Keep an eye on these things to save your car from catching fire

Fire is something that can cause severe damage. Be it a house or an automobile. Sometimes, vehicles can be lit up, but by the time one can realize it, it’s often is too late to control that. Automobiles are very quick in catching fire as a car is the combination of many components, and it’s complete package of all those components which are very capable of catching fire.

Also Read: Why You Should Stop Spraying Oil Under Your Car

A few months back, there was a wave of burning cases of new Honda Civic, and their photos went viral on the internet. But I am not here to discuss that with you as that’s a completely different topic. I am here to share with you almost all those reasons which have the potential of catching fire.

Top Reasons Which Can Cause Fire…!

In our list today, we will take a look at few reasons that can cause your beloved vehicle to go up in flames. Following are some main reasons:

• Smoking inside the car
• Fuel leaks
• CNG usage
• Electrical wiring
• Leaking fluids
• Over heating catalytic converter
• After market accessories
• Accidents and crashes
• Lack of maintenance
• Design fault in vehicles

Smoking Inside Your Car- Although cigarette lighter is available in most of the cars. But if it’s not working or somehow not available so you lit a matchstick and by mistake, if you throw that matchstick on seat or floor or cigarette butt inside your car, the upholstery of your car has potential to catch fire. So try to smoke outside your car.

 

Fuel Leaks- We all know very well that fuel is highly flammable. Leakage in fuel circuit of your car can cause severe damage rather it can blow your vehicle up. Always keep an eye on your car’s condition and check for any leakages, if leakage is found never risk your life and don’t drive at all until the problem is rectified.

Secondly never overfill car’s fuel tank, As you know petrol is volatile liquid and in summers it vaporizes quickly so give it a space in the fuel tank to accommodate those vapors. If overfilled with fuel it can pressurize the tank and have chances to catch fire.

Compressed Natural Gas Usage- Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is also used instead of petrol in vehicles. But it’s one of the major sources of fire. Many incidents have taken place in Pakistan in which CNG cylinders exploded, and fatalities took place. CNG cylinders are like you carrying a bomb in your car 24/7. We can’t even imagine how much pressure is there in that 7 to 10 KG cylinder, and that’s 220 BAR which is equal to almost 3234 Psig. If exploded it will not only take your vehicle away but will effect surroundings as well.

In CNG circuits there are many joints and tubing, and it has maximum chances of leakage, and we know it is filled with Natural Gas, and it’s highly flammable and can catch fire within nanoseconds. So avoid using CNG in your vehicles.

Electrical Wiring & Connections- This is a common problem or rather a culprit in most of the fire accidents. The vehicle is using current from the battery and then re-generating electricity with the help of generator which then charges that battery. So there are many wires involved in this circuit. One worn out wire or a naked wire that is live can cause the fire due to short circuiting that could turn out to be a big disaster. Keep wires well insulated and get them checked to avoid a fire accident.

Leaking Fluids- When your car is running, temperature of circulating fluids rises with passage of time. whether it’s Engine oil or Radiator coolant or transmission fluid. Engine oil and Transmission oil are flammable but at certain point only. If these oils are leaking or there is seepage of these oils they have tendency to catch fire by gaining temperature from their surroundings .i.e Engine parts. Just like this coolant gets hot and if it is leaking through radiator coil and spills on plastic trims in engine bay it can melt that plastic and can cause damage.

Over Heated Catalytic Converter-  The exhaust system of the vehicles and Catalytic converters both emit tremendous amount of heat. This could in turn start melting plastic body parts like the bumpers or side skirts and can result in fire. To avoid something like this is to keep your vehicle checked at regular intervals and while on long journeys, take some time to let vehicle parts cool off.

Another reason for over heating of engine systems is Aftermarket bumpers and body kits. Although they look fancy and adds up beauty to your vehicle but they might cut down required air supply to keep hot parts cool in Engine Bay.

After Market Accessories- After market accessories are one of the BIGGEST reason why vehicle catches fire. These are so many Chinese after market products available in market like HIDs, DRLs, LED lights, Horns, fancy Head and tail lights etc. There are many fire incidents reported now a days and almost every car which caught fire was equipped with some after market product specifically HIDs and DRLs. It’s clearly mentioned on warranty card of almost every automobile “Any type of alterations made on electrical circuit of car will void its warranty”. Why company emphasis on this point?? There is a reason behind it, it’s because any automobile company when design their vehicle they calculate its each and everything and they design every part accordingly. These after market products are basically not tested to company’s standards and they are made up of cheap sub standard materials which costs less. When these products are installed in vehicle by doing alteration in electrical circuits by unprofessional electrician they neither provide Earth connections nor they insulate wiring properly. Secondly these after market products get over heat when used and as i have already mentioned they are made up of cheap materials and have less designed temperature they can melt any time and can be the source of FIRE. We have seen many vehicles catching Fire now a days, so i won’t recommend you to install after market products as they are the biggest reason for Fire.

Accidents & Crashes- Accident is one very highly dangerous reason for a car for catching fire. If fuel tank gets punctured during accident that can catch fire due to metal friction and heat and when tires are burst air in it boosts that combustion process. Secondly hot fluids like Engine oil and Radiator coolant when they are leaked they are hot enough to catch fire.

Lack Of Maintenance- Lack of maintenance is not going to directly cause your car to catch fire, but your car can be a lot more dangerous and this carelessness can indirectly lead to a fire. For example: damaged wiring at spark plugs can lead to a spark which can ignite flammable fluids such as oil or gasoline or plastic trims in Engine bay like Air Inlet manifold or Insulation on A/C piping etc. Keeping up with repairs and performing regular maintenance can help you avoid conditions that can lead to a vehicular fire.

Design Fault In Vehicle- May be it sounds strange to you that how is it possible? But yes this can be the possible reason which could lead your vehicle to catch Fire. Vehicle designers are humans and human error can occur anytime for example Samsung’s Note 7 got battery design fault and exploded. Same mistakes can happen in automobiles as well. Although this is rare but this has happened in past with some very reputable Automakers. If company diagnosis any design flaw in their vehicle which can harm their customer in any way they Re-Call their vehicle immediately and rectify that problem as soon as possible free of cost.

When it comes right down to it, the most important thing to remember is that once a vehicle is on fire, it really doesn’t matter what caused it.  The only thing that does matter is that you get out fast and get as far away from car as possible.