SF Gate: Freak fire traps man inside Audi/Battery failure a possible cause

[Larry C Leung]

Yup, but they need an electric pump to get the vacuum.

LL - NY

On Mon, 14 Jan 2002 17:20:18 -0500 David Head <v8q at bellsouth.net> writes:
>Remember, they're vacuum operated...
>
>Greg wrote:
>
>>  Freak fire traps man inside Audi 5000, Battery Failure
>>
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>> This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate.
>> The original article can be found on SFGate.com here:
>>
>http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/0
1/14/MN10502.DTL
>>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Monday, January 14, 2002 (SF Chronicle)
>> Freak fire traps man inside Audi/Battery failure a possible cause
>> Jim Doyle, Michael Taylor, Chronicle Staff Writers
>>
>>    Redwood City -- A Redwood City man was in critical condition last
>night at
>> a San Jose hospital after he was trapped in a bizarre car fire that
>may
>> have disabled the automobile's electrical system, preventing him
>from
>> unlocking the doors, authorities said.
>>    The man suffered burns over 50 percent of his body after being
>trapped in
>> a 1985 Audi 5000 sedan. Investigators said the fire may have
>prevented the
>> driver from operating the sedan's power door locks. Officials said
>he was
>> unable to get out of the burning car.
>>    Firefighters quickly doused the blaze yesterday morning, but they
>had
>> difficulty removing and treating the driver.
>>    The middle-age victim, whom authorities would not identify, was
>flown by
>> helicopter to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, where
>he was
>> undergoing intensive care and evaluation.
>>    Fire investigators suspect that the blaze may have been sparked
>by a
>> malfunctioning battery. The battery in that model of Audi is stored
>> beneath the four-door sedan's rear seat. Electrical cables go from
>the
>> battery up to the engine compartment of the car.
>>    "The battery may have shorted and malfunctioned and started the
>fire,"
>> said Battalion Chief Jim Varner of the Redwood City Fire Department.
>"If
>> the battery had some kind of failure, that could be a reason for the
>doors
>> and windows not working.
>>    "It's an unusual set of circumstances," Varner said. "We have
>very few car
>> fires that are in the passenger compartment. Usually, it's under the
>hood.
>> . . . It was also unusual that he was not able to get out and walk
>away."
>>    In the mid-1980s, the Audi 5000 was accused by consumer advocates
>and
>> government agencies of having a mechanical glitch that caused it to
>> accelerate suddenly. It was called "unintended acceleration." Even
>after
>> the U.S. government exonerated the car and it was found not to have
>that
>> problem, Audi's U.S. sales sank, damaged by unfavorable publicity.
>They
>> have risen since then, and the marque is well known for its comfort
>and
>> speed.
>>    Yesterday, Audi experts contacted by The Chronicle said they had
>never
>> heard of this kind of freak accident -- failure of the car's
>electrical
>> system trapping passengers inside a locked car -- and none of the
>many
>> stories about Audi's problems in the 1980s mentions the electrical
>> malfunction.
>>    At Audi of America in Auburn Hills, Mich., director of marketing
>Walter
>> Hanek said, "I'm not aware of such problems."
>>    The incident involving the Redwood City man took place near the
>corner of
>> Marlin Drive and Redwood Shores Parkway, not far from the driver's
>home in
>> the Redwood Shores suburban neighborhood. Investigators surmise that
>he
>> was heading home when his car burst into flames. He pulled the car
>over to
>> the side of the road.
>>    Neighbors said they spotted the car fire shortly after 10 a.m.
>and
>> immediately dialed 911. Three minutes later, when firefighters
>arrived,
>> they found the car engulfed in flames and the driver trapped.
>>    "We had some difficulty getting the driver's door open," Varner
>said. "The
>> window was either down or open, but when our guys tried to pull the
>pin
>> for the door lock it snapped off. Hydraulic rescue tools were needed
>to
>> force the door open."
>>    In addition to his third-degree burns, the man suffered from
>smoke
>> inhalation. "He is in critical condition, and we are still assessing
>his
>> condition," a hospital spokesman said last night.
>>
>>    E-mail the writers at jdoyle at sfchronicle.com and
>mtaylor at sfchronicle.com
>>
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>> Copyright 2002 SF Chronicle
>
>