N941WR
Legacy Member
Yesterday, while riding with a friend I experienced smoke in the cockpit. I was stunned at how quickly the cockpit filled with smoke and how quickly the smoke obscured the windscreen.
Here's the details:
We were riding along in his Porsche 911 when all of a sudden white toxic smoke started pouring out of the AC vents.
In the matter of a few seconds neither of us could see the road. He quickly pulled over and we were able to get out.
Lucky for us, the fire went out as quickly as it started we were in a car and not in an airplane.
Since my friend has multiple cars, he doesn't drive his beautiful 911 very often and the day before he added wires to the battery so he could use a battery tender, which is what caught fire.
Here is why this is VAF worthy and the reason I'm posting this.
1. Wrong wire. When installing your wires, make sure you use aircraft grade Tezel wire. The auto wire my friend used DID give off noxious orders and had we not been able to get out of the car as quickly as we did, we probably would have been incapacitated very quickly.
2. Wrong wire and no fuse/breaker. His leads came off the battery and had no fuse on them. Had there been a fuse, once the short occurred, there would have been no ensuing fire.
3. Wrong wire, no fuse/breaker, and exposed leads. He used blade connectors on the ends of his wires and they were able to touch together, causing a direct short. Once the short occurred, the wires burned all the way back to the battery, this was a distance of about 18". Who knew that 18" of wire could produce that much smoke?
When installing your wiring, make sure you follow aircraft standards and think about what your wires can rub against, possible shorts, where is your fuse/breaker located, etc.
Had that "small" fire occurred in an airplane, I'm not sure we would have been able to get back on the ground safely.
Oh, the 911's baggage compartment's plastic liners were damaged by the fire and there is a minor paint "scorch" mark on the inside of the hood. He was on line last night ordering replacement parts.
Here's the details:
We were riding along in his Porsche 911 when all of a sudden white toxic smoke started pouring out of the AC vents.
In the matter of a few seconds neither of us could see the road. He quickly pulled over and we were able to get out.
Lucky for us, the fire went out as quickly as it started we were in a car and not in an airplane.
Since my friend has multiple cars, he doesn't drive his beautiful 911 very often and the day before he added wires to the battery so he could use a battery tender, which is what caught fire.
Here is why this is VAF worthy and the reason I'm posting this.
1. Wrong wire. When installing your wires, make sure you use aircraft grade Tezel wire. The auto wire my friend used DID give off noxious orders and had we not been able to get out of the car as quickly as we did, we probably would have been incapacitated very quickly.
2. Wrong wire and no fuse/breaker. His leads came off the battery and had no fuse on them. Had there been a fuse, once the short occurred, there would have been no ensuing fire.
3. Wrong wire, no fuse/breaker, and exposed leads. He used blade connectors on the ends of his wires and they were able to touch together, causing a direct short. Once the short occurred, the wires burned all the way back to the battery, this was a distance of about 18". Who knew that 18" of wire could produce that much smoke?
When installing your wiring, make sure you follow aircraft standards and think about what your wires can rub against, possible shorts, where is your fuse/breaker located, etc.
Had that "small" fire occurred in an airplane, I'm not sure we would have been able to get back on the ground safely.
Oh, the 911's baggage compartment's plastic liners were damaged by the fire and there is a minor paint "scorch" mark on the inside of the hood. He was on line last night ordering replacement parts.