Eircooled nearly lost it's only 2CV yesterday
I left Galway last night at around 7.45 to drive back to Cork. As I went through Ennis and got onto the dual carriageway, i noticed a strange smell from the engine and i saw flickering lights. Of course, I pulled over onto the hard shoulder immediately, opened the bonnet and what did i see but a sea of flames.
I immediately took all my belongings out of the car and took a t shirt from my suitcase and started putting out the fire, which i managed to do in the end. My left hand is burnt as a result, but at least i managed to save the 2CV. I called the AA and they towed the car away, even though it was still driving, but i didn't want to take the risk.
I stayed over at a friend's place in Limerick who also happens to be a doctor, so he took care of my hand.
This morning as the car was being towed back to Cork i took a closer look at the engine. What had actually happened was one of the heater hoses that conducts the heat from the heat exchangers to the bulkhead had come loose and fallen onto the engine and caught fire. Because i managed to put out the fire quite quickly, there is hardly any damage to the car (bar the distinct smell of rotten barbeque in the car)
None of the wiring has been damaged so basically all it needs is a bit of a clean up and a new heater hose. This time i will do the smart thing and buy the aluminium aftermarket hoses instead of the cardboard original ones. Oh, and i will also invest in a fire extinguisher!!!
Conclusion: car is fine and in a couple of weeks the hand will be fine as well. So all is well again in Eircooled land
I sincerely hope that i'm the only one with a horror story like that this weekend
