Do other cars catch fire or just supercars?
Discussion
Following on from the recent thread (and noting that no ambulance so driver presumably gutted but okay) do other cars catch fire or just supercars?
Is it just because we never hear of Fiestas in flames (good band name that!) or is it something else?
I remember being in a car crash 20 years ago and thinking "get out, she's gonna blow!" but I think that was from watching too many movies.
Is it just because we never hear of Fiestas in flames (good band name that!) or is it something else?
I remember being in a car crash 20 years ago and thinking "get out, she's gonna blow!" but I think that was from watching too many movies.
Mass market cars are always far less likely to suffer things like fires to due huge production numbers making it worthwhile (and financially feasible) to make sure they're protected against stuff like that.
The same applies to reliability as a whole on cars that're produced in limited numbers.
The same applies to reliability as a whole on cars that're produced in limited numbers.
Its all relative. Low production numbers and rarity make it more visible in the public, more technical and powerful builds, the tendency to be 'hammering' the sports or supercar is probably a bit more than a Fiesta.
Obviously some are design flaws and hopefully manufacturers admit to such things.
Obviously some are design flaws and hopefully manufacturers admit to such things.
Alot of cars set on fire. I remember reading about a few american cars which names i cant remember of hand. They used to catch fire and explode when rear ended, due to bad fuel tank locations. The car maker in question knew of this problem, but the bean counters calculated that there was not a high enough % of fires to warrent a re call. So there for the cars that burst into flames were an apseptable risk. Any compensation paid out was also a small % compared to the cost of a recall and new tank location.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Pinto is what you are after I believe
Truffles said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Pinto is what you are after I believe
Didn't the Edsel do it as well?I have put out a fire in a VW Golf belonging to a neighbour.
A TVR Tuscan caused TVR Powers workshop to burn down due to a design fault with the battery charge point (most Tuscans have had this sorted!)
Most of the cars I have seen on fire on the motorway hard shoulder have been regular run ofthe mill cars.
qureshia said:
2cv...cardboard tube in the engine bay perfectly positioned to drop on to the manifold
au revoir... deux chevaux
My Citroen Dyane blocked the M25 at Reigate on a friday afternoon when it did exactly that!!! The pvc roof ballooned up & went pop in a rather hilarious fashion, just as it went up in smoke big time au revoir... deux chevaux
A friend of mine's Mini Cooper (new shape) started smoking while she was driving through the local city centre. Before she managed to stop there were flames spitting out from under the bonnet.
She hopped out and the car's front end was completely engulfed in flames within a minute or two. She was quite shaken and the incident closed a city street for about an hour.
Another friend of ours who has a 458 found the irony of this hilarious, but in fairness, before delivery of the Ferrari she had been slagging him off that he would be cremated in it.
She hopped out and the car's front end was completely engulfed in flames within a minute or two. She was quite shaken and the incident closed a city street for about an hour.
Another friend of ours who has a 458 found the irony of this hilarious, but in fairness, before delivery of the Ferrari she had been slagging him off that he would be cremated in it.
Loads of mainstream cars catch fire, but because they are mainstream its hardly news worthy.
Because its an expensive supercar the media and people on forums seem to think its news worthy to highlight every one.
I'm sure many on here like myself have passed a car on the side of the road thats going up in smoke or the charred aftermarth is left in a heap. But if its a Focus or Astra your hardly going to post up a thread or write a newspaper article.....
Because its an expensive supercar the media and people on forums seem to think its news worthy to highlight every one.
I'm sure many on here like myself have passed a car on the side of the road thats going up in smoke or the charred aftermarth is left in a heap. But if its a Focus or Astra your hardly going to post up a thread or write a newspaper article.....
christer said:
I think this should probably be quantified and various parts of the statement "defined" - "loads" being the first one...
The thread states "Do other cars catch fire or just supercars?"If you ever get a chance to look through a salvage yard or (speak to someone who works in one) you'll see burnt cars are not a freak occurrence that some might think they are. Agreed you never know the full story and its indeed a very VERY small percentage of cars in the grand scheme of things but if you want the word "loads" quantified, well let’s just say there a lots more mainstream cars catching fire than supercars as per why this thread I assume was set up.
I know a few people who work for different manufacturers and yes cars go up by themselves and these are all investigated by the manufacturer to understand the cause and sort out a recall/fix if required.
Now if the thread title was "Are supercars more likely to catch fire than other cars? well that’s a different discussion IMO
Edited by NotNormal on Thursday 21st October 11:45
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