The story is believable to me.

I once left a rag in the engine compartment of my 59 vw beetle air cooled. The rag happened to be long and narrow.

So one day I was whipping along the road at about 60 or so and the little bug started slowing down....at first I thought maybe it was running low on fuel, then it started to bind up, so I pushed in the clutch and coasted to a stop on the shoulder.

I decided it must have gotten hot and so when it cooled down I drove it someplace where I could work on it and started trying to take off the shrouding that encloses and directs air flow from the fan to the places it is needed. Before I had gotten very far I discovered my oil checking rag in the cooling fan all wrapped around inside it so that it blocked most of the air flow.

Dooohhhh! I had thought that the air intake for cooling was ducted from the grill under that back window to the cooling fan.....its not.

So, yeah, the rag could have gotten wrapped around the cam and held the valves open and it would probably happen so fast that before anything was noticed....OUCH!

Tom W

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.