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Comment by Steko | Hacker News Reader

Trying to consolidate all the red flags in one place:

1. "How is another question." No it isn't. Gasoline is how cars blow up when they hit trees.

2. "Video dissolves moments later (something was cut from it)" This is called editing; it's used when interesting things stop happening.

3. " over 200 feet" Or, as some reports have it, 'over 100 feet'. Shouldn't be hard to measure the exact distance from Google maps or someone can go there.

4. "not sure a C-250 fuel tank (17.4 gallons) could create that big of a fireball?" This is random FUD. It's not hard to find images of similar sized cars exploding on Google.

5. "All electrical systems, fuel, combustion, etc. would be disconnected for this reason." The fuel tank isn't made of adamantium.

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I did a fire training with the ALMS safety team a few years back at Sebring. We started with lighting 1/4 gallon of 100 octane (15% ethanol) race fuel then by the end we used 1 gallon spilled on the concrete. The 1 gallon fire was over 20 feet high and took 20 seconds for a volunteer to put out with AFFF-AR suppressant. That demonstration woke all of us up very fast considering the cars carry upwards of 19 gallons.

Your answers are not scientific, even as pat as they may be.

Cars don't "blow up" though they may catch fire.

Images of cars exploding on Google?

Adamantium?

Whatever, just keep repeating this sort of stuff and maybe some more people will believe you.

> Adamantium?

Sophomore year high school physics time, back of the envelope edition:

  Car mass: ~1500kg
  Car velocity: lower bound, 80mph?  lets call it 35 m/s

  Ek = 1/2 mv^2

  Wolfram Alpha cheat: .5 * 1500 kg * (35 m/s)^2 = .91 megajoules

Stopping that car with a tree dumps damn near a megajoule of energy somewhere (and that is before you consider the potential energy in the gas!). You can bet your ass a significant portion of that energy is going to be spent rapidly "disassembling" that car.

This is a more compelling argument since it presents actual substance, but it doesn't change what I was saying about the post I was replying to, nor does it change what was posted.

Congrats on your sophmore year high school physics, not real big on passive aggressiveness but I am big on logic and well-reasoned arguments. :P

>>> Congrats on your sophmore year high school physics, not real big on passive aggressiveness

The irony.

That's ... just like your opinion man. I am enjoying the mod-bombing though. :D

"Cars don't "blow up" though they may catch fire."

Gasoline fuel tanks can explode. Google it.

"Images of cars exploding on Google?"

Google it. It's a thing.

"Adamantium?"

This is called making a point through absurdity. Fuel tanks are made of steel or plastic. Neither of those is unbreakable.

"Whatever, just keep repeating this sort of stuff and maybe some more people will believe you."

Maybe. I do have the full backing of the Conspiracy of Lizard Peop---

> Gasoline fuel tanks can explode. Google it.

They do, but it's extremely rare (thanks to modern inventions like pressure relief valves). When a fuel tank explodes, it's not because the fuel inside detonates, it's because the fuel inside is being vaporized by the heat of the external fire, and that vapor takes up a whole lot more space, resulting in a huge pressure increase, resulting in a BLEVE. If a pressure release valve can vent the pressure before that happens, no explosion...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_liquid_expanding_vapor_...

That being said... I doubt there was actually an explosion. The car simply caught fire. There were certainly pops and bangs as various compressed gas cylinders (for things like air bags, doors, bumpers, seatbelts, etc) BELEVE'd, but I seriously doubt there was any major explosion. The 'bomb' sounds were simply the crash itself.

As a young child I vividly recall my parents car catching fire and burning out. I think it was a Morris Marina. Fuel line perished and by design genius, it crossed the exhaust something like seven times we were later told. Anyway, the fire caught and was though the dash before the car came to a halt. We bundled out, and moments later the fire brigade turned up, as the station was just around the corner. They were very relieved that the fuel tank was full, and this significantly decreased the risk of explosion. It seems logical too, as a lack of vapour makes it harder to ignite.

Vehicle fires are some of the most nerve-wracking fires you'll ever respond to...

Always approach from a corner, sweep the hose stream under the vehicle to push out any burning fluids, then flood the interior with as much water as you have.

There are so many things in a car that will try to hurt you... Those little hydraulic cylinders that prop up your rear hatch? When those heat up enough to cook off, they'll drive that rod through your leg... The compressed gas cylinders that give the bumpers their 'bumpiness' will kick the bumper out hard enough to break a knee... Hopefully the fire hasn't gotten hot enough to ignite the magnesium that is in a lot of modern vehicles... And here's hoping electric car manufacturers really know their stuff... A lithium fire doesn't sound like fun at all.

if I may go slightly off-topic, what is it with the conspiracy "gurus", where they can have a lot of really good, sourced (seriously) information, but then they throw the crazy in there to completely discredit themselves? I bet David Icke has enough charm/charisma to be elected to office and affect real change in the world, if he would just stay quiet about the lizard people.

Steko, all I'm saying is your post and the followup you made are not very useful because: Strawmen up the wazoo, arguing from hyperbole (Adamantium, Lizard People reference?), of course Google is a thing (this part of your post is a non sequitur).

People like you are just as bad as the conspiracy nuts mate. All I'm asking is less noise and more signal bud.

The conspiracy nuts are worse.

> Adamantium?

Don't drink it.

Don't smoke it.

What do you do with it?

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