Alltrikes

Hi all,

I was reading up on Rotax 912 engines and realized that same 912s come with Firesleeve and  some without Firesleeve. Which got me thinking why some engines on trikes have Firesleeves and some do NOT? Is this a manufacturer's discretion and some (manufacturers) order engines with Firesleeves installed and some without it? and is this an important safety concern?

Following is the picture of an engine with firesleeve on it's fuel lines. (The firesleeve is orange in color in this picture).

My limited understading is that the purpose of firesleeve is to sustain an engine fire for 5- 15 minutes. Hopefully enough time for you to take necessary steps for your safety.

Now my question is

1) Howcome in the above picture, there is no firesleeve on the fuel lines running to the carbs? Are there only few critical areas where a firesleeve is needed?

2) Howcome some trike engines come with them and some don't?

3) Are they important safety item for trike pilots?

4) And the most important question is that can a Firesleeve prevent a Fuel Line Vapor Lock? Or does the Firesleeve NOT play any role in preventing a Fuel Line Vapor Lock?

Thanks for your help.

Regards,

Rizzy