Drove around and met my friend Dave who said I should change my plugs.
Having a slight miss recently found.
Returned home...Pulled it in the Barn and turned it off.
Boom! Fire in the engine.
Smoke started pouring up thru the shaker.
I ran to my trunk, grabbed my ABC extinguisher and put it out.
This all took about 20 seconds from start to extinguished.
Could've lost the house and the car or even I could've been blown up perhaps.
So far: I need to replace...
Forward harness
Distributor cap
Firecore50 Wires
Possibly new heater hoses I just installed
Bubble nose scorched
It looks ignition related. However my splice with shrink tubing was fine.
Still wanting to know why or how it happened.
But most of all...
THANKFUL! :worship:
Glad you were able to save it. I wonder if the filter below the alternator leaked.
Quote from: mopar jack on July 25, 2020, 07:45:05 PM
Glad you were able to save it. I wonder if the filter below the alternator leaked.
Electrical fire, not fuel fire.
Scarey, good thing you stopped it. I hate the stud on the alternator being so close to a Hemi head. Look for a wire burnt onto a header/manifold as well.
One wire on the back of the Alternator was cooked all the way down.
Wow that's awful but glad you were quick. Ugh electrical fires what a mess. Hope it cleans up well for ya. Good luck
That's horrible. Glad your safe. Will the shaker bubble clean up?
Holy crappoly. That is scary. Glad you're okay.
Do you have collector car insurance? This is definitely a covered event under comprehensive. Make sure you photograph everything. You may want to check the ignition switch wiring as well. I had an electrical fire in a Superbird back in high school (my daily driver at the time). The main alternator wire fried and it acted like a fuse and melted its way all the way up into the steering column to the ignition switch.
I also had a wiring fire in a 71 Hemi Charger. It started at the passenger side valve cover, wiring harness junction block. It seems the factory wiring goes from a 10 gauge to a 12 gauge wire at that junction. It created so much resistance it melted clean through the two plastic wiring junction pieces. I had to cut and splice the two bare wires together by hand, just to get home. It happened in the middle of the NY Tappan Zee Bridge at 2:00 AM. That was a fun ride!
:iagree:
That's happened to me four times, in the 40+years that I've owned my car. I finally bypassed the bulkhead connector and converted over to a voltmeter. Mike, I forwarded you the MAD Electric link.
This is almost like a right of passage, for a Mopar guy, as it is the weakest link, in the electrical system. I'm glad that damages, from your little "fish fry" were limited. Let me know, if you need a hand.
That really sucks Topcat, glad you had an extinguisher handy. The extinguisher power is very corrosive so try to wash it off ASAP.
Geez, that just sucks big time. In one breath I'm so sorry for you and in another I'm so glad that you were "Johnny-on-the-Spot".
It's already been said how this could have gone sideways in so many ways. All the best in getting back on the road ASAP.
Quote from: cuda hunter on July 26, 2020, 07:34:01 AM
That's horrible. Glad your safe. Will the shaker bubble clean up?
Minor boils on the nose.
Glad to see the damage was limited somewhat. My buddy Mike with the 71 Hemi Cuda almost had the same issue. It was the wiring harness that was faulty right over the valve cover. Luckily he was right there when it happened with the hood up. Well known harness supplier did replace it but..... check everything, trust no one.
Glad you saved it and kept damage minimal. Possible wire resting on metal rubbed/burnt thru?
I had the alternator off a few weeks ago when I replaced the heater hoses.
Something re arranged and then finally found the weak spot.
Oh no Mike. Sorry this happened. Hope there is no paint damage. Check for any signs of rodent activity. I am dealing that on my 2012 now. When I got my 73, I found a burned and melted connector on the engine wiring harness and later replaced. I also did the ammeter bypass and ran a fat wire from alternator to the battery. Scary for sure. Hope you get the car fix soon.
Well, that really sux! Glad you kept the damage to a minimum.
Looks savable.
Holy cow Mike!! Good thing you had the extinguisher handy and had the presence of mind to go get it!! Great save!! I probably would have panicked, ran around in a circle screaming and lost the whole car!!
If your investigations determine the cause, I'd be interested in hearing about it as well as the type of extinguisher you had, since it did the job required of it.
Wow...close call...glad you did what you did... :twothumbsup:
That's terrifying. Glad you caught it and seem to be in good spirits.
You never like to see anyone's car get damaged but when it's a members car it's even worse. I think a lot of us watched your build thread on CC.com. It's almost like the car was partly ours too. Glad the damage was kept to a minimum. Hopefully it can be fixed relatively quickly.
Wow sorry to hear and see this.
Definate lesson for us in quick thinking and being prepared.
Please let us know what you find out. I would start investigating the engine surfaces surrounding the burnt power wire. When cleaning off the retardant, look for spark damage on surfaces. Burning heat rises. If there was spot of ignition from grounding short, it would show that damage.
Good luck.
Quote from: dodj on July 27, 2020, 04:45:55 AM
If your investigations determine the cause, I'd be interested in hearing about it as well as the type of extinguisher you had, since it did the job required of it.
ABC Extinguisher.
Main wire on back is the suspect.
Quote from: Topcat on July 27, 2020, 07:35:18 PM
Quote from: dodj on July 27, 2020, 04:45:55 AM
If your investigations determine the cause, I'd be interested in hearing about it as well as the type of extinguisher you had, since it did the job required of it.
ABC Extinguisher.
I said type but I meant brand.
Coming from someone who survived a car fire (different circumstances) First let me say I am glad YOU are okay.
That said, I am glad to hear that you had an extinguisher and were able to stop the fire and possible damage. It looks fixable and few folks mentioned insurance, and I TOTALLY agree, it is nothing that you should do on your own, that is why you pay for the insurance in the first place. Best of Luck!
Glad to see it isnt a complete loss. Very lucky as this could have been alot worse
Topcat
Really glad you were able to contain the damage quickly.
I too worry about the 50 year old wiring on our cars.
I will do the changes necessary to remove the power going through the bulk head.
Definitely a weak spot in our Mopars.
Reminds me of the need to get a fire extinguisher for my garage.
Stay well!
I bought the PowerMaster Alternator.
Which wasn't the problem. (Here's comes the Peanut gallery)
What might've been the igniter, was there wasn't a plastic insulator on the back.
But I drove it like this for...What...5 years?
Quote from: wldgtx on July 28, 2020, 01:04:06 PM
Coming from someone who survived a car fire (different circumstances) First let me say I am glad YOU are okay.
That said, I am glad to hear that you had an extinguisher and were able to stop the fire and possible damage. It looks fixable and few folks mentioned insurance, and I TOTALLY agree, it is nothing that you should do on your own, that is why you pay for the insurance in the first place. Best of Luck!
I'm not at a 0% deductible, so being about $300 damage leads to...Just do it yourself.
It's getting friggin Hot out here now.
No car shows so on a wait till September perhaps.
All the parts are ordered this week except magnetic pick up. (Wire was burned)
Good news...Dodged a Bullet. Firecore wires look to be re usable.
Quote from: RzeroB on July 26, 2020, 10:32:40 PM
Holy cow Mike!! Good thing you had the extinguisher handy and had the presence of mind to go get it!! Great save!! I probably would have panicked, ran around in a circle screaming and lost the whole car!!
Ironically, I work in Fire & Sprinkler, & Monitoring inspections for ADT Commercial.
Quote from: dodj on July 27, 2020, 04:45:55 AM
If your investigations determine the cause, I'd be interested in hearing about it as well as the type of extinguisher you had, since it did the job required of it.
It was a 2.5 lb. ABC. which covers many types of combustibles.
Never point the extinguisher at the top of the fire.
Point it just before the base to extinguish and stop Oxygen and Fuel. ;)
@CODY knows this stuff I bet. ;)
http://www.brkelectronics.com/faqs/mro/what-do-the-abc-ratings-mean-on-fire-extinguishers
Well, well, well....
It's been a while.
So friggin hot in the garage and cleaning extinguisher dust has been delays in firing up the car.
Until today.
Fuel gushing up on fire up today when trying to fire up and was spurting up out of the small hole on top of the fuel pump when cranking over. ECU pick up connector was right above it.
This means the bellows inside the pump, dry rotted out and leaked through to the atmosphere dry side.
Cranking the engine made a Geyser of fuel up which shorted the ECU connector together and that was no doubt what created the engine Harness Fire.
Ethanol sucks!!!! :foul:
Good to figure it out though.
Quote from: Topcat on October 17, 2020, 06:01:26 PM
Well, well, well....
It's been a while.
So friggin hot in the garage and cleaning extinguisher dust has been delays in firing up the car.
Until today.
Fuel gushing up on fire up today when trying to fire up and was spurting up out of the small hole on top of the fuel pump when cranking over. ECU pick up connector was right above it.
This means the bellows inside the pump, dry rotted out and leaked through to the atmosphere dry side.
Cranking the engine made a Geyser of fuel up which shorted the ECU connector together and that was no doubt what created the engine Harness Fire.
Ethanol sucks!!!! :foul:
Earlier this year had the same exact this in my 68 Barracuda. But no fire.
BTW Edelbrock makes a repair kit rubber for that.
An answer that will never be known...
However, learning the initial cause is much better answer.
Glad you are progressing. Albeit slow.
Mike.
This reminds me a lot of Offshore Fishing reels.
They go thru Hell resisting the elements.
The elements just got harder now with Ethanol fuel.
Upgrade is a Must now.
3,000 miles away, one week ago, I sent my pump out to Then & Now Automotive in Mass.
Received it today. 7 day turn around at a very affordable price. :unbelievable:
The pump diaphragm rubber parts they have is Ethanol Resistant. :yes:
And to get it all done....Replace your accelerator pump boots with the Blue Ethanol resistant foamy's.
Then replace all lower fuel lines with Ethanol resistant rubber. I just bought 5 feet of it online.
Glad to see you figured it out and are making progress! :bigthumb: