TheSamba.com :: View topic - Anyone ever lit a Volkswagen case on fire?

Sat Feb 28, 2004 8:56 pm

F-150s have magnesium blocks? That rules. Bigger fire with a more reasonable motor to burn. To bad the whole truck wasn't magnesium.

Mon Mar 15, 2004 12:05 am

My local counter jockey at Kragen told me the story of his Super Beetle's case catching on fire. Apparently someone pulled up and tried to help by pouring (throwing? .. with the heat, and all) beer onto the block fire to put it out. By the time the CHP showed up there they were on the side of the highway, watching this thing burn to the ground as bright as the sun, with a case of empty beer cans at their feet. :P

Thu Mar 25, 2004 1:11 pm

back in 86 on our college graduation night we had a couple junk super beetles that some guy left abandoned in our apartment lot. We were all very drunk and rolled one over and threw a burning lawnmower inside of it. I couldn't believe how big and bright the flame was!! I can't believe the cops never showed up, the 85 yr old neighbor came out and had a couple beers and helped us watch it burn. These are the advantages of schools in rural Vermont.

Thu Apr 01, 2004 6:48 am

I had never thought about this. I have a scrap 36 horse engine and a big drum out in the field....I'm gonna give it a try. It will be a while until I do this, but I will post pics.

Fri Apr 02, 2004 12:53 am

Scoopy wrote: As a firefighter it is always interesting to pull up on a VW on fire. Especially when the owner is going ape over why his car is going up like it is.

P.S. You all will get to see more magesium fires now since the new F-150's have it too.

Scoopy

i'd like to see some ford owners go through what i went through. the difference between me and the vw owners you speak of, is i knew what was going on when the engine case lit off. after about 15-20 minutes, the firefighters got there in time to douse the engine compartment with chemicals and stop my show a bit short

Sat Apr 03, 2004 5:44 pm

If you can get your hands on one of those old fire extinguisher that you fill with water and compressed air or a super soaker might work. Then clear everyone waaaaaaaaaay back from the fire and hit it with the water. The thing will explode like your hitting it with gasoline.

Thu Apr 08, 2004 9:26 pm

73fback wrote: Here is a link to the case burning at our halloween campout this year:

http://www.aircoolers.org/gallery/album239/138_3859

Thanks for the new desktop background.

Thu May 19, 2005 1:13 pm

We were cleaning out the barn and found 4 or 5 bad transmissions and several old engines past their second line bore, so we chucked them on a fire. It took about 20 minutes before the first one caught, but once it did, they all went up. We were having fun chucking buckets of water on the fire because it made a massive flare up and a yellow mushroom cloud. All that was left afterwards was a thick layer of white ash, little pools of aluminum, and the internals of the transmission laying perfectly in place where they sat in the tranny. Next time I go camping, I'm bringing an engine block.

Wed Jul 13, 2005 12:48 pm

TimGud wrote: 73fback wrote: Here is a link to the case burning at our halloween campout this year:

http://www.aircoolers.org/gallery/album239/138_3859

Thanks for the new desktop background.

I couldnt get it to open

Fri Sep 11, 2009 7:52 am

That was one of the craziest camp fires I have ever seen. Last weekend at the BNNTA #24 I thought I would kick back by my campfire and relax. Then I thought, "Where the hell is that bright light coming from?" I found it. Two and a half hours later and three case halves the light went dim. Wow, I had no idea that it was that bright. I was afraid of retinal burning so I got my eyes behind a tree. We were upwind and I wondered how many squirrels were lost in the woods. Yes, water exaggerated the "flame." If that wasn't enough the campout clown added a few too many full cans of tuna to only explode and make it even bigger. At that point the family camping trip became kinda unsafe. Interesting nonetheless. Yes, they burn, Bring sunglasses.

Fri Sep 11, 2009 8:45 am

Now I know what all the "explosions" were coming from when my storage building full of VW stuff went up in smoke.

Sat Dec 26, 2009 5:29 pm

Glenn wrote: I once saw a guy set his case on fire while trying to weld behind #3. He dragged it to the backyard and dumped it into the pool to put it out. Only problem is that magnesuim doesn't need air to burn and will still burn under water. It burnt a hole through the bottom of the pool and did alot of damage.

Needless to say his parents were not happy.

Wow! That must have been something to see. The fact is the magnesium burns so hot, it burns the oxygen that is in the water (H2O).

Ever wonder what would happen if you lit a pile of mag shavings on the snow?? Would it burn clear through to China???

Sat Dec 26, 2009 9:35 pm

When you trow a rock at it!

Sat Dec 26, 2009 10:03 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KKSRGtBD28

Sat Dec 26, 2009 10:41 pm

Blackdawg wrote: When you trow a rock at it!

That looks like special effects from a WWII movie where all of the special effects are like small scale and crappy :lol:

Tue Jan 05, 2010 7:01 pm

here is a video of one with water going on it to fuel it more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKpjYSd1RmM

Thu Jan 07, 2010 4:50 am

The military and the airports use or they did way back when a blood base foam. I have seen several plane fires up close, well not as close as a fireman. Back in the late 50's. One was a crash and the other 3 was caused by stupid mech's.

Tue Jan 12, 2010 10:40 am

DMNCLNR wrote: I know a guy who likes to burn V.W cases cause the magnesium makes them burn so hot. He and his buddies like to burn old slash fires in the mountains in Oregon. He burnt several until one time he got brave and decided to shoot at the fire with a shotgun. Real redneck fun, shootin at fire. well he happened to hit the block and it shot melted magnesium all over his body. He was pretty messed. the metal was stuck to his face and the closest hospital was 2 hours away...

It's amazing how the human race can weed out it's own lowest common denominator. I'm sure booze had nothing to do with this.

Sun Jan 17, 2010 12:45 am

I've heard that magnesium creates it own oxygen when it burns there for can bun under water but I also know that when you try to put you car fire out they explode and smell really bad

Sun Jan 17, 2010 12:54 am

rubsterob wrote: I've heard that magnesium creates it own oxygen when it burns there for can bun under water but I also know that when you try to put you car fire out they explode and smell really bad

It's so hot it breaks the water (h2o) into hydrogen and oxygen. So when you throw water on it, it's like supercharging it or giving it nitrous :lol: