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Old 31st January 2012, 09:24   #16
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

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Originally Posted by antz.bin View Post
This VW Vento caught fire on near Roopali restaurant, FC Road, Pune this morning.

Attachment 879569

The owner was going to park his car and suddenly it burst in fire. First huge black smoke started coming out. In a minute, the car caught fire. Owner could not escape at first due to his seat belt. Roopali regular members broke the seat belt from its mount and got him outside. By that time, he was completely on fire. However, we could put that out in a minute. By that time, all his clothes were burnt out. Police and Fire-brigade responded extremely fast. They were on site within max 5 minutes. Hats off to them. - Vishwas Mokashi
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Originally Posted by moralfibre View Post
Picture of the same Vento taken by a friend and team-bhpian:

Attachment 880126

My guess is a faulty ICE install might have caused this. Not sure though.
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Originally Posted by DevilsCry View Post
Report of VW Vento catching fire
Article Window

Two shocking revelations-
1. Seat belt got jammed
2. Doors automatically locked themselves
I had reported it too on the accidents thread. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street...ml#post2662768

Were some of you guys over there, when the car caught fire? Man, that was scary. In an instant, the whole car went up in flames. I feel sorry for the owner, pains to see such a nice car going up in flames. I hope the owner recovers quickly from the trauma and injuries.
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Old 31st January 2012, 09:40   #17
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

This is something that was bound to happen with locks that do not have a manual override feature. In the event of a fire (as in this case), it is possible that a short circuit would have caused the ECU to sense an "accident situation" and make the doors lock (as the ECU does in the case of an accident). However, not being able to open the doors manually is a serious safety issue at times like this.

There are two issues here: the reason for the fire and the reason for the inability to open the doors from inside.

It would be in VW's interests to have a press release clarifying the issue which is released in all the newspapers that VW carries its other ads.

Last edited by VeyronSuperSprt : 31st January 2012 at 09:42.
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Old 31st January 2012, 09:45   #18
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Re: Pune : Roads, traffic conditions, route queries and other assorted rants.

Did any one of you Puneites happen to see this burning car. I believe it is a Vento. As per today's Pune Mirror, "A sedan burst into flames on Fergusson College Road, in front of Roopali Hotel, at 7.40 am on Monday. The reason behind the fire was not ascertained, but city fire brigade officials said that the fire started in the engine. Within no time, the entire car was engulfed by flames. Luckily, no one was injured in the incident".

Volkswagen Vento catches fire. Owner dies from burn injuries-burning-car-fc-road.jpg
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Old 31st January 2012, 09:55   #19
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Re: Another Car bursts into flames with a tragic result

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Originally Posted by gsbhatia View Post
I've been carrying a similar tool in my car since 2004. It is an Emergency Hammer + Seat Belt Cutter + Plier + various other tools. I keep it wrapped in its case, in driver side seat pocket just in case, and I hope to never get a chance to use it. Bought it from Target for some $15. Made in China, but doesn't look cheap and has no rust even after 7+ years of ownership.
[IMG]Attachment 614858[/IMG]
Makes Sense ! Thanks for sharing.
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Old 31st January 2012, 09:58   #20
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Comfort over Safety?

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Originally Posted by DevilsCry View Post
Report of VW Vento catching fire
Article Window

Two shocking revelations-
1. Seat belt got jammed
2. Doors automatically locked themselves
What do we want next? "[As usual, Mr. Hunt], this car will self destruct in 7 seconds"?

Considering the amount of gizmos that we want as comfort features, it isn't surprising - especially if after market fittings/electrical accessories - leading to overloading the circuits or exposed wires leading to short circuits.

Retrospectively saying, in case of a collision/accident or fire, it would be safer to be in a car that has manual locking and manual windows instead of electrical ones.

I personally had this incident in my 10 year old zen last year wherein while driving, some smoke [due to short circuiting of wires of the after market fitted remote central locking and music system] started under the steering column along with the peculiar smell of burning plastic. Fortunately I was able to stop and turn everything off and get out of the car. Needless to say, I got all the wiring checked and the central locking removed.

Drive safe. Also worth considering is to have one of those fire extinguishers in the car.
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Old 31st January 2012, 10:48   #21
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Re: Pune : Roads, traffic conditions, route queries and other assorted rants.

^^ Actually, the owner of the car was more then injured. The poor chap suffered 70% burns on the legs and back.
He was unable to unlock the seatbelts in time and the fire actually engulfed the car cabin too.
The people standing by had to break the windscreen, cut the seatbelt and pull him out.
The burning car also managed to rear end a parked car, which also caught fire, burning the boot and tires of the car.

Wishing for his speedy recovery.

BTW, the car in question seems to be a Vento, and yes, the reason for the fire is not yet known.
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Old 31st January 2012, 10:59   #22
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

Good Morning

If this was a diesel car, this link might interest a few owners. Volkswagen recall 170,000 diesel cars amid fears they could catch FIRE because of fuel fault | Mail Online
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Old 31st January 2012, 11:21   #23
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

This is bad, i do not remember VW recalling any cars in India for problems around catching fire possibility. If it would have happened there would have been a thread on Team BHP. These global car makes to skip India operations when it comes to quality.

The discussion around seat belt unlocking when the car catches fire, Do the seat belts jam when the car catches fire? or is it just because of the trauma the drivers are unable to unlock the seat belts. I might also try and carry a Swiss Army knife along if its true.
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Old 31st January 2012, 11:39   #24
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Re: Pune : Roads, traffic conditions, route queries and other assorted rants.

Yup.. Its So Sad.. Imagine What that man went through! Terrifying. And What Sad is that he purchased the car Just a year back or So and had recently completed a servicing of the same. Cause of fire not yet known though!
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Old 31st January 2012, 12:38   #25
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

Even though the doors lock, if you tug at the door handle, the lock disengages
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Old 31st January 2012, 12:56   #26
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

Since the Vento incident happened within city limits there was help around, what if you were on long drive outside the city limts.
Lessons learnt:
1) Keep a mallet/hammer handy
2) Keep a knife (or something related) handy incase seat belts need to be snapped
3) Keep a portable fire extinguisher inside the car (& be aware of its operations)
4) Keep the medical kit updated.

Points#1,2 might be an issue during the security checks at malls etc.
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Old 31st January 2012, 13:12   #27
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

i just read abt the vento incident on NDTV.com. it says the firebrigade managed to douse the fire in 10 mins.

These car fires always give me jitters. i wonder whether there is a risk of the car exploding after burning for some time - as shown in movies. Isn't petrol / diesel a combustible substance?
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Old 31st January 2012, 14:01   #28
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

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Originally Posted by darsa View Post
Good Morning

If this was a diesel car, this link might interest a few owners. Volkswagen recall 170,000 diesel cars amid fears they could catch FIRE because of fuel fault | Mail Online
Yes, this was a black Vento TDI. Only the rear tail lamps and numberplate with the logos was intact. Rest all was burnt out. Must have been the top-end variant, but could not make out.
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Old 31st January 2012, 14:38   #29
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

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Originally Posted by VeyronSuperSprt View Post
This is something that was bound to happen with locks that do not have a manual override feature. In the event of a fire (as in this case), it is possible that a short circuit would have caused the ECU to sense an "accident situation" and make the doors lock (as the ECU does in the case of an accident). However, not being able to open the doors manually is a serious safety issue at times like this.

There are two issues here: the reason for the fire and the reason for the inability to open the doors from inside.

It would be in VW's interests to have a press release clarifying the issue which is released in all the newspapers that VW carries its other ads.
I beg to differ strongly here.
Can you please disclose your source of information.
As far as I am aware ECU unlocks the doors, starts hazard & interior lights when crash data is recorded, this is to help the rescue operations.
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Old 31st January 2012, 15:46   #30
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Re: Accidents : Vehicles catching fire in India

Owner did not escape unhurt, he has suffered 65% burns... Also read in an article that the car company has taken possession of the damaged car for further investigation and there is a team coming from Germany to assess primary fault... Hope the fault is identified soon and sorted out on all the Ventos, if any.
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