About that new Honda Civic GX which runs off of compressed natural gas. It has a tank that takes up over half the space in the trunk made of fiberglass and aluminum which stores natural gas under high compression. If this car were rear ended on the freeway at high speed would this tank possibly rupture and cause an explosion? How safe is it? It's for these reasons I prefer diesel because it doesn't ignite if it gets spilled on the ground like gasoline does.
Anonymous
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Anything is possible when I was reading about this and stumbled across this interesting article.......
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7555
JetDoc
Millions of automobiles run down the road with 15-20 gallons of highly flammable gasoline stored in a thin walled steel tank mounted in the rear of the car. If this car were rear ended on the freeway at high speed would this tank possibly rupture and cause an explosion?
The answer is "Maybe, but probably not."
Alan G
You are over estimating this potential danger. The energy contained in the tank when full is low compared to a gasoline tank. You are more likely to be hit my a meteor or win the lottery. If either of these has happened to you, stay off the road! Think of the millions of cars on the road daily and the small number of burn injuries. No worry here!
oklatom
Done properly, they are relatively safe. The tank is wrapped to absorb shock, and in the case of fire or over heating, it vents into the atmosphere safely.
However, have a look at the Power Point Presentation here http://www.seattle.gov/fire/publications/cng/CNGAutoFire.ppt
Sid The Kid
it is safe...