Fire extinquishers and the MSA

[Skyedriver]

Having experiences a small fire earlier today and used a very old extinquisher to save the car I'm looking for a replacement.
The car is used on the road and any competition is Hillclimbs in the Roadgoing class. An extinquisher wasn't even a requirement last time I entered.
Scouring the Blue Book it appears as if an AFFF type is required but looking at the various extinquisher companies a dry powder one is more versatile.
Also size, 1 litre or 2 litre? It's a small car (Caterham) so a smaller unit fits easier in a small cockpit. (Obviously a larger unit will put out a larger fire).
Thanks for any advice from those who are in the know

[Nampahc Niloc]

The problem with dry powder extinguishers is that they dont’t cool the fire (just smother it), meaning all the heat is still there and it might just reignite. They also make a horrific mess.

[Trev450]

I would think given you are in the road going class and therefore not required to have an extinguisher, you can fit whatever you prefer. Good advice above though regarding dry powder ones.

[Aeroscreens]

In my Caterham I fitted a 2.25l plumbed-in AFFF extinguisher in the boot. It has 3 nozzles one each directed at fuel pump, fuel injection and driver's footwell. I've always worked on the basis that unless you have an exceedingly large capacity FE you're unlikely to put a fire out to save the car so most extinguishers simply serve a purpose of buying you a little extra time to exit the car safely. IIRC if you have an FE it must be serviced and 'in date' for MSUK

When sprinting/hillclimbing I always make note of where the marshalls post are in case I'm able to drive to them as they'll have much larger FEs.

[df76]

Trev450 said:

I would think given you are in the road going class and therefore not required to have an extinguisher, you can fit whatever you prefer. Good advice above though regarding dry powder ones.

Agreed. There is no requirement for extinguishers in any hillclimb class. Just make sure that it's securely fitted and it shouldn't be an issue.

[Skyedriver]

Thanks everyone.
Been driving 50 years, NEVER actually had a fire.
Had a few near misses over the years with shorting our cables and a few during welding but yesterday was a bit of a fright.