Exhaust gases need to be dumped where they cannot be sucked back in
Make sure you know what you’re doing when you attempt to modify your car, or if you don’t think you’re up to the job, just pay somebody who is. Otherwise you may end up like Tom Putt, 20, and Nikki Willis, 23, who recently died in a tuned car due to an improperly mounted exhaust.
You’d be forgiven for thinking that a leaky exhaust couldn’t possibly be the cause of death here, but you’d be wrong. Apparently, the way the turbocharged Ford Fiesta ST in question had its aftermarket exhaust fitted, a gap was left in the most undesirable location possible – right near where the car sucks in fresh air for the cabin…
According to The Telegraph, local police are reporting this happened due to “a unique set of events” that “came together to allow this tragic incident to happen. A gap in the exhaust system where the exhaust meets the engine allowed fumes to escape.” The extent of the mods on the Fiesta wasn’t extreme by any means – all Putt apparently did was delete the catalytic converter and cut vents into his car’s bonnet.
The main problem was the fact that the "gap between the exhaust and engine,” according to police, which allowed the gases to escape right through the newly cut vents which allowed the fumes to escape and be sucked right back into the car via the climate system. Forensics confirmed the cause of death was exhaust inhalation.