Citation

Hamsten B. Int. J. Veh. Des. 1982; 4(2): 159-117.

Affiliation

Volvo, Goteborg, Sweden

Copyright

(Copyright © 1982, Inderscience Publishers)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Fires in the passenger compartments of modern cars are rare. The main risk now is of fires that start elsewhere in the car spreading to the passenger cabin before the occupants have time to escape. The engine compartment is the source of the most serious fires; to reduce the risk of these occurring fuel lines are now provided with extra fire-resistant sheathing, and electrical wiring is run as far away from fuel lines as possible. A series of fire tests, carried out on Volvo 240 and 760 GLE models, is described. The results in terms of speed of the spread of the fire, production of toxic fumes and the fire-resistance of the engine compartment bulkhead and of bushings and seals are presented. It is concluded that the fire precautions in the new 760 GLE allow more than five minutes before an engine fire spreads beyond the bulkhead, and three minutes before levels of toxic fumes become dangerous. These times should be adequate to permit the occupants to evacuate the vehicle safely.