This entire video is a study in bad decisions. But it ends with a Miata on fire, one very lucky kid, and a good lesson of what not to do when working on your car.


Where do I start? This kid has a Miata project car that he's swapping over to a carbureted V8. That's not a bad thing, in fact, I commend him for working on his own car.

That's the only thing that's goes right.

The engine is on a hoist when he tries to start it up. Why start it at that point? When he tries to start it, it spits out a flame, so he tries to start it again. Then it catches on fire.


But it still isn't running. So he keeps trying to start the car, because that's a legitimate, intelligent decision. Of course, it won't start. His next move is to try and blow it out, because this is a lot like a birthday cake.

So he then goes and grabs a red gas can that is next to the Miata. It's his fuel tank, so presumably he's hoping to starve the fuel supply by taking it away. Yeah, that red can catches on fire. That then briefly sets his shirt on fire. Right now, this is what is technically known in the car world as a "clusterfuck."

Instead of putting out the now large fire with a proper extinguisher, he uses a hose. Thankfully it works and does put the fire out, which restores some order to the garage, even though a perfectly good Miata probably sacrificed itself for this cause.

It also teaches a very important lesson: Don't work on your car unless you really know what you're doing.


(Hat Tip to Erwin!)