On Easter sunday, I was picking up my GF to go out in the morning and her parents got in their car. I went to start the engine and all i heard was a ton of clicking, kinda like a starter on a dead battery and faster with a different tone. So I was pissed and said lets just take your car. I took the key out of the ignition and it kept clicking, “uhh thats not good.” So I said please go get me a wrench so I can disconnect the battery and fix this later. I told her parents to just go ahead and we would be right behind. So my gf goes down in her basement while I am getting the hood open to get at the battery. As I am looking around and waiting slightly miffed, the whole engine compartment bellows a HUGE cloud of white thick smoke. I am like Oh ____. I opened the engine lid and the smoke was coming from the turbo area but not really so I am thinking what the hell is going on?? So I look under the car and the plastic covers for the bottom have the smoke coming from between them and the floor of the car. I am thinking oh ____ its an electrical fire under the car. Now at this point Gasoline starts to pour out from the engine bay and all over the driveway. My gf is coming out and I go Sarah, the car is on fire… She takes a double take and said whaaat? I said I need a fire extinguisher! shes like we dont have one. |8-O !!! I said get a garden hose! So she is in her high heels and is attempting to find her hose in the back yard to I meet her with it and rip it out of her hands and sprint with it around the house. I spray it into the cavity where the gas and smoke are coming from. I was mainly concerned with the fact that it was having this problem near the gas tank. So finally it stops and I catch my breath. So now her parents left like 5 mins ago and I am always late so I disconnected the battery and said lets GTF outta here. Of course they gave me crap for being late and Sarah countered with “yea well his car was on fire” which works every time. So when we get back later that day, I examine the car and see the e-brake cables literally have the rubbery foam coating on them dripping off the shroud because they melted. The throttle return spring on the throttle body has the plastic washer that the spring rotates on melting through the spring. So im like ____ that is a lot of amperage to do that, like a direct short. So I figures I would try to figure out where all the gas was coming from. I take off my airbox cause it looked like the leak was from underneath. I noticed the air folter was soaked in gas. I look at the throttle body and fuel rail and then all the way back over to the airbox, and I am like WTF!?! So I press forward diassembling the entire intake to the compressor wheel. the last bit of hose that comes off the compressor is oriented vertically and when I get to it, it is filled to the brim with gas. There was about 1/2 quart of gas above the compressor wheel. arrrrrg. This is going to be very expensive. Well long story long, I found out the start was a bad ground on the engine and the starter tried to use anything it could as a ground, IE throttle cable and somehow e-brake cables. The reason it stayed on clicking(injectors) was my turbo-timer and it pumped fuel until the turbo timer cut out. What a freakin mess. So to get it all fixed cost me approximately 200 bucks and I have since put redundant grounds on the engine! Learn a lesson and be sure you have good grounds!! All being said, I still absolutely love this car.
that sounds fun. glad to hear you found/ fixed the problem, it may have gotten very bad very quick.
Your enter key broken?
Good quick thinking on your part. Coulda turned into a mess very quickly.
Everytime I hear about a fire issue, I think more and more of geting a fire extinguiser to put in my backseat.
Its a good read.
Just break it up a bit to make it easy on the older folk with bad eyes.
BmwZ8addict… I believe I saw you the other day on bailey ave near UB south campus. I was the one in the blue turbo. Your car looks awesome! I have heard of others having this issue on mr2oc.com. I am going to be fixing up my grounds in the near future. Glad to hear you caught the problem before the fire had spread.
-Pete
another blue turbo?? hotttttt :tup:
btw paul, i did get your message yesterday but was passed out before i got home from work…
that ok dude, I’m resourceful lol.
and yea bluetwo I remember seeing you since their are not a ton of mr2’s around, but it seems to be getting that way…haha