2002 at 11:40 PM |
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Where the paint is burned get it sandblasted ASAP otherwise it will rust very quickly. I have seen it happen so I know. |
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XXX-1.8T
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| posted on November 26th, 2002 at 11:53 PM |
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will do also i think the fuel line cam off or cracked my mechanic was playing with it while servicing the car - is it his fault u think?
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Che Castro
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 09:27 AM |
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the problem is that this is pretty common amongst beetles if the fuel line is unchecked and it is left to crack or whatever. Whats also common is
that if the rubber grommet that fits into the front tin ahead of the fan is missing, the metal fuel line will rub against the tinware (from engine
vibation) and will eventually cut through it. The fuel will pour out over the heads and exhaust, as well as be vapourised and blown over the engine
by the fan. good thing it wasn't a huge fire.
Jon
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The_Bronze.
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 09:45 AM |
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I always wondered what those little lights were for.
Seriously -
The first thing I did to the Dog-O-War (71 Baja) When I got it home was change the fuel lines for fresh ones and rewire the birds nest over the
engine. I'm not confidant at a lot of things but this was pretty easy. Gave me somthing to do while I sat there staring at it for hous on end
since I could drive it then (No rego).
When the $$$ became available the first thing I got was a small extinguisher from K-mart. There normally in the $40 mark but I managed to get one on
sale at $19.
I had heard that engine fires in Vdubs are not common but more frequent than in non-conventional cars like Fords, Holdens, Magnas (Which need to burn
more often) and Four wheel drives.
I'm sad to hear your bad news. That sendblasting is good advice as I saw a charred Type 1 in the wreckers the other day and their is not much
left from the rust thats taken over. Looks like it had seawater poured over it.
Cheer up mate  - have a talk to your mechanic, diplomatically and see
what can be done. If it's only a $100 it may not be worth losing a good relationship with your mechanic as good ones are had to find I've
found. 
[size=4]Bronze.[/size]
Rathmines, Lake Macquarie, NSW.
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vdub2c
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 10:19 AM |
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daym
Sorry to hear about the fire man, not a good experience. Makes your heart break huh.
Next time you head down to bondi in the bug gimme a call and we'll catch up!
Hope all turns out well.
Yianni.
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Secoh
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 11:21 AM |
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VW seemed to have an aversion to hose clamps too. it's a good idea to replace every fuel hose and fit hose clamps as soon as you get the car.
poor advice after the fact, but at least from the sounds of it it's only minor damage!
If it aint broke,
Make it go faster!!  |
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XXX-1.8T
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 02:11 PM |
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thanx guys, its at my uncles panel shop soon to get resprayed, how long b4 the rust settles in as ill tell my uncle to move on it asap?
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Doug Sweetman
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 02:14 PM |
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Bad luck and commiserations, but it sounds like your quick action saved the day. If left to burn long enough it is possible to actually burn the
engine block / gearbox case (due to high magnesium content) and then you can kiss the whole car goodbye.
One point I want to make - if you have a brand new Brazilian fuel pump, check the tightness of the inlet / outlet pipes on the pump. These are only
pressed in to the body, and I have had one pop out on me whilst driving. Very scary, as it poured fuel all over the engine until it stalled, which was
when I found out about it (it was the outlet pipe). Just another thing to check.
On the topic of burning cars, my old man had the bad luck of having his freshly built beetle have a reasonably serious engine fire whilst it was with
the mechanics !!!
Always carry an extinguisher
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type82e
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 08:21 PM |
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after i got my 72 kombi panel I changed all the fuel lines and the inlet pipe to the fuel pump came out and my mechanic said whenever changing fuel
lines always tap them back in with a hammer as they have a habit of coming out lucky i chnaged fuel lines before i drove it to brisbane wasnt it
marcel
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70AutoStik
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 09:47 PM |
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I don't think beetles are actually any more prone to fires than any other car of their vintage (less than some, but that's another story,)
but if the case catches they go up like a roman candle and are very hard to put out - remember the burning magnesium in chemistry class? Any VW owner
should check their fuel lines and wiring in the engine compartment - I had a fire in my '69 Kombi, but fortunately a passing motorist had a
blanket and put it out for me. Lot of tidying up to do, 'though - you have my every sympathy.
P.S. I don't blame VW for the Kombi fire - the previous owner had fitted an auxiliary battery with a rather dodgy mount.
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 helbus
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 10:37 PM |
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The beetle cracked the rubber fuel line the day after I filled it up. I smelt some petrol on the way home, and the next day, the car wouldn't
start as THE WHOLE TANK of petrol had emptied onto the back lawn. There is still a dead patch two months later.
Peter
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Grey 57
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 10:38 PM |
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Doug & Autostick have just confirmed something that I was going to ask about the engine fires.
I was told that if a VW motor catches fire really well they are imposible to extinguish. Now I know its true. How do you put out a magnesum fire??
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XXX-1.8T
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 10:54 PM |
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I remember the magnesium experiment in class, and no thank god that didnt happen. My uncle said most of the externals are burnt except for the crank,
most burnt part is the grills above the bonnet (is this an excuse to get an oval window fitted )
so do u think i got away with it with little damage, what do u guys think?
are external parts expensive like fuel line, distrib cap, and coilpack?
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Grey 57
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 11:09 PM |
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Yep , I reckon you came out OK considering what could have happened it the fire had really got a hold.
The bloke who told me about the magnesium fires "had" a nice 64 Sun Roof Beetle. Engine fire almost burnt the back end right off.
I had the generator on the 57 catch fire on a cruise last year. Gave me a bit of a scare. Went straight out and got an extingusher fitted.
Those mechanical parts aren't that expensive. Add a fire extingusher to the list
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XXX-1.8T
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 11:12 PM |
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so all up how much do u estimate the maximum cost of these parts?
$100?
Also anyone got any parts they can donate:bounce
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Doug Sweetman
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 11:33 PM |
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how to put out a magnesium fire.....
Guys, if you do have the extreme bad luck of having an engine block catch alight DONT TRY AND PUT OUT THE FIRE WITH WATER !!!! This is very dangerous
as hot magnesium can explode if doused in water.
The only way to put out a fire like this is with a specialised fire extinguisher (I think they are a variety of dry chemical) designed for metal
fires. About the only other thing you could try is shoveling sand onto the fire, but it would be very difficult to smother.
Unfortunately, unless you are an expert it is almost impossible to put out a burning engine block. So - prevention is the best cure. A small dry
chemical powder fire extinguisher should be able to put out almost any fire in the engine bay before it has got the block hot enough to burn. Check
all your hoses and wiring and carry an extinguisher.
And if the block does go up - get away from the car and call the fire brigade. As special as your car is, its not worth getting burnt for.
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Andy
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| posted on November 27th, 2002 at 11:43 PM |
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Sorry to hear about the fire, any VW owners worst nightmare! Adding to everyone's comments about re-newing the fuel lines regularly. Don't
forget to keep all the electricals in good shape also. If fuel does happen to leak, that's one less source to ignite it.
As for loose brass tubes in both the fuel pump and carby, I've had good luck loctiting them in.
Andy
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The_Bronze.
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| posted on November 28th, 2002 at 12:48 AM |
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Reading these other posts I recall a chap I went past a few months ago when dropping the kids off to daycare. He was parked on the side of the road
going into Edgeworth, kilometers from the nearest tap and I went past as he was opening his bonnet in a fairly new charade or barina. Anyhow I
remember smoke coming out from under the bonnet and as other had stopped there was no need for me to. He was on his phone, presumably to a mechanic or
a buddy.
Anyhow about 5-8 minutes later I drove past and the whole front 3/4s of the car was alight and all he could do was watch it. I remember feeling for
him as there would have been nothing he could have done to stop or slow the flames.
The street sign next to where he stopped shows still a black tarnished whispy stain from the smoke as a reminder that someones car died here.
...and no I didn't have my camera:P
[size=4]Bronze.[/size]
Rathmines, Lake Macquarie, NSW.
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geodon
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| posted on November 28th, 2002 at 05:22 AM |
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My 2-bob's worth!
The main drift of discussion centres around fuel leaks causing fires. My only fire was due to my slackness. Our 1st camper was a '71 1600TP &
at a petrol stop I noticed 1 of the donkey dicks had come off the fan housing & I couldn't get it back. So I suffed in a rag which had been
used to mop up oil spills. A few km down the road the rear seat passengers smelt smoke. The rag had let a dag out which touched the manifold, caught
fire & LIT THE RUBBER OIL PIPE GOING UP TO A REMOTE OILCOOLER! It was the smell of the rubber which gave the alarm but it did not burn thru. I
isolated the extra cooler by doing a loop back to the motor& went home & bought an extinguisher.
Re fuel leaks: I must be very lucky. The most unreliable car I ever owned was a Fiat 1100 spider. The fuel pump always played up & I had an
emergency gravity feed set-up to get me home when it did. After using it for a short run home I opened the bonnett and beheld the cleanest motor I had
ever seen! I hadn't blanked off the delivery pipe to the carb. & the pump had come to life & hosed fuel all over the engine! So if you
do rig up such a system, ALWAYS blank off the rest!
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Pat
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| posted on November 28th, 2002 at 12:14 PM |
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I was taught when servicing beetles, if the fuel filter is on the pressurized side of the fuel pump(stock location) then to move it to the low
pressure side.
The original configuration is fine when using a good quality fuel filter, but a lot of mechanics replace them with cheaper ones that are not meant
to be pressurised, and they pop and spray fuel everywhere.
On the topic of car fires, I saw one yesterday, where a mid 80's magna rear ended the car in front at about 10kmh, the guy gets out of his car
then woosh it burst into flames. Which just proves that all magnas are accursed vehicles that should be banned. |
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Grey 57
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| posted on November 28th, 2002 at 04:47 PM |
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Thanks for the tip on fuel filters Pat. I 'm going to move mine on the weekend. Currently on the pressure side and not worth the risk.
Dean
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Che Castro
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| posted on November 28th, 2002 at 08:56 PM |
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i was unsure if the case could ignite so i looked it up and found this
| Quote: |
When a bigger piece of Mg, such as a TXM or diecast part, is put in a high-temperature environment (an oven or a burning car), it's possible to
get it up to a temperature where it will ignite and burn. Even then, it is usually the last thing to burn. Investigators have looked at old VW
Beetles, which had about 60 lb of Mg in them. In a car fire, the entire car is consumed before the Mg will ignite.
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This is from :
http://www.immnet.com/articlelibrary/archive/getOneArticle.php3?
[Edited on 28-11-2002 by Che Castro]
Jon
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Pat
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| posted on November 28th, 2002 at 11:57 PM |
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About the magnesium thing, there are people out there who do welding on T1 cases, and the kind of heat welding produces I believe would be more than
in a car fire. |
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242
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| posted on November 29th, 2002 at 08:37 AM |
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A tip i picked up from another forum: Use clamps on all fuel hose connections and then use wire to prevent the copper pipes coming out of the carb
and fuel pump casings. I also mount my fuel filters up under the car before the engine bay.
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bugboymatt
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| posted on November 29th, 2002 at 08:39 AM |
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Good tip that. just moved mine there as it happens. :thumb
Da Time For The Aircooled Revolution Is Upon US.
Brothers & Sisters Lets Hit The Streets, Roll As One. And Feel The Power Of The Aircooled Storm.
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XXX-1.8T
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| posted on November 29th, 2002 at 09:27 AM |
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Any other tips I can give my mechanic into the way he should resetup my engine?
Also i checked it out 2day mainly wiring, and piping is burnt, distrib cap, and coilpack.
Can someone give me an estimate as how much this will cost to replace?
Thanx for the support guys
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Che Castro
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| posted on November 29th, 2002 at 09:33 AM |
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coil $50
dizzy cap + rotor + points +condensor $60
if the reg + generator was damaged thats expensive to replace.
Jon
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XXX-1.8T
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| posted on November 29th, 2002 at 09:39 AM |
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also need distributor and cap and spark plug leads?
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