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-   -   What would you do if the vehicle you are in caught fire ! (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/technical-stuff/108265-what-would-you-do-if-vehicle-you-caught-fire.html)

Team,

We have been reading about cars catching fire .Most of the times ,the occupants do come out alive ,but at times we do see fatalities ! The reasons can be anything from a manufacturing defect to a faulty wiring to poorly fitted accessories to even negligence (smoking,LPG gas cylinders,inflammable liquids...).Yeah ,you cannot do much if you crash into an oil tanker !

And with electronics and wiring playing being such a critical factor in modern cars that this can happen to anyone of us.

Instead of being confused if encountered with such a scenario ,lets discuss on "what" could we do if this were to happen to us .

I can give a start to this .

If in a car and if the central locking fails ,one can open the hatch (in case of a small car ) and if the fire isnt from the rear .If the central locking fails ,the doors (if not jammed) can still be opened manually ;)

Its always safer to have a fire extinguisher inside the car and I have 2 ( one in the glove box) and another in the boot .

If its a bus ,the first thing i ensure (everytime) is that i see where the emergency exit is .

We can write 100 more pages on how to avoid ,but here we are talking on how to be better prepared :)

I ordered a car-hammer thing.
1.5 kg block, a pointy bit at one end, and rounded one at the other.
Supposed to stuck on the A-pillar, but ill keep it between the seat and the door.
Dont want a roving missile inside the cabin in case of a crash.

Otherwise, i take care to have premium/OE wiring and fittings in and out of the car.

This is the Life-hammer:

http://www.amazon.com/LifeHammer-Ori...6755413&sr=8-1

Used for vehicle emergencies.

i would suggest to keep the wheel opener under the driver seat.

Srinivas

please:Never do that !

Never keep anything under the driver seat .This was one the topics during the Ford Safe Driving session .Anything under the driver seat can always roll under the brake lever under hard braking and jam your brakes

Please suggest the location for the hummer that's used for safety purpose.

what i mean here is that u can put the spanner under co driver's seat. in case emergency one can break any glass and come out.

you are absolutely right saying not to keep any thing under driver seat, i think it was in a movie where a water bottle rolled down under the breaks and the driver tried to press the break but failed and met with a accident.

Sri

happened to a friend of mine too.
Smoker, used to keep a deodorant under the seat.

Anyway, try a location on the seat mount , next to the driver's door.
These hammers come with a screw in mount.
or, have one made.

If I were in a vehicle fire, I'd stop, turn off the ignition, and get out as quickly as I can. The fire extinguishers sold for vehicles are hardly any match for most vehicle fires and there is always the risk of explosion. I drive a diesel burner so that should make a fuel leak less deadly unless ignited.

The Ford Pinto case is noteworthy here. The vehicle design was such that the fuel tank would rupture, spilling the fuel into the driver/passenger cabin, if the vehicle was rear-ended and the body structure collapse would prevent the doors from opening. The organization thought it would be cheaper to settle lawsuits than to make safety improvements to the vehicle. The motto at Ford during the time was, "Safety doesn't sell." We have come a long way since then and people are more likely to buy a Ford because of its airbags than an Ambassador because of its solid body structure.

For mounting emergency equipment, make sure you follow the manufacturer's recommendations especially if the vehicle is fitted with airbags. Anything as simple as a cup holder attached to the windshield can become a dangerous projectile when an airbag deploys.

2 cent from me.. car Hammer - Free Shipping - DealExtreme

First, kick myself for being in a vehicle with both Power Windows and Central Locking. Big chance that neither would open or respond.

Second, try my best (and waste the precious seconds) to force open doors, and/or break windows.

Third, if I have reached this option, pray that my Deep Fry turns out nicely!

P.S. As a thumb-rule, as far as realistically possible, I try and avoid cars with both Power Windows and Central Locking. Of the vehicles we own, only the old Matiz has both options. So, we disabled the Central Locking and converted to a Manual Locking long back. Better safe, than sorry, though there are never any guarantees.

With most of the japs the technology is much simpler, if the car is on fire just pull up the mechanical lock on top of the door (or sometimes near the handle) and open the door. With more complex electronics there is a chance that the door locks would jam but not with these as they are mostly mechanical.

If its a hatchback or SUV, escaping from the rear door is a safer option.

The first thing and probably the most important in the unfortunate eventuality of an emergency - DON'T PANIC!

Agree the situation makes you lose every bit of rationality and sense but you first have to take an extremely quick stock of the situation and find a solution.

Keep a hard object in the car; in the hatch or below the co-driver's seat. Break the window and try to get out as soon as possible. Of course, you should try helping children/women/elderly and then get out.

Also, a knife should be kept handy to cut off the seat-belts; in an emergency situation, they might just be very hard to unbuckle in all your anxiety.

+1 to that.

I am hypersensitive to that speed sensitive door locks also.

PS: being a paranoid helps sometimes.

I beg to differ. Since the fuel tank is at the rear, i would avoid the rear.

i can understand PW being an issue but what will CL do ? The locks can always be manually opened just like any other car.

Sometimes you can run into problems at the rear , due to child lock options.