JB 911

Well, with the sad turn of events this weekend, can't help but think about our +/- 17 year old cars and fuel safety.

I am pretty new to 993 ownership having my car for less than a year. Are there any fuel / line maintenance items that should be done on our cars besides a visual inspection of hoses etc? Or items that are prone to fail and warrant a inspection?

Since I have been following the 993 board, I don't think I've seen more than one or two cases of a fire, which is encouraging, and leads me to think our fuel systems are pretty robust, but you never know.

Has any body had a fuel leak, and where was it? If so , PLEASE share. It might allow others to inspect weak areas whenever inspecting the engine.

Martin S.

The Carrera GT that caught fire was made of carbon fiber...your car is made of steel. I have been told by people that know, carbon fiber (CF) is very strong to a point; then it has a propensity to shatter. This makes me wonder about CF helmets, seats and other things. Steel won't shatter, if that is any comfort.

The 993 gas tank is behind the front struts...that is a little help + I believe there is a crumple zone on the 993. Diid the Carrera GT have to pass the DOT crash test? Don't know.

I have a 2 1/2 Lb. halon extinguisher mounted in the "cockpit"...if one is really concerned about a potential fire, for about $1,000 you can have a big halon system installed...it can be operated manually, or optionally, it will discharge on impact.

Aussie Alan 993

I don't think there is any need to be overly concerned about our fuel systems. You will usually smell a fuel leak in a petrol car anyway but there is absolutely nothing wrong with a close inspection once in a while.
Take the carpet out of the trunk, remove the blower fan and the air filter from the engine, get in close with a torch and fix anything you find, it may not be fuel related.
If nothing else, it's fun prodding, poking and getting to know the car a bit better.

Cheers
Alan

JB 911

Well, 24 hours, appx 250 views and no comments/personal experiences on fuel safety problems on the 993. I'm sure there have been problems, but that speaks well for the design.

For track driving, it seems this would be a really good upgrade. Maybe the best upgrade.

Yeah, I'm with you on the petrol/gas having a strong smell and giving it a lot of instant respect. I once was a passenger a long time ago (20years+!) in a Chrysler LeBaron, GTC 4 cylinder turbo. (That thing could scoot too!) We came to a traffic jam and after a while we smelled gas(petrol for you) real bad. After about 5mins we could see cop cars up ahead and the gas was stronger we thought maybe there was a tanker spill or something it was strong. Wrong! It was us! We pulled over popped the hood and there was a pinhole leak in the rubber fuel line and it was saturating the engine. We were able to cut the line in a spot to remove the pinhole and reclamp it and get on our way until we could replace it. That's probably the closest I came to a flash fire. Scary stuff.

BobbyT

Hi JB 911,

I'm pretty sure all current production Porsches are built with thick-walled plastic fuel tanks. They are supposed to be less susceptible to splitting open in an accident than a steel tank. That's the conclusion below in this relatively old tech paper on fuel tanks:

http://www.tms.org/pubs/journals/jom...rado-9607.html

Leaky fuel lines was probably not a factor in this tragic crash. Still, it is good to keep an eye (and especially your nose) out for leaks. When you service your car, include inspection of all fuel hoses with a good light so you can detect fuel stains or other evidence of leaks.

KNBC LA said that the car's speed was 40 mph. My 30 years with the CHP makes me skeptical of this statement. Then they talked to an "exotic car expert", who said the Carrera GT has 600 hp and "no weight" (this guy had a week's growth of beard, talked and acted like his drugs were either wearing off or hadn't kicked in yet). The capstone was one of their young on-scene guys who stated with conviction that the Carrera GT "has the engine in the middle, which makes it spin easier". It's great to watch TV and get the straight scoop.

goofballdeluxe

Even greater to see a CHP cop profile someone based on his facial hair growth. Sure glad I never drove where you patrolled when I hadn't shaved that week

As others have stated, our 993s are of different construction material and design than the Carrera GT and there are very few reports of our old cars exploding into flames after an accident. However, a good fire extinguisher mounted correctly under, say, the passenger seat is never a bad idea, especially if the car will be tracked.

That accident was tragic, but fortunately a rather rare occurrence

BobbyT

Goofball:

How is describing the appearance of someone seen on TV "profiling"? If you had seen this guy, I don't think you would be impressed with his professionalism as an expert on anything.

C4S993

I forget the show's name (ET ?) that aired a talking head describing hearing the GT's "turbos kicking in" and then the crash. At what rpm/speed do the GT turbos kick in ?

Quadcammer

Must be above 10,000rpm because it sure feels like an NA car below that.

KNS

Given enough years/time the rubber sections of fuel line in our cars will start to split and crack like any other old car. As mentioned, just keep your eyes (and nose) open for trouble. I will occasionally take a deep wiff in the engine compartment while the engine is running to see if I smell anything suspect.