Mercedes Explains How $20 Million Cars Are Kept Safe From Fire

Fire, one of the scariest outcomes imaginable for an F1 driver in the case of an incident or crash, has become rare in the sport nowadays. But that doesn’t mean that its risk has been eliminated completely. Modern F1 cars—which cost around $20 million—do not go ablaze that quickly, and there is good reason for that, as explained by Luciano Nicomede, Composite Design Engineer at Mercedes.

Nicomede recently explained how fire is prevented from compromising cars in F1. He began by describing the ‘fire bottle’, an object he believes is the most important in such situations.

This small object is fitted within the chassis of the car, and Nicomede described it as “the main component of the fire extinguishing system” on Mercedes‘ YouTube channel. To activate it and prevent fire from spreading out, a driver can press a button on the car’s steering wheel.

Or, marshals and mechanics can manually do the same by using two hooks, which Nicomede labeled as ‘master switches’. They are located at the bottom of the ‘principal rolling structure’ of the car.

In the video, the fire bottle Nicomede was referring to looked fairly small. So is it enough to prevent a fire?

Well, he answered that by revealing the two most important areas it usually targets. “The cockpit itself, where the driver sits, and also the engine compartment,” he said.

Even if the car’s electronics—which would normally power the device—are damaged, the fire extinguisher would still work. This is because it has its standalone power source, a feature the engineers considered when designing it. They also ensured it was as lightweight as possible, as any added weight in F1 impacts performance.

Uncommon, but not unheard of

There was a time in F1 when fire safety was of grave concern. One of the most infamous incidents involved three-time World Champion Niki Lauda when he crashed in Nurburgring. The then-Ferrari driver’s car burst into flames, and he suffered serious burns and health issues from the smoke.

Of course, in modern-day F1, it is not all that common. Yet, it remains a scare.

In 2020, Romain Grosjean had a shunt into the barriers at the Bahrain International Circuit, which on any other day could have just led to a safety car and maybe a red flag. Unfortunately, the Haas driver’s car had split into two, and there were roaring flames coming out of it.

Grosjean was stuck inside for around a minute, and many feared the worst, only for him to miraculously come out with relatively minor burns and a broken hand. A truly scary moment, which also shows that despite all the advancements, keeping drivers safe from fire is still of paramount importance.