e30 caught fire

[Zman1204]

Started her up and next thing I know there is a fire coming up the side of the engine bay. All the insulation burnt off and left everything crusty. Will take pictures tomorrow.

Edit: I really don't know what happen. I hop in my car try to start it and it took a little longer than usual. So I tried it again it started running for like 3 secs at 100 rpm, yes 100. Then I see this glow on the car parked next to me and I was like "Why is that light moving" Then it hit me. MY FREAKING CAR IS ON FIRE. I had to run to the fire extinguisher, break the hard plastic, and run back. All while I can see this glow coming from my hood. I popped the hood so it was open a little bit, and gave that fire hell. It burned the insulation and left a bunch of sandpaper like material all over the place. It is horrible. The whole situation was like 2 minutes. Worst 2 minutes of my life. I only had that car for 3-4 months and loved it so much.

Edit: Now comes the dreaded pictures. First time seeing it in the daylight andiIn all honesty it looks worse then it actually is. There is a lot of sandpaper like material that covered everything and looks bubbly. I installed a new Fuel pressure regulator and I think that may have been the cause. Fuel lines were fine and new and so was the fuel rail. I may come out of this one pretty good and be repairable. Replace a few wires and hoses and bada-bing (Hopefully) Great project for the week.

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095703.jpg

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095614.jpg

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095529.jpg

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095516.jpg

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095452.jpg
The fuel line behind the FPR was the worse damaged. Good thing I still have the old one.
http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095426.jpg
MMM melted plastic yummy. Took the cover off the AFM and (thank god) it looks perfectly fine.
http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095355.jpg

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095322.jpg

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/mattzamo1204/2011-11-22095309.jpg


Overall I think she should be good. Although I am forever scared to crank her now lol.

[uberpanzer]

Which side? Intake where a lot of the electrical is or exhaust?

[Zman1204]

On the exhaust side. All the insulation burnt off except for a little on the left side. Kinda depressing. I don't know what happen.

[Helion42]

:eek: wow! how did you put it out? That's good that you're alright, did the car fare well/repairable?

[moberg12]

Ever replace your fuel lines??

[strad]

Yes, anytime somebody says their car caught fire, I for one like to have as much information as possible about the incident! Tell us/show us as much as you can!

[thejlevie]

This was most likely a fuel fire.

[jim89325is]

Zman1204,
So sorry to hear. Yes, been there, done that. My '72 911 caught fire in 1999, only a few months after I bought it. In my case, it was cracked fuel lines spewing fuel and catching fire over arcing spark plug wires. Not my favorite day ever:( Fortunately, the damage was minimal, thanks to a passerby who happened to have a fire extinguisher in his truck.

You should be able to fix it, depending on how much time and money you want to spend. The "sandpaper like material" that you describe is very familiar, and is most likely just the fire extinguisher material reacting to your paint/plastic/rubber under intense heat. You can scrape/sand it off, repaint the engine compartment, and replace all rubber and plastic components under the hood.

May not be worth it with a 325e, though. Good luck.

Jim

[87iSee]

Wow. Sorry to hear. Ever time I see that line going to the fuel rail I wonder... It's going to have to be replaced. I wonder what the expected life of those is... I'm guessing 20 years.

[thejlevie]

The life expectancy of the fuel hoses is less than 20 years, likewise for the FPR. I know of fires caused by failed hoses and fires caused by a leaking FPR. I also know of a fire caused by using generic fuel hose on the high pressure lines rather than the more expensive fuel injection hose.

Replacing the sensitive bits of the fuel system in the engine bay isn't all that expensive, especially in comparison to the cost of repair after a fire.

[87iSee]

The life expectancy of the fuel hoses is less than 20 years, likewise for the FPR. I know of fires caused by failed hoses and fires caused by a leaking FPR. I also know of a fire caused by using generic fuel hose on the high pressure lines rather than the more expensive fuel injection hose.

Replacing the sensitive bits of the fuel system in the engine bay isn't all that expensive, especially in comparison to the cost of repair after a fire.

maybe in light of this we need to update the sticky tread on here to warn any new folks that the car has reached an aged where this needs to be done asap. like the timing belt thing. maybe get a good list of the sensitive parts that should be changed out. Safety first!

[D. Hitchcock]

Replacing worn rubber fuel lines is cheap and for the most part pretty damn easy.

Three meters of BMW fuel line will take care of the car with some to spare.

[thejlevie]

maybe in light of this we need to update the sticky tread on here to warn any new folks that the car has reached an aged where this needs to be done asap. like the timing belt thing. maybe get a good list of the sensitive parts that should be changed out. Safety first!
There is a lot of stuff on the average E30 that should be replaced, just based on age. The fuel system (and injector seals) being just one example. If original, the entire cooling system should be replaced. I figure on 10 years being the max life for the hoses, radiator, and expansion tank. Likewise for the ignition parts. It is usually a safe bet to say that the average E30 needs a complete suspension/steering overhaul, motor/transmission/differential mounts, a shifter rebuild, and if the car has over 150k it probably needs a rebuilt drive shaft.

There are a few well maintained examples out there where only some of this needs to be done. But there are far more cars that that need several thousand in parts alone to make them safe and reliable.

[Zman1204]

The previous owner took very good care of this car and had all the paper work to prove it. It was my fault. I replaced the FPR because I thought the other one was bad but it turned out that the new used one was bad lol. Gonna be a fun day.

[BMWtyro]

Zman,

Sorry to hear about the fire; I hope that your car can be successfully repaired. I recommend carrying an A/B/C fire extinguisher at all times.

Fuel hoses are nearly always stamped with a date code (year or month/year). If the date shown is 5+ years ago, replace all of them with new BMW Genuine fuel hoses, including those beneath the car -- anything which carries fuel under vacuum or pressure. Ditto if there is no date shown or if it has been obscured by the fire.

BMW 8mm fuel hose is SAE rated for fuel injection pressure and is resistant to damage by the ethanol additives now found in gasoline. Never use hose from the local auto parts store if it can be avoided. If you must use it, insist upon the Gates brand and be certain that it is stamped with an SAE rating of 30R9 or 30R10. Clamp it down tight with new aircraft-type hose clamps (as original).

Jeff

[99r6]

Fuel line to cold start valve?

[Zman1204]

You can see on the left side of the intake manifold it is a darker color. That is where the FPR that I just put in earlier that day was installed. I drove around and car seemed fine then it sat for about 3-4 hours and I'm guess fuel must of leaked. All the fuel lines are intact (still going to replace them though) Except or the one behind the FPR (which was completely corroded). I am almost 90% sure the used fpr I bought off ebay was at fault.

[Helion42]

wow dude those are some gnarly pics. What did you get to do with the car while it was working? What do you think you'll do next?

[Zman1204]

I just did basic things. New fuel filter, tps, air filter, vogtland springs, oil/filter change, valve adjustment. Nothing major. The previous owner took great car of her. Even though i hate that it happen, the pictures came out looking really cool haha. Looks like the apocalypse.

[thejlevie]

The previous owner took very good care of this car and had all the paper work to prove it. It was my fault. I replaced the FPR because I thought the other one was bad but it turned out that the new used one was bad lol. Gonna be a fun day.
There are some parts where used is acceptable. An FPR isn't in that short list. It is kind of hard to tell at this point whether the fuel spill was from the FPR, cold start valve, injector o-ring, or a hose.

This is repairable, though you will need to replace a good bit of stuff in the engine bay, most of which should be new parts.The only used part I'd put in would be the engine harness and connectors for damaged body harness parts. If it was a race car, those would also be new parts.

[633cs i]

this really makes me think i should have a little fire extinguisher in my car.

good luck

[DaRvDrUmS]

this really makes me think i should have a little fire extinguisher in my car.

good luck

http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs146.snc3/17360_106962655984331_100000117920279_180838_20334 60_n.jpg (http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=180839&id=100000117920279)

Done! I still need to run some drills and time myself though...lol

OP, it could always be worse eh? Glad you're safe!

[610EURO]

my fire prevention plan has always been to replace all worn parts with new.

for what you will pay for a fire extinguisher you could replace all your fuel lines, fpr and a bunch of other parts to prevent this issue.

if you trust your car so little that you need a fire extinguisher .. you should not be driving that car in the first place.

[633cs i]

all of that stuff is replaced.... but in case of emergency and something SOME HOW did happen to catch fire... if would suck to sit and watch all your new stuff burn away!

[chefthomas]

Thats a pretty sweet trunk DaRv, mine will never be that clean

[DaRvDrUmS]

my fire prevention plan has always been to replace all worn parts with new.

for what you will pay for a fire extinguisher you could replace all your fuel lines, fpr and a bunch of other parts to prevent this issue.

if you trust your car so little that you need a fire extinguisher .. you should not be driving that car in the first place.

Suuuuure bro... :rolleyes

[my1stE30]

fire extinguishers are pretty standard emergency equipment for cars (in my world anyway) ... if I am driving a company truck, or a rental, or even my personal vehicle on company business it is mandatory company safety policy to have a fire extinguisher and first aide kit in the vehicle ... it's called Safety First!

[Zman1204]

Just want to let everyone know that I got her working again. Replaced all fuel hoses, put back the first FPR, changed radiator hoses, and put new wiring harness. Now she purrrrs just as good as she did originally. SO MUTHERF***IN HAPPY RIGHT NOW!!

[jim89325is]

Great news! Glad you didn't give up on her and got her running again!

[BMWtyro]

Congrats on resurrecting your singed E30, Zman. I had to do that once (with a Chrysler, however; not a Bimmer) and I know what a good feeling it is to get a car which has had a "mletdown" running again.

Jeff

[Helion42]

Sa-weet! She lives to cruise another day, another testament to the E30s persistent survival. Is that stuff in the engine bay cleaning off alright or are you saving that lol

[Zman1204]

I am trying to take the stuff off but it's on there pretty good. I might just leave it as a reminder to show the unstoppable power of German engineering!!