Folks,
Do you have a fire extinguisher in your Vanagon?
How old is it??? Do you trust it?

Unfortunately, I had an engine fire in my newly-acquired van.
No, it was not caused by leaky fuel lines this time! But it might as
well have been.
Engine died, and smoke was pouring out of the back of the van!
Grabbed the extinguisher from behind the driver's seat, and ran to the
back of the van.
Cracked open the engine lid, and was met by flames shooting out at me.
Pointed the fire extinguisher at the back, and pulled the trigger.
Nothing! One tiny puff of white powder sort of trickled out.
Freaking, I closed the engine cover tightly, and started to beg for
intervention, if you know what I mean.
At that point all I could do was move away, and call 911.
Not that I want to wrap this up easily, but the fire self-extinguished
when the coolant expansion tank exploded, spraying coolant on the fire!

Please, if you don't have an extinguisher in the van, get one!
If you do, how old is it? Would you trust your life to it?
Would it take up that much space to have a second one handy in the van?

We all hope for the best, but try to be prepared for the worst.

Thanks for listening,
Doug in CT