Trac burned to the ground

[Jason Graham]

I had a 04 track untill last night. While traveling down the highway I smelt something burning, I looked down at the passanger side floor board and saw smoke. I hit the brake, pulled over, And no more got out and saw flames. Called 911 and about 20 minutes later the fire dept. showed up. Needless to say the Trac burned to the ground. I will post pics in a few days.

Does any body have any input pn what may have happened. The only after marked piece that I had in it was a skyfi 2. A simple plug in the cig lighter. Any input would be helpful.

Thanks all, Jason.

 

[EddieS'04]

I wonder if the catylitic converter got to hot and burned thrugh the heat shield...



Edit; sorry for the loss, maybe it can be proven as a default and ford will have to find you an '05..

 

[Wayne Foy]

WOW, thats crazy. I would have no clue without looking at it.

 

[Kevin Palmer]

I'm going with converter.... When there is a fuel issue they literally get red hot. That heat has to go somewhere.



Sorry for your loss, hope it all works out in the end for you.

 

[Larry Phillips]

:blink: :unsure: Please post pictures when you get a chance. That sucks that it just started burning! Sorry for your loss...

When I first read this, I thought it was going to have something to do with the cruise control.



And people look at me funny because I have an extinguisher hanging on my A-pillar. NEVER hurts to throw one in...

 

[Phill R]

I have a friend who lost a car after snagging a piece of cardboard. The catalytic converter set it on fire. If the fire started outside, it could be something as stupid as that.

 

[Gypsy me]

oh no! not another burning episode with a Ford product!!!



Glad you were not hurt! Catalytic converter, is my OP.

 

[Todd Z]

I have seen the same with Plastic bags getting stuck under there...I wounder if it was an electrical fire inside the truck along the floor.... I think there is fuel pump wires and such in there..



Sorry for the loss..... Maybe it was for good reasons......

The best thing is your ok....

Todd Z

 

[M B]

Poor ST! But at least you're ok.

 

[Michael Cacioppo]

Does it look like this now?



[Broken External Image]:



This was my '98 Dakota that caught fire while I was driving. Pulled over and let it burn. No sense getting hurt to save some metal. The cause was not determined.

 

[Todd Z]

Even a burned ford could not be as useless as a dodge!!!!......

Todd Z

 

[Jason Graham]

Mine looks a lot worse

 

[Gavin Allan]

Transmission fluid leak at cooling lines spraying hot fluid on the catalytic converter?

 

[Derick Cardenas]

i suppose we have to have a fire extinguisher inside the trac

 

[Larry Phillips]

Where did this happn?

 

[Jason Graham]

It happened on 17 hwy larry.

 

[JohnnyB]

Sorry to hear that.



I have seen cat's and exhaust pipes/manifolds get glowing red hot if there is a blockage somewhere in there. Maybe the honeycomb inside the cat crumbled and caused a blockage keeping th ehot gasses from getting out. At highway speeds you would create alot of heat fast.



Did a quick google search for: exhaust blockage causes fire, and came back with this:



<A HREF="http://www.mastermuffler.com/catalyticconverters.html">http://www.mastermuffler.com/catalyticconverters.html</A>



Excess Fuel Entering Exhaust

The fuel that powers your vehicle is meant to burn in the combustion chamber only. Any fuel that leaves the combustion chamber unburned will enter the exhaust system and light-off when it reaches the catalytic converter. This can super-heat the converter far above normal operating conditions and cause a melt down. Possible causes are an incorrect fuel mixture, incorrect timing, corroded spark plugs, a faulty oxygen sensor, sticking float, faulty fuel injector or a malfunctioning check valve.



Notice the "faulty oxygen sensor", a common part that causes those check engine lights.



Also read here about the Ford/Mazda problem. A malfunctioning tranny in your ST could cause the same situation:

<A HREF="http://www.autoblog.com/2005/09/28/driver-error-cause-of-mazda5-exhaust-fires/">http://www.autoblog.com/2005/09/28/driver-error-cause-of-mazda5-exhaust-fires/</A>





Also read REASON #3 here:

<A HREF="http://www.aa1car.com/library/cm1196.htm">http://www.aa1car.com/library/cm1196.htm</A>

 

[Gypsy me]

Jason, I feel for ya, I too have an 04 black xlt. Proud member of the Black Trac pack.



I feel your pain man!

 

[Alan Peters]

I know Buick Rendezvous (Pontiac Aztek) were burning up like chestnuts on an open fire because of a resistor in the blower motor. I had some issues with my ST burning oder and the first thing they tested was the CAT. Everything passed. It turned out to be debris caugth in the heat shield. Small piece of a Shingle Roofing bag.



Sorry about the loss. Investigators these day can find anything, that is if it didn't burn out totally.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Had a 73 Nova when I was 16. One day was pulling it out of the driveway when it stalled and a whisp of smoke came out from under the hood.



Opened the hood quick, and pulled the hot wire off the battery.



Seems the battery cable was rubbing against a bolt on the inner fender, and the insulation wore away.



I took an old piece of garden hose, cut it about 6" long, sliced it lengthwise, and covered the bare spot then electrical taped the whole thing.



Never really did do any damage other than that, and I felt good about my McGyver skills.



A fire extinquisher is an excellent thing to have in a vehicle.



TJR