windsor8 Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 That is terrible but glad you are ok. That was such a pretty Plymouth. Makes me rethink the location of my fire extinguishers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbuhagiar Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Hello Paul, Sorry for your loss, glad that you are OK. Cars & toys can be replaced. Let us know how things go with the insurance company. Chin up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockable Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Damn. Glad you're ok but I know how it sucks when you lose a car that you've put so much time and money in. It just deflates you like little else. Not much you could have done to save it, it appears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
47heaven Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Now, that is not only scary to see, but also gut-wrenching. Ply38, what happened to your car is a tragedy and an eye opener, since I've never carried an extinguisher in my car...that is until tomorrow. I can truly say I feel for you and good to hear that you didn't get injured physically, but can't say much for your pride, I'm sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Olson Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Being a former Las Vegas City Fireman, I always carry my fire extinguisher, right next to me, no matter what vehicle I am driving. I also have a pair of leather work gloves attached to the extinguisher, with rubber bands. With practice, after a complete stop, I can be gloved up and directing fire retardant within 17 seconds; just like when I was 21 and riding Engine 4, from Station 4, on the tail gate. Never trust a partially charged extinguisher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 or a half lit firefighter... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martybose Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 Being a former Las Vegas City Fireman, I always carry my fire extinguisher, right next to me, no matter what vehicle I am driving. I also have a pair of leather work gloves attached to the extinguisher, with rubber bands. With practice, after a complete stop, I can be gloved up and directing fire retardant within 17 seconds; just like when I was 21 and riding Engine 4, from Station 4, on the tail gate. Never trust a partially charged extinguisher. Interesting point about the gloves. My business coupe has a 20 lb. dry chemical extinguisher in a quick release bracket mounted vertically behind the seat; might have to think about the gloves. Having been through a Navy firefighting school (a long time ago!) I do believe that it could knock down the fire as shown in the photos, providing that you can keep knocking it down until it cools off enough to stop relighting. Marty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatS.... Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 What would have been the best way to fight the fire shown? What can we do to prevent this in our cars?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Olson Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 The gloves I use are the welding/engineer type with the extension cuff that goes past the wrists and are a size larger than I would use for regular work; in order to get them on really quick. I also put plenty of talc in the gloves for ease of putting them on and taking them off. With vehicles it is my opinion to use dry chemical extinguishers because your biggest concern is fuel and oil fires. You want to rob the fire of Oxygen, so spray over the top of the fire to knock it down. In the pictures, it would be hard to cover burning fuel that is spreading beneath the vehicle. Just remember, car fires can move and spread very quickly, because there is so much flammable material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Olson Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 What would have been the best way to fight the fire shown?What can we do to prevent this in our cars?? A ruptured gas tank and sparks is not something you can be prepared for, in a situation like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackster Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 glad you are ok. sorry to see such beautiful car end up like that...thats sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 Sorry for your loss; your car was beautiful. How did you get that picture of it on fire going down the highway?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Manes Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 I was still new with U.S. Customs in El Paso when an older couple came across from Juarez having taken just a quick look around. They were just starting to drive away when smoke started coming out from under the hood near the windshield. It was a brand new 1970 Mercury Marquis. Several of the guys ran for extinguishers, but to no avail. The brand new car burned before their eyes. The firemen were able to save the majority of the passenger compartment and trunk. They were fortunate not to have lost their belongings as well. Mercury had some kind of electrical problem and they were one of the first to experience it. Many followed before the problem was corrected. So, it can happen to any of our cars. An extinguisher may or may not help depending, of course, what is going on with the car. I would have been on the ground in tears if that were my Plymouth. She was a real beauty!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Young Ed Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 Back in the early 70s Dad worked at a few ford dealerships. One night 3 big trucks came in piggybacked. One had the windows kinda fogged so he told someone to check on it. As soon as the door was opened the truck burst into flame. It had been smoldering and as soon as the air from the open door hit it-poof! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38Plyroadking Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 Sorry for your loss; your car was beautiful. How did you get that picture of it on fire going down the highway?? I took it immediately after I got out. I was driving it to a stop like that, with only 3 wheels too! It was like a circus act, but nobody was laughing at this one!! :-( At least I am here to tell the story! :-) Another car guy I know has a similar one (mostly just a shell) that is in need of major rust repair. He wants to buy the car from me to use it to build his. Kind of like an organ donor situation. That would be kind of cool in that the car wouldn't just rust away somewhere or be scrapped and made into a Toyota!! I'd like to see that happen! I'll keep you all updated. Later, Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Olson Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 I took it immediately after I got out. I was driving it to a stop like that, with only 3 wheels too! It was like a circus act, but nobody was laughing at this one!! :-( At least I am here to tell the story! :-)Another car guy I know has a similar one (mostly just a shell) that is in need of major rust repair. He wants to buy the car from me to use it to build his. Kind of like an organ donor situation. That would be kind of cool in that the car wouldn't just rust away somewhere or be scrapped and made into a Toyota!! I'd like to see that happen! I'll keep you all updated. Later, Paul I admire your positive attitude and am very happy you were not hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Horne Posted May 8, 2011 Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 My recommendation is to put the fire exstinguisher on teh seat next to you. I might not have had time to pull the seat forward and then grab it plus my adrenaline was pumping so I couldn't think of anything but save my self. The first thing I had to do was get the car to the side of the road on 3 wheels and on fire...it was scary and happened in seconds. As for why the wheel came off, i dont know. It just stripped the nuts off of the lugs, all of them. It should not have happened since it was a rear from a 93 Ford ranger and I tightened the nuts last night! Paul The lug nuts coming off is what concerns me, since a have a 95 Ranger rearend I am setting up for another project. Why did the nuts come off? What type nuts were used, on what type of wheel. This happened to me on a little Ford Van, with alloy wheels. One wheel came off within 5 miles of my home. I had torqued the wheels the night before. The second wheel was very tight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Coatney Posted May 8, 2011 Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 The lug nuts coming off is what concerns me, since a have a 95 Ranger rearend I am setting up for another project. Why did the nuts come off? What type nuts were used, on what type of wheel. This happened to me on a little Ford Van, with alloy wheels. One wheel came off within 5 miles of my home. I had torqued the wheels the night before. The second wheel was very tight. I agree with what Robert said. There must be some reason the lug nuts all stripped off. Any idea why? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobT-47P15 Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 I don't recall some of the first comments.....but were there spacers on those rear wheels??? Sometimes those can cause problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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