Sweet balls of fire! Watch a Lamborghini Gallardo explode into flames at 207 mph

By Peter Braun April 26, 2014

video sweet balls fire thats flaming lamborghini gallardo lambo — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Sometimes you have a bad day. And sometimes your tuned 1,800 horsepower supercar catches fire at 200 plus mph. That day is both awesome (for onlookers) and catastrophic (for you).

This fantastic video shows one of the things that can happen when you tune a car to extremes, particularly when that car is made by the Italian auto industry. At least it wasn’t made by British Leyland; there probably would have been electrocution to go with the burns.

The video shows a race between two tuned Lamborghini Gallardos. The star of the show is an appropriately flame orange car developed by Underground Racing. Everything is going well when, something – probably a turbo – producing a bright orange ball of flames. For a few moments it looks like the car is literally trying to outrun its own explosion.

Fortunately for everyone, the tuners were smart enough to install a fire suppression system which meant that instead of the car blowing up at 200 mph the fire was out within seconds. Thankfully, this means that the people involved can live on to tune again, after having hopefully learned a few things about forced induction … and how much cooling it requires.

Regardless, the driver of that Gallardo can now say something that very few alive people with all of their skin can say: that they have driven 207 mph in a car that was on fire.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Peter is a freelance contributor to Digital Trends and almost a lawyer. He has loved thinking, writing and talking about cars…

Cars

Best electric car charger deals: $100 off home charging stations

The handle of the Grizzl-E EV charger plugged into a vehicle.

A few years ago, electric vehicles were pretty rare or cost a fortune, but with more and more of the larger car brands getting into the game, there are a lot of excellent and even budget-friendly choices nowadays. That said, the electrical network for charging your cars might not be that widespread, so instead you'll have to rely on charging your car at home. Luckily, there are a lot of excellent car chargers at a discount, so if you've just bought an EV or want to upgrade your current charging solution, be sure to check out our favorite deals below.
Shockflo EV charger — $205, was $220

This EV charger by Shockflo is a Level 2 EV charger, which offers six times faster charging than a standard charger. It delivers 24 miles with just one hour of charging, and it can act as a mobile charger you can throw in the trunk or be mounted to a wall. It has an LCD display with useful information like charging rate, voltage, and charging time, as well as LED indicator lights that lets you know charging progress and errors.

Cars

Mercedes-Benz EQG: range, price, release date, and more

Concept image of the larger electric G-Wagon

The G-Class is going electric. We already knew that Mercedes-Benz was working on an electric, small-size G-Wagon, but it looks like the company is also working on a larger G-Class SUV, in the form of the EQG. In fact, Mercedes has gone as far as to show off a concept version of the off-roader.

While there's much we don't know about what will become the production model of the EQG, Mercedes has also shared a lot about it. Curious about whether the Mercedes-Benz EQG could be the EV for you? Here's everything we know so far.
Design
Fear not -- the EQG will retain many of the design aspects of the G-Class that you already know and love but with a modern face-lift. The EQG will keep the boxy design that gives the G-Class a classic look but with some additional modern styling, at least if the concept version is anything to go by.

Cars

Rivian R2 vs. Kia EV9: battle of affordable electric SUVs

Kia EV9 GT-Line Three Quarters

The long-awaited Rivian R2 has finally been announced, and it's an excellent option for those who want an electric SUV that doesn't completely break the bank. Sure, the R2 isn't cheap -- but it's a whole lot cheaper than most other EVs out there, especially when it comes to SUVs. But Rivian isn't the only company trying to tackle the problem of the budget electric SUV. The Kia EV9 is finally available, and it too offers a modern design and a range of helpful features.

Given the fact that the Rivian R2 and Kia EV9 are two electric SUVs in a similar price range, you might be wondering which is better for your needs. That's why we put the Rivian R2 and the Kia EV9 head-to-head.
Design
Both the Rivian R2 and the Kia EV9 are actual SUVs -- not crossovers pretending to be SUVs, like plenty of other EVs out there. The two vehicles offer big, boxy designs and plenty of interior space, making them excellent options for families or those who need that extra storage.