Nitrous Backfire Blows Chevrolet S-10 Drag Racer Engine, Sets Car on Fire

On this occasion, we are talking about a Chevrolet S-10 that had been turned into an extreme drag racing machine. The vehicle lines up at the drag strip, waits for the Christmas Three to announced the right time and sets off.

Alas, before it gets to spin its now-massive rear drag radials too much, the Chevy experiences a nitrous backfire. Not only does this blow up the engine, but it also sets the S-10 on fire.

The flames are quickly put out with extinguishers, with the truck being pushed off the track once the fiery moment is over.

There’s no reason to fear nitrous now; you just need the correct engine setup and you'll be safe

Unless things go wrong inside your engine, nitrous oxide itself, as used on our four-wheeled machines, is not flammable. We are talking about an oxidiser that helps bring extra oxygen into the engine, thus allowing for more fuel to be burned.

In fact, if you spray N2O at a modest fire, it will put it out. That’s because the extra oxygen delivered by the nitrous oxide doesn’t arrive until the gas is broken down into its two elements, which happens at 565 degrees F.

Returning to the S-10 in question, you can easily see how much work has been put into this machine. We are talking about a Chevy that has come a long, long way from its blue collar origins.

It’s enough to look at the purpose-honed body of the car, its wheels, or at any other details to feel for its driver.