Waters fuel fire cause revealed

By Thomas Miles

Date posted: June 17, 2023

Tickford boss Tim Edwards has confirmed the cause of the fire which cost Cameron Waters a chance of driving Ford to a long-awaited win at Darwin.

After converting his pole position into an early lead, all was looking well for Waters as he entered the main straight to start Lap 4 in complete control of the field.

However, flames started to appear inside the cockpit and outside the front left tyre as car #6 continued down the long 1.1km straight.

By Turn 1 almost the entire front end was engulfed and Waters had no choice, but to sacrifice his lead and pull over on the exit of Turn 1.

Thankfully the driver emerged unharmed and assisted marshals in putting out the blaze.

It was the third Ford fire of the 2023 season after James Courtney and Nick Percat also suffered similar experiences in the early laps of Friday and Saturday races at the Australian Grand Prix.

But talking exclusively to AUTO ACTION, Edwards confirmed the latest fire is not related to ones seen just three rounds ago.

He has said the cause of Waters’ fire was a fuel line fitting failure.

“The fitting is located on the line that feeds the fuel rail on the engine. Data that logs the fuel pressure indicated pressure fluctuation and the colour of the flames also indicated a fuel fire rather than oil,” he said.

Supercars has also published a statement on the cause of the incident, with an investigation already commenced.

“An investigation into the Car 6 fire incident in Darwin is underway,” it read.

“Most importantly, Cam Waters safely walked away from the incident unharmed.

“Following an initial inspection, led by Supercars, Tickford and Herrod Performance Engines, the fire appears to have been caused by a fuel fitting coming loose and is not related to previous fires experienced in the 2023 Championship.”

After Courtney’s Ford caught alight on the Saturday of the Australian Grand Prix, the damage ruled him out of the remainder of the weekend.

Although Waters’ front end suffered significant damage, Edwards is hopeful his team can turn it around in time for Sunday after the Monster Mustang was the only car to lap in the 1:05s window on Saturday.

“The team are working frantically to get the car back on the grid for tomorrows races,” Edwards said.

“Damage extends to most components in the engine bay.”

The first Supercars session on Sunday morning is Race 14 Qualifying at 10.00 AEST.

Sunday, June 18

Qualifying (Race 14): 10.00-10.15

Qualifying (Race 15): 10.20-10.35

Race 14 (35 laps): 12.20-13.18

Race 15 (35 laps): 15.55-16.53

Download the full Supercars Darwin Round 5 Event Guide with track stats and facts and a full event schedule, plus our extensive driver profiles HERE

For more of the latest motorsport news, pick up the latest issue of AUTO ACTION.

PODCAST: The latest episode of the Auto Action RevLimiter podcast is out now!

In the latest podcast we discuss this weekends Darwin Supercars preview & news, F1 Canada preview, Winton ARG and LeMans 24Hour wrap-up.

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