These properties together make methanol inherently more difficult to ignite than gasoline and less likely to cause deadly or damaging fires if it does ignite. Methanol is the fuel of choice for Indianapolis-type race cars, in part because of its superior fire safety characteristics. Pure methanol burns with a light blue flame that is not easily seen in bright sunlight. It is possible, though highly unlikely, that spectators or firefighters might fail to notice the heat and unknowingly walk into a methanol fire. In addition, a chemical could be mixed with methanol fuel to provide flame luminosity.
Research is under way to identify potential additives.
Explosions occur in collisions when the fuel tank ruptures and spilled gasoline bursts into flame. Again, this is much less of a risk with methanol than with gasoline. In non-collision situations, fuel tanks tend to be isolated from ignition sources. Finally, simple vehicle design modifications to methanol vehicles will even further reduce the chance of fuel tank ignition. These changes include use of materials that prevent flames from spreading through the fuel tank and modifications to further isolate the tank from sparks and other ignition sources.