This has been fairly common for awhile now at alot of Dragstrips

[Wild one]

 

[RamDiver]

I'm not the least bit surprised about not allowing EVs, the liability is enormous for the track.

Odd that they permit hybrids though, the Li batteries used will likely have the same fire hazard risks.

.

 

[GTyankee]

Generally, cars powered by electricity or gas are equally safe in a crash.
However, the size of a vehicle has far-flung effects on its safety. Heavy electric cars may be less safe than their lighter counterparts, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Being as Lithium Batteries are so difficult to Extinguish.
The Battery has to be completely wrapped in a special Fire Blanket, when it is still in the vehicle, that means that the whole vehicle would have to be wrapped to cut off Oxygen.



That would mean the race track could be unusable for hours.
A FIRE close to the Asphalt, would burn a significant hole in the tracks surface.

The other way is to push this under a vehicle, so that it is under the EV Battery.
Then Puncture the bottom of the EV Battery to drain the fluids



this is a control box, for the above unit

No videos

Too much hassle for a race track !!

 

[chri5k]

I volunteer at my local rural VFD. We are not as well equipped as big city professional FD’s. Our procedure for EV’s is to don full protective gear including SCBA before approaching an EV accident or fire. If no one is trapped inside, back away and let it burn. Control any ground fires around it that may spread. The nearest big city department that can deal with an EV is 1 hour away.

If someone is trapped inside, extricating them is tricky. The new battery powered jaws of life do have insulated handles. However, the procedure for disabling the electrical system is different for each make of vehicle. Sometimes for different for models within a make. It takes time to look up the procedure. The electrical system must be disabled for the safety of the victim and first responders. We had a paramedic killed by an air bag a while back.

Best suggestion is to drive your EV carefully in rural areas. If you get in an accident, the VFD may not be able to help you. We are applying for grants to upgrade equipment. Training is becoming more available. However, this will take time as every rural VFD is facing the same problem.

 

[chri5k]

Generally, cars powered by electricity or gas are equally safe in a crash.
However, the size of a vehicle has far-flung effects on its safety. Heavy electric cars may be less safe than their lighter counterparts, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Being as Lithium Batteries are so difficult to Extinguish.
The Battery has to be completely wrapped in a special Fire Blanket, when it is still in the vehicle, that means that the whole vehicle would have to be wrapped to cut off Oxygen.

View attachment 554817

That would mean the race track could be unusable for hours.
A FIRE close to the Asphalt, would burn a significant hole in the tracks surface.

The other way is to push this under a vehicle, so that it is under the EV Battery.
Then Puncture the bottom of the EV Battery to drain the fluids

View attachment 554818
View attachment 554819
this is a control box, for the above unit
View attachment 554820
No videos

Too much hassle for a race track !!

Is this ad from Temu? EV’s aren’t powered by one big wet cell battery. If it were the fluids are corrosive and or caustic so now it just created a hazmat situation on top of whatever else is going on.

The batteries are made from hundreds of individual cells. There is a small amount of fluid in each more like a gel. That thing does not seem useful as the gel won’t drain and there is no practical way to puncture hundreds of them in an emergency situation. EV manufacturers do not recommend puncturing the battery.

 

[metalchewy]

Generally, cars powered by electricity or gas are equally safe in a crash.
However, the size of a vehicle has far-flung effects on its safety. Heavy electric cars may be less safe than their lighter counterparts, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Being as Lithium Batteries are so difficult to Extinguish.
The Battery has to be completely wrapped in a special Fire Blanket, when it is still in the vehicle, that means that the whole vehicle would have to be wrapped to cut off Oxygen.

View attachment 554817

That would mean the race track could be unusable for hours.
A FIRE close to the Asphalt, would burn a significant hole in the tracks surface.

The other way is to push this under a vehicle, so that it is under the EV Battery.
Then Puncture the bottom of the EV Battery to drain the fluids

View attachment 554818
View attachment 554819
this is a control box, for the above unit
View attachment 554820
No videos

Too much hassle for a race track !!

The fire from an EV on the racetrack would render it unusable until that drag strip is repaved, it would melt and burn off the asphalt requiring an end to all activities for the event.

 

[Docwagon1776]

I'm not the least bit surprised about not allowing EVs, the liability is enormous for the track.

Odd that they permit hybrids though, the Li batteries used will likely have the same fire hazard risks.

.

Cynical take: Hybrids aren't spanking the ICE guys who pay the bills.

 

[metalchewy]

Cynical take: Hybrids aren't spanking the ICE guys who pay the bills.

Agree with you cynicism, EV to ICE isn't really a fair race. An EV class would pit EV vs EV on the strip.

Racers are well known for tweaking what they have to get every hundredth of a second they can off their ET . A bone stock EV might not have the risks that the next guy who hacked the control system to add 20Amps to the drive system by removing the guardrails that are built in. Just to eek out a 10th of a second shorter ET, doing unsafe things with it.

 

[GTyankee]

The products that i posted as an example for Vehicles involved in an accident, that have Lithium Batteries, did not come as an ad that came from TEMU.

It came from a big German outfit, that submitted it to some Fire Fighting Org.
Name of company is

Rosenbauer​

https://www.rosenbauer.com/en/jp/rosenbauer-group

 

[Docwagon1776]

Agree with you cynicism, EV to ICE isn't really a fair race. An EV class would pit EV vs EV on the strip.

Racers are well known for tweaking what they have to get every hundredth of a second they can off their ET . A bone stock EV might not have the risks that the next guy who hacked the control system to add 20Amps to the drive system by removing the guardrails that are built in. Just to eek out a 10th of a second shorter ET, doing unsafe things with it.

I don't know, but I suspect the level of difficulty in "hacking" the control systems on these things is pretty way up there. Especially given how connected to their respective motherships they are. Even charging them requires permission from the computer system.

The aftermarket industry is having real issues just getting into the programming of ICE controls these days.

 

[chri5k]

The products that i posted as an example for Vehicles involved in an accident, that have Lithium Batteries, did not come as an ad that came from TEMU.

It came from a big German outfit, that submitted it to some Fire Fighting Org.
Name of company is

Rosenbauer​

https://www.rosenbauer.com/en/jp/rosenbauer-group

So the device does not puncture the battery to drain fluid. It punctures the battery so water can be injected. During the puncture operation the videos show a few cells igniting. However, the videos they show are brand new vehicles sitting on a flat asphalt surface. Maybe if the EV spontaneously combusts in a parking lot it might be useful. I have yet to see a wreck that looks like anything in the videos.

A recently wreck vehicle laying at an angle in a ditch is probably not conducive to using that device. Also, after a wreck there may be an unknown number of compromised cells in the battery. Compromised lithium cells react violently with water. Again, probably not a good idea to inject water into a closed metal structure causing a bunch of compromised cells to basically explode. IMHO, this device would need more testing on actual wrecked vehicles and certification laboratory testing before being deemed safe to use. In the US it would need to be tested by UL, SEI or other such testing organization. Also, NFPA would probably need to set some standards for devices of this type.

 

[GTyankee]

I did find some videos, after i posted in here.

I did wonder about what stage of testing they were at.

The test vehicle was on flat ground, all 4 tires fully inflated.
No obstructions around it, like a tree laying across it.

....................................................

Like someone mentioned, there are times that you just have to treat it like a small Hazmat Incident & let it burn itself out.

The Power Companies Lithium Battery structures,
possibly could be a Modern Day Lithium Battery Sub Station,
looked similar to modified SEA TRAIN containers, they had a Fire in one near here, they said that it would burn out within 2 or 3 days

Fire at SDG&E battery facility

Tony Shin on the lithium-ion battery fire in Escondido Thursday.STORY: https://fox5sandiego.com/news/local-news/fire-breaks-out-in-escondido-sdge-battery-sto...

www.youtube.com

 

[RamDiver]

Burning Lithium batteries aren't any big deal.

We're just going to be extra careful, moving people away from the immediate area, not because the fumes are dangerous or hazardous. Ya right.

Just like it wasn't any big deal to burn off the hazardous chemicals spilled during that train derailment.

.

 

[EdGs]

Burning Lithium batteries aren't any big deal.

We're just going to be extra careful, moving people away from the immediate area, not because the fumes are dangerous or hazardous. Ya right.

Just like it wasn't any big deal to burn off the hazardous chemicals spilled during that train derailment.

.

Na, no big deal at all, even the runoff from the water is completely 100% safe. Trust us.

 

[metalchewy]

I don't know, but I suspect the level of difficulty in "hacking" the control systems on these things is pretty way up there. Especially given how connected to their respective motherships they are. Even charging them requires permission from the computer system.

The aftermarket industry is having real issues just getting into the programming of ICE controls these days.

A few searches on github reveal that there are already a number of open source EV software projects out there that are available. It only takes a software developer or five to roll your own.

 

[Docwagon1776]

A few searches on github reveal that there are already a number of open source EV software projects out there that are available. It only takes a software developer or five to roll your own.

And the driveline software isn't encrypted? They aren't just adding a box in line and tricking it?

 

[Tominator223]

I watched a firefighter talking about putting out an ev. He said one ev they pushed under water and it was still burning. Another he said they used 40 thousand gallons to put out where a gas vehicle only takes about 1000 gallons to extinguish . So I don’t blame race tracks for banning them. If you haven’t already . Look up how lithium metal like in the batteries reacts to water.

 

[Marshall]

Could be a bit hard on the shrubbery, but remember Red Adair, Oil well Firefighter?
I wonder if anyone has tried a RPG to put out a tesla fire? Nice open field in the winter
You could sell tickets as well.