Audi Engined MS Elise Fire at Bedford Yesterday

The Oily Bits Engine Swaps
1

For those that don’t get to SELOC or LOT…I understand that nobody was injured…

[image]http://www.hankscorpio.net/forumpics/fire.jpg[/image]

The car was for sale on Pistonheads

2

Should be able to knock him down a bit on �35k now…


Seriously though, that’s a horrible and frightening thing to happen. Glad he wasn’t hurt.

3

Very sad to see. Makes me even more inclined to wear my nomex and get a fire extinguisher plumbed in.

Ironic that a car named Satan burned on Good Friday!

4

Very sad to see. Makes me even more inclined to wear my nomex and get a fire extinguisher plumbed in.

Ironic that a car named Satan burned on Good Friday!

It had a plumbed in fire extinguisher. It didn’t do anything when pulled, this is the 3rd instance I’ve heard of this happening. They seem a bit of a waste of time/money. Even if they do happen to work they don’t seem to put the fire out.

Bernard

5

Nomex and an ejector seat it is then. Having extinguisher ability in the cabin might be nice, though I wouldn’t expect a pokey little bottle to put out a good going engine fire.

Worries me how most of us do our trackdays in polarfleece though!

6

I just bought a 4lt fire extinguisher with all the fittings from Lifeline for �185+vat definately worth it even it it buys you 10 seconds and your nomex suit buys you 15 seconds thats an extra 25 seconds to get out your car

7

I always wear a nomex suit & gloves when on track, even if people think I look like a knob “playing” at being a racing driver!

A polar fleece would go up a treat and melt onto you while it burns!

8

I always wear my suit, even if I get called superman in jest…

But then I did have an off a couple of weeks ago at 130mph and it could all have gone a lot more wrong!!

The latest suit is so light you hardly feel it…

9

The latest suit is so light you hardly feel it…

Mike what suit have you got and how much did you pay?

10

Having extinguisher ability in the cabin might be nice, though I wouldn’t expect a pokey little bottle to put out a good going engine fire.

Fire must be the worst thing that could happen to you…I have one of these fitted in my other vehicle, as I have an unrational fear of getting stuck in the belts:

[image]http://im.edirectory.co.uk/products/1270/i/96.jpg[/image]

11

This is something that has scared the crap out of me ever since I started doing trackdays (I have seen cars go up in flames on track). I appreciate it doesnt happen all that often but so many people seem to overlook the safety factor of it all in favour of making the car go faster, handle better etc. etc. which ultimately has the potentially for making even bigger accidents…Crashing the car is one thing, crashing and burning is something else.

Stupidest thing is that I have a nomex suit which I hardly ever wear on trackdays, and as Alex says, there seems to be a common mentality in the pits that the guy with the race suit on is a knob…How far from the truth can they be!!

Race suit for me from now on and f**k what everbody else thinks.

12

I agree on the race suit thing. Yesterday at Donnington EVERYONE on track had to wear a race suit and a fire proof balaclava and gloves and boots and stuff. When you think about it, burning to death is deffo not the way to go.

Do we know what failed on the Elise at Bedford to make it catch fire???

13

very sad to see this, but glad tony and pax are unhurt
that was the original N1 TUT which was previously written off EXACTLY 5 years earlier 14Apr01…

14

I agree on the race suit thing. Yesterday at Donnington EVERYONE on track had to wear a race suit and a fire proof balaclava and gloves and boots and stuff. When you think about it, burning to death is deffo not the way to go.

Do we know what failed on the Elise at Bedford to make it catch fire???

No news yet on what happened.

How did your car go at Donny ?

Bernard

15

The latest suit is so light you hardly feel it…

Mike what suit have you got and how much did you pay?

Sparco extra light 300 three layer nomex from GPR, Steve

Round about �600 squids, but then again how much is your life worth ??

16

You can spend as little as �200 on a FIA approved suit.

I think it’s okay to wear a X-Light 300 in the pitlane as long as you don’t look like this

[image]http://www.racesuit.com/racesuit/sparco/suits/xlight300.jpg[/image]

or this

[image]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/IDG/Exiges/mikelanecroft05.jpg[/image]

17

Wear it. Glad to hear they are safe. Looks like a big fire.

Most of us have, or have had, at least one classic car - how many of us replaced the tank with a modern safety cell? I shudder to think the risks I used to run 10 years ago. Cetainly in the Exige a suit, but pls consider the tank in your classic car - regardless if it’s for street or race/rally use. Particularly if, like me, you’re going start your kids off in a classic Cooper S or similar.

If you need any reminding about the horror of fire in a car, the accident of Tetsuya Ota in a 355 in Japan several years ago is THE reference. Google it for a video or [url=http://videos.streetfire.net/search/] . Be advised, it is extreemly upsetting footage hence I don’t paste the direct link.

It made me swap my tank straight away.

18

For the record, he lives (serious burns but racing career over though).

A testiment to fire-proof materials.

Ian

19

Bloody Hell, that video is unbelivable.

Bernard, my car went well at Donnington on Saturday thanks. It was the first time it had been driven in anger since the rebuild and the object of the excerise was to give it some beans and see if anything falls off or leaks or gets to hot and thankfully nothing did.

I had a bit of a mess with the setup and I think got it right-ish in the 2nd of my 3 sessions, I went an adjustment to far for my last session, but hey ho, I guess thats how you learn.

20

Bloody Hell, that video is unbelivable.

Bernard, my car went well at Donnington on Saturday thanks. It was the first time it had been driven in anger since the rebuild and the object of the excerise was to give it some beans and see if anything falls off or leaks or gets to hot and thankfully nothing did.

I had a bit of a mess with the setup and I think got it right-ish in the 2nd of my 3 sessions, I went an adjustment to far for my last session, but hey ho, I guess thats how you learn.

Look forward to having a good look over the car at Brands.

Bernard