I have a new car -- a boring sedan, not a sports car. No, not even in an exciting color. But I'm thinking I should have a fire extinguisher in case things go south. Or in case I see a car on fire by the side of the road. I looked up Amazon, and they have fire extinguisher of various sizes:

1.4 lbs
2.5 lbs
5 lbs
11 lbs

How much do I need? I'm inclined towards the 1.4 lbs, because I don't have that much space in the cab. (Yes, I'm going to find a secure way to mount it to something sturdy. I won't leave it around so it could turn into a cannon ball in a crash.) Would 1.4 lbs be enough "for most situations" in a car fire?

None.

If you have a fire in your car, run away.

Only use a fire extinguisher for someone else's car, then bigger is better.

Buy the biggest you can live with, cost, where you will store it and utility for example.

Bear in mind you will probably never use it during its service life.

Small ones are like really small and have very little capability. In most cases getting away is better.

If you do get a extinguisher and plan to save the car, make sure you do not use powder. Spraying powder in a engine bay is a good way to ruining it forever. (the salts get everywhere and corrodes contacts).

Good advice above. Any fire in a car, don't be in that car. Also, remember the Golden Rule of fighting a fire for non-professionals: if you can't knock it down with a single fire extinguisher, drop said fire extinguisher and make your escape.

I have not owned or used their products; according to the web site, these are designed for cars. I'm only positing this to let you know what's out there.

http://www.h3rperformance.com/

Jeanette Isabelle

I just recalled a real life situation.

As a woman is driving, a fire ignites under the hood. I don't know the details. She immediately recalls there's a sleeping bag in the trunk. She uses the sleeping bag to snuff out the fire before it does major damage.

Jeanette Isabelle

Bingley: I drive a sm/./med. SUV crossover. I've always kept a 2.5 lb. ABC fire extinguisher under my driver's seat, held in by flapping the rear mat. The higher floor side walls and seat bottom form the rest of the "box". I've been in several unavoidable crashes over the last many decades and it's never been dislodged, albeit none were rollover crashes. I like having it accessible to the driver in case he/ she is trapped in the burning hulk, after a crash. P.S. Get one with a metal tip .

By the time the flames are visible from outside, the damage is already done and the vehicle is usually a write-off. Evacuate the vehicle and move everyone to a safe distance. However, if you're trying to stop the spread of the flames in order to buy some time to extricate a person trapped in the car, go for it - a bigger extinguisher is better.

I used to have an an ABC fire extinguisher in the trunk because it's cheap. But then I changed my mind about it. Here's why:

1. Fire extinguisher powder is corrosive and generally awful for the electronics in the car. You spray it on the engine and you might as well junk the car -- or so I've been told.

2. The trunk fire extinguisher is really for other people's fire. I'm willing to change my mind, though, but it seems to me that if your car is on fire because you've been in an accident, you may not be able to get to the trunk in time.

So now I'm thinking of mounting a halotron extinguisher inside the cab. (Halotron is not corrosive, and can be used on electronics.) The problem is that can be expensive. Halotron is not cheap to start with ($100-$140 for 1.4 or 2.5 lbs, depending on the brand). Mounting securely inside the cab can be a challenge.

I'm trying H3R's universal mount, but it's not that universal! You are supposed to be able to attach it to the seat sliders, but I think I'll need smaller nuts and bolts. That is not optimal because I don't want to use hardware that is smaller than the holes they need to go through.

I think Halotron is the replacement gas for Halon (?) Back a few decades ago, when I was on the fire fighting team at our manufacturing location, we had some Halon dump systems in the expensive electronics rooms. While Halon is great for putting out fires in enclosed spaces, it is also good for putting out people who happen to be trying to breathe in that enclosed room. As fire fighters, we had full protective gear including air packs, but the general lab occupants doing their daily work did not. So all those Halon systems were eventually ripped out of our electronic test rooms, for safety reasons. Be sure and do your research before attempting to mount a fire suppression system inside an enclosed space (like your car). In the event of a car fire, I would recommend opening the car door and leaving, rather than sitting inside and waiting for your fire suppression system to kick off and save you.

Also - I believe HALON has to be used in a fairly air-tight space. When one of the Datacenters I worked in years ago had a HALON system, they actually would come in once every few years and pressure test the room to make sure the HALON would even work.

IF your in an accident, and windows are shattered, I think all your gonna do it make a cloud, scare the heck out of anybody who was even thinking about helping...

What do they use in NASCAR? I think it's fire-retardant clothing only right?

From reading the two threads about car fires, it seems like I actually don't need a fire extinguisher at all -- at least not for myself. I think I'll adopt the plan of existing the vehicle ASAP and collecting insurance.

In what situation would a small extinguisher could make a difference? I'm thinking that you'd have to be trapped in the car, unable to exit (and then collect insurance).

If somebody is trapped, if might give you a little more time. But don't expect too much.

Otherwise, it's those tiny little fires. A co-worker has a little connector failure, he opened the hood, blew it out, disconnected the connector and drove on.

I prefer the proper maintainance (replace damaged wires, taking car of oil leaks, replacing old hoses) and removing dirt and leaves methode. Makes thinks more reliable and less chance of a fire.

Interesting thread

Every fuel truck I have seen carries two fire extinguishers on the sides or behind so that any fire around the truck can be fought and stopped before reaching the truck.

In the same line of thinking, I agree that smaller fire extinguishers are no match for car fires but still maybe useful to stop a fire from reaching the car.

And then again, it can be used as a deterrent for an attacker or such.

You maybe sued later.

As a road medic I once asked a long haul (Fuel Tanker) driver about the truck having 2 fire extinguishers. I asked- Does anyone REALLY think that those will help put out a fuel fire from this truck?

He replied that he asked the CDL instructors the same question... He said that they said they were really just to 'put out' the brakes if they overheat. He said that the CDL instructors said that NO...no one expects them to be used for a truck fire.