... and how do you put out flames that are endangering someone trapped in the car, swat them with the insurance certificate?

Fair point especially on cars with automatic locking.
Actually I was also thinking about a similar issue with defibrillators, I did some voluntary work with the Ambulance service and was told that defibs are very rarely successful. Unless you have one with you when you arrive on scene then by the time you have got to one in say a railway station or shopping centre then it's too late to use it and you are better off just doing CPR until help arrives (and you soon get tired anyway unless there are two of you). But that's another topic. 3 x FL1 2 manual + 1 auto
5 x FL2 4 manual + 1 auto
Now Discovery Sport P250 MHEV SE

Auto locking is a menace, do the doors not automatically unlock in the event of a collision? Not that a fire would open them though.

Reeventu wrote:

Must agree even a 2Kg one is virtually useless.

I cannot recall the time it will last but it is seconds not minutes, and bear in mind even the fire brigade tend to let car fires burn out as they are notoriously difficult to extinguish

I have an ABE 2.3 kg in our Unit. It's 440mm high x 105mm diameter plus the hose. It's too large to keep in the car. 2 x 1 kg would be easier.

I only have 1 x 1 kg in the car & it's next to the spare wheel until I can work out where to mount it.

kg / seconds
1.0 / 8
2.3 / 13
4.5 / 17
9.0 / 22 Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18

The advantage of AFF ( sometimes known as light water) is the expansion rate, the discharge may only last a few second but will overfill the engine compartment with foam, equally a 2Kg AFF will completely fill the passenger compartment with foam my PC is slightly to the right of Genghis
2012 HSE SD4 In Orkney Grey now gone, best car ever.

Now thinking my "smart" purchase of a 1kg powder extinguisher a pretty useless move wasting money on something that won't stop a fire but will wreck any of the car not consumed by flames!

It does fit very neatly in the glove compartment though.

Ah well, off to investigate the AFF? variety and will relegate the powder job as a second extinguisher for the caravan.

Trouble with AAAF is that due to the shaking up caused by the motion of the vehicle in which they are fitted, it foams up and does not do the job properly as many a Rally driver has found out to their cost.
I am sure Durand will confirm this.

Bill Life Honorary Member of Wallasey Motor Club.
Licenced MSA Radio Operator for 35+ years.
Rallying is the only sport.

Feels like you are doomed if your car starts to burn these days! There was a gas extinguisher (Halon?) that used to be rated as a total winner every time but I am pretty sure that was banned for some reason or other, like most things that were /are actually any good it did other things that weren't so welcome I guess.

Halon is a CFC - depletes the ozone layer, greenhouse gas. It is, as you say, now banned in this country. Presumably the halon is considered more harmful than the gasses given off by the car and occupants as they burn!

Always regarded as the most efficient and non harmful to the car ( never mind the ozone layer ).

After banning generally many years ago it could still be used by the military and I believe some government buildings .

Sometimes you can find a halon extinguisher at autojumbles.

I am told that unscrupulous types paint them red to disguise them and keep them in their cars and garages

Halon has all sorts of advantages (such as supressing the fire without killing people - unlike CO2) and is still used in some electronic applications and tunnels (Halon 1301 is used now rather than H1211). Initially, legacy systems could be kept but only recharged from stock that had been recovered not newly produced material.

Halon extinguishers may crop up at autojumbles but they are still illegal to own/carry/discharge in most circumstances. It is the owners responsibility to have them disposed of correctly...which is expensive so probably why they try to palm them off on the unsuspecting!


I wonder how much 'ozone' halon use depleted in comparison to the amount that car production & use has?

Stevie5tapes wrote:

My first car, an Astra caught fire. I didn't have an extinguisher. Basically the car broke down, when I got out I could see flames in the engine bay so I just called the fire brigade and stood well back. Fire brigade came and put the fire out then showed me where the fire had started (distributer). Unless lives depended on it I wouldn't go back to a burning car.

I'm interested in what AFFF you're talking about with the ultra high expansion rate? The regular AFFF gives a very low expansion, and you see them used a lot on say oil fires. High expansion in a bottle I've not come across before but would love a link please

I saw a car go up in flames. There was a bit of smoke coming out of the car. People grabbed a fire extinguisher from an office, but it did not work. Then got a second one, it did not work either.

Finally the third one worked but it was all too late. I saw the whole thing from the other side of a main road and in about a minute or so the whole car was burning fiercely.

They put the fire out. Memory is a bit rough but it probably was a 5 kg extinguisher.


My first car had smoke from the engine bay. 2 wires had rubbed over the years, then shorted. No real damage as I put it out straight away. The only problem was the very unpleasant burnt smell which lasted for quite a few weeks even though I cleaned everything thoroughly. It was such a minor smoulder rather than a fire. Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18