I think we all know the real problem with this story: it’s not that there was a colossal, ten-foot snake coiled in the engine bay of this Floridian’s Ford Mustang. It’s Florida, there’s going to be giant snakes in things. No, the problem here is that the Mustang in question is not an SVT Cobra, because then the headline could have been Python Found Inside Cobra, and that would have been so much better. I mean, as it is, it’s fine, because that is an alarmingly huge snake.
The python was found in Dania Beach, Fla., when people at a nearby business — one of whom owned the Mustang — opened the hood because the Mustang’s check engine light was on.
Maybe if they had an OBD reader they could have found out a snake was in there without opening the hood — isn’t P0555 something like Reptile Detected In Intake Manifold or something like that?
Anyway, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) was called, and when they opened the hood, boom, snake. Here’s a video shot of the snake extraction:
Oh man, that’s an awful lot of snake. It looks like the snake found a comfortable spot wrapped around the strut tower brace. The good news is that it looks like the python got a job out of the deal.
According to what the FWC told CNN, the snake will likely be used as an “education and outreach animal,” probably going to schools and wrapping itself around at-risk kids as a way of keeping them off drugs, or something.
Oh, and they also suggested that it’s unlikely the snake was in the engine bay seeking warmth, as it’s been warm in general in the area. The snake was likely just trying to see if the air cleaner needed changing.
The takeaway from all this? Modern cars are ill-equipped to detect snakes in their engine bays, and as yet no carmaker has stepped up to solve this problem. Hopefully, attention to this issue will spur the development of workable serpent-detection systems.
(Thanks, John Z!)