• From: Saratoga, CA
  • Registered: 2011-10-11
  • Posts: 150

Topic: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

Lost our dear 924S "Pac-Man" to a car fire right out of the gate of our fourth stint Saturday afternoon. Make sure you watch with annotations!

http://youtu.be/8U8dAvPLOxw

"Karl gets a little hotter than he expected at Arse-Sweat 2012

Our Porsche 924S catches fire right as we enter the hot pit. Three turns later we have one toasty Karl, one ruined 'DJ' nomex shoe, and one charred Porsche."

Pictures:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/sforsancho/IMG_0702.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/sforsancho/IMG_0705.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/sforsancho/IMG_0709.jpg

She has seen better days:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/sforsancho/Buttonwillow2011-924-1.jpg

Team OLD Farts
1987 Porsche 924 "Pac-Man"
1986 Audi 4000 Ghost 'Speedy'
1991 Audi 200 Ghost 'Clyde'
  • From: Los Angeles
  • Registered: 2009-05-01
  • Posts: 57

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

Any idea what caused it?

BTeam Racing
#72 "Pussy Wagën" E30
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  • bshorey
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Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

Ouch.  Sorry to see your car go up like that.

Just a word to your driver.  Next time, if he finds himself sitting in a car that is obviously on fire, and he's got a fire estinguisher bolted to the floor within reach, as per the rules, it's probably not a bad idea to get out of the car, popping the hood along the way and taking the fire estinguisher with him.  I think he could have doused those flames perhaps a minute before the corner workers showed up.

Getting out of the car when it's on fire is actually one of the few times it's recommended.

My friends in the #42 Mustang that caught fire a few months ago at Sears Pointless were lucky that the driver did the above.  He put the fire out before the corner workers arrived, and spared it any terminal damage.

bs

  • Registered: 2009-05-18
  • Posts: 169

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

I saw your car pass the track entrance worker and it was on fire then.  I was in the tower.  Being that Karl said he had no clutch or brakes and where the fire started it seems you had clutch fluid leak on to the exhaust.  Then every time he pushed on the brakes or clutch he pumped more fluid around the fire.   
  Glad he's ok.  But next time pull WAY off the track and get the F out!! 
  Sorry for your loss.

[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v476/ImpulseFoto/th_images-1.jpg[/img]
I NEVER DID NO CHEET LIKE DIS BEFORE, MAN!!!
  • From: South Side Of Chicago
  • Registered: 2010-11-29
  • Posts: 618

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

Ditto.

I would have been out of the passenger door so fast.

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coolhand454's Website

  • From: Saratoga, CA
  • Registered: 2011-10-11
  • Posts: 150

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

BrianK wrote:

Any idea what caused it?

Not sure yet. We will be doing a complete tear-down and I'll update when I find out. I suspect that our welded/repaired fuel rail (in an effort to keep costs down) developed a leak and an errant spark might have just pushed it over the edge.

bshorey wrote:

Ouch.  Sorry to see your car go up like that.

Just a word to your driver.  Next time, if he finds himself sitting in a car that is obviously on fire, and he's got a fire estinguisher bolted to the floor within reach, as per the rules, it's probably not a bad idea to get out of the car, popping the hood along the way and taking the fire estinguisher with him.  I think he could have doused those flames perhaps a minute before the corner workers showed up.

I know the team is just happy he is OK. We do have a fire extinguisher mounted within hand's reach of the driver, but I imagine realization of how bad the fire was and the self-preservation instinct combined in jumping out of the car without it and not wanting to return. Certainly we can all learn a lesson from it.. We unintentionally put pressure on our drivers sometimes to stay in the race, but of course safety and preserving the car are paramount. I know I've made the mistake of driving an entire lap losing oil pressure because I didn't want to risk losing our P1 position.

BushWacker wrote:

Being that Karl said he had no clutch or brakes and where the fire started it seems you had clutch fluid leak on to the exhaust.
  Sorry for your loss.

The combined clutch/brake fluid reservoir is on the opposite side of the engine bay from the headers in the 924/944. He lost the clutch and brake simultaneously because the reservoir melted from the excessive heat. Thanks for the condolences!

Team OLD Farts
1987 Porsche 924 "Pac-Man"
1986 Audi 4000 Ghost 'Speedy'
1991 Audi 200 Ghost 'Clyde'
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Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

Sorry to see this.

I was watching from the tower when it happened.
Glad there were no injuries!


KT

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  • m610
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Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

We can't practice much more that a fire drill, but we can run through scenarios. We do this as a team.

What is the first thing you do after a spin?
What is the first thing you do if you take a major hit?
What do you do if you lose power?
How would you get out if the car was upside down?
How would you get out of the car if the doors will not open?
What if there really was a fire. Can you really get out of the car? And if it is minor, do you fight it?
What if another car is on fire and the driver is still inside? Do you stop and help or do you keep going and let the fire crews deal with it?

Momentum is a terrible thing to waste.
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m610's Website

  • From: WOOTville USA
  • Registered: 2009-05-06
  • Posts: 2,415

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

m610 wrote:

We can't practice much more that a fire drill, but we can run through scenarios. We do this as a team.

What is the first thing you do after a spin?
What is the first thing you do if you take a major hit?
What do you do if you lose power?
How would you get out if the car was upside down?
How would you get out of the car if the doors will not open?
What if there really was a fire. Can you really get out of the car? And if it is minor, do you fight it?
What if another car is on fire and the driver is still inside? Do you stop and help or do you keep going and let the fire crews deal with it?

I'm curious what your answers are. These are all very good scenarios that warrant some thought. I'll definitely incorporate these into our training.

"Real ZomBees prefer Bacon"
IOE(x2) MGB/SAAB 96, Judge's Choice, Class C Win, & 2011 Hooniverse Car of the Year!
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  • From: Saratoga, CA
  • Registered: 2011-10-11
  • Posts: 150

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

I've covered our investigation into the fire and our recovery in this thread:

http://forums.24hoursoflemons.com/viewt … p?id=17386

Short answer, what looked like this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/sforsancho/IMG_1305-1.jpg

Two and a half weeks and 100+ hours later, looks like this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/sforsancho/IMG_1543-1.jpg

Team OLD Farts
1987 Porsche 924 "Pac-Man"
1986 Audi 4000 Ghost 'Speedy'
1991 Audi 200 Ghost 'Clyde'
  • From: Palm Beach, Texas
  • Registered: 2012-03-30
  • Posts: 776

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

Sparky Pete wrote:
m610 wrote:

We can't practice much more that a fire drill, but we can run through scenarios. We do this as a team.

What is the first thing you do after a spin?
What is the first thing you do if you take a major hit?
What do you do if you lose power?
How would you get out if the car was upside down?
How would you get out of the car if the doors will not open?
What if there really was a fire. Can you really get out of the car? And if it is minor, do you fight it?
What if another car is on fire and the driver is still inside? Do you stop and help or do you keep going and let the fire crews deal with it?

I'm curious what your answers are. These are all very good scenarios that warrant some thought. I'll definitely incorporate these into our training.


+1 on answers, por favor. Definitely would like to hear from your perspective. As an all-amateur team we really try to glean the best advice we can...

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  • m610
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Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

How about a separate thread for that?

Link - http://forums.24hoursoflemons.com/viewt … 92#p159192

Momentum is a terrible thing to waste.
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m610's Website

  • From: Bay Area, CA
  • Registered: 2009-07-16
  • Posts: 94

Re: Team OLD Farts In-Car Fire at Arse-Sweat 2012: Video!

ouch!  Jim and crew - you guys need any more parts? We got a 944 turbo parts car at our shop if there's something you need in common

Paluck
Rooster Juice Racing
Bay Area, CA