Bang! A4 battery explodes

[Bruce Bell]

Very Big Bang....  The warnings in previous posts need to be heeded. I'm
finding out these events aren't as uncommon as I've always believed. If the
hood were open it exploded, serious injury from both shrapnel and acid would
have been certain. I'm also glad the battery wasn't under the rear seat as
in my Urq and new to me '89 200tq. I think I would have had a heart attack.

Everything cleaned up well (I hope) and I bathed the car in an undercarriage
wash for a respectable time. The stock of baking soda in southern Colorado
is now seriously depleted. The radio still works despite the battery being
disconnected (it even remembered the presets).

I'm buying into the low fluid as the reason. Battery was the original
Autobahn with 4-5 years of service.

Have you checked your batteries lately?

Bruce


-----Original Message-----
From: rob hod

its just a battery failure mode, - lots of oxygen + lots of hydrogen +
internal spark - ventilation = BIG BANG.

    Makes you look at all those dud batterys in your garage in a new way?

    Be careful out there..

rob
>
>   This is probably obvious but I'll point out just in case that the entire
> area needs a _thorough_ rinsing with a baking soda/water solution.  I
would
> drench everythihg that had even the slightest chance of coming into
contact
> with electrolyte for 10-15 minutes; you'll probably still miss some areas
> and they'll show up ugly over time.
>
>   Any idea what caused it?  Sounds frightening.

> >Pressed the clutch, hit the ignition an BANG! Thought I'd been shot. You
> >wouldn't believe the devastation of the battery. Pieces parts everywhere.