

| Subject: | Re: Another vanagon burns up (long) |
| From: | Gary Bawden |
| Date: | Sat, 2 Apr 2005 07:58:48 -0800 |
Hi, On a lighter note about burning up vans, I nearly burned up my '66 aircooled bus years ago. I had replaced the line from the fuel pump to the carburetor with some cool-looking braided plastic line that I had been assured was fuel-grade (I have since learned my lesson about that!). About 2 weeks later I was returning from the local welding supply carrying one full acetylene tank and one full oxygen tank. Stopped at a stop sign and the engine died. Saw smoke coming out of the engine louvres. The fuel line had dissolved, and while I was waiting at the stop sign, the fuel pump had pumped a large quantity of fuel on the asphalt, which then caught fire, so there was a pretty nice blaze going, roasting the engine compartment, and of course the fuel tank very nearby! I pushed the van off of the burning puddle, and sprinted over to a woman who was holding a garden hose in her front yard, saying, "I really need this!" - - the hose just barely reached and was able to fog out the remaining fire. Thanked the lady, who was still standing there, then pushed the van down the street to a place out of traffic. Someone had already called the fire department - - while I was pushing at a run, the fire truck went by with all the guys on the back and the sirens and lights going. They went by and came back a couple of minutes later, after I had parked the van off the street, and asked if my van had just caught fire! The only damage that day was the ignition wires and, of course, I needed all new fuel lines. My fire prevention awareness took a quantum leap forward that day! Gary '82 Diesel (Anna) '85 l.9 (AnnaBelle Lee) '85 l.9 (Hector) __________________________________ Yahoo! Messenger Show us what our next emoticon should look like. Join the fun. http://www.advision.webevents.yahoo.com/emoticontest
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