BMW (E90) on fire N1 Cape Town

[freerider]

yoh that is hectic! could not have been a nice morning for the owner

 

[Rennzport]

its a company car for some manager at auto atlantic coachworks

 

[Fuzzy]

luuuuushy, you gots sum splaining to dooo!

 

[freerider]

you can clearly see that he was smoking in his engine bay and set the fuel line alight :mmm:

 

[BimmerMan]

.....or Wesbank was about to repo the car..... Seriously, that is very strange, on modern cars an electrical fault rarely causes fires, unless gross negligence has crept in, where people have used tin foil over blown fuses, etc. I would suspect a possible fuel line leak, near the alternator, or something similar.:dunno:

Yes I agree...there are one or two cases from BMW that I know of where this has happened. One of the bigger ones were the electronic thermostats used in the M62 engine, like the on inside my 7 . The contacts to the thermostat used to degrade over time from the heat and would eventually fuse together...this would cause the wiring upstream to melt and eventually start to burn. Unfortunately, once this happens, you are in crap. There is so much that is flammable inside a modern engine bay that it is scary! The other was a shocker with the heated seats...over time they would develop a short and cause the seat to catch fire

One thing that shocked me on my 7 is how the fuel lines that connect to the back of the fuel rail are so exposed! One slip from a screwdriver or something and you will punch a hole in them. Guess where they are too...right over the top of the drivers side exhaust manifold...
So now, picture fuel spitting onto the exhaust manifold of a hot V8 engine

 

[Jandre]

Note to self: Remember to take the fire extinguisher OUT of the GTI tonight.:clap:

 

[Hellas]

I could have had the same fate: I cleaned my dash the other day and a coin fell into the cig lighter socket and sparks started going like mad. Naturally I grabbed a wir to try and lift the coin out, but it was stuck and only made things worse. All the time I'm waiting for the fuse to pop, but it just kept on sparking. Luckily I got it out (and still the fuse didn't pop...?)

I were a bit uneas since I read of some american cars that went up in flame cause of a coin in the cig socket...
Lesson for those who keep change in the ashtray... Keep the socket closed.

 

[Fuzzy]

Note to self: Remember to take the fire extinguisher OUT of the GTI tonight.:clap:

Yeah, you most certainly do not want to put out a fire in the gti!

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I could have had the same fate: I cleaned my dash the other day and a coin fell into the cig lighter socket and sparks started going like mad. Naturally I grabbed a wir to try and lift the coin out, but it was stuck and only made things worse. All the time I'm waiting for the fuse to pop, but it just kept on sparking. Luckily I got it out (and still the fuse didn't pop...?)

I were a bit uneas since I read of some american cars that went up in flame cause of a coin in the cig socket...
Lesson for those who keep change in the ashtray... Keep the socket closed.

Ooops, note to oneself: Take the spare change out of the ashtray!

 

[wynandd]

I could have had the same fate: I cleaned my dash the other day and a coin fell into the cig lighter socket and sparks started going like mad. Naturally I grabbed a wir to try and lift the coin out, but it was stuck and only made things worse. All the time I'm waiting for the fuse to pop, but it just kept on sparking. Luckily I got it out (and still the fuse didn't pop...?)

I were a bit uneas since I read of some american cars that went up in flame cause of a coin in the cig socket...
Lesson for those who keep change in the ashtray... Keep the socket closed.

I'm very surprised that the fuse did not pop! Recently I just pulled my Garmin plug out and that caused my cig lighter fuse to pop! Just check if you have the correct amperage fuse installed. That could cause major fire! :shocked:

 

[lucian]

I could have had the same fate: I cleaned my dash the other day and a coin fell into the cig lighter socket and sparks started going like mad. Naturally I grabbed a wir to try and lift the coin out, but it was stuck and only made things worse. All the time I'm waiting for the fuse to pop, but it just kept on sparking. Luckily I got it out (and still the fuse didn't pop...?)

I were a bit uneas since I read of some american cars that went up in flame cause of a coin in the cig socket...
Lesson for those who keep change in the ashtray... Keep the socket closed.

Damn, and I keep my cig lighter socket open cos when i put the lighter in there, it drains my battery. Believe me this happened to me on two occassions and I had to jump start the car. I just put the lighter somewhere else. Anybody know if you get a dummy lighter to stick in there, just to close the gap?

 

[Fuzzy]

Use your finger Joke, ,sorry, was just tempted to say sooo he he he he. Cant you use the existing lighter, just remove the metal part? Thats what I did in my other car! :thumbsup:

 

[SilverSurfer]

Ok Let me see if this works.

geeez, looks like my car, thank god its not.:clap:

 

[lucian]

Use your finger Joke, ,sorry, was just tempted to say sooo he he he he. Cant you use the existing lighter, just remove the metal part? Thats what I did in my other car! :thumbsup:

Nice one Fuzzy. Since I do not smoke and do not allow smoking in my car, I think I will just dismantle the lighter and just put the top back. I use the socket for other connections, like cell charger & FM transmitter to play mp3's via car system.