Smoke started coming from the console for no apparent reason. I took off for the fire department which is right down the street but by the time I got there the smoke was gone. What the heck?
Smoke started coming from the console for no apparent reason. I took off for the fire department which is right down the street but by the time I got there the smoke was gone. What the heck?
Thank you for reminding me I need a new extinguisher in my car. I'm assuming you've disconnected the battery until further inspection.
shorted wire? what did the smoke smell like? electrical or mechanical/gasoline/oil.
HVAC blower resistor?
My niece's older Mazda6 just went up in flames in her driveway.
Is it the 740 with the fuse panel behind the ash tray? I've seen those burn several times, never with good results.
first thought... mice took up residence and gnawed on wire insulation, happened to me before w/o the fire but trouble shooting was one berkeleying bitch
Now THAT'S a prank.
Always carry a 2LB BC dry chem marine fire extinguisher(two if its British or a VW) under one of the front seats. Its a lot of insurance for around $12.
What did the smoke smell like? I'm presuming the car is cold, and there is a lot of wiring where the smoke was, so electrical seems likely. Particularly if the smell is electrical, what electrical item currently does not work, and did it before?
I would not put it back in the garage, near the house, or near anything else of value. If it decides to start up again while you're puzzling you want to limit your losses. If you're going to let it sit unattended (it sounds like you were about to go somewhere) pull a battery cable before you go.
Assuming it was really smoke (A/C refrigerant has been confused with smoke before) then something in the console area wiring harness has rubbed through.
What concerns me the most: if it smoked then there's not a fuse protecting the circuit. That's bad news and is a REAL fire just waiting to happen. I agree, pull a battery cable if the car's going to be unattended.
Yep. I've had dash fires. Probably electrical. Pull the battery until you know whats up.
or insure the E36 M3 out of it and let it burn baby, burn!
After I had my Mini in pieces for over a year, when I got it all back together and went on its maiden voyage I made it about 3/4 of a mile from the house when the amount of smoke coming out of my steering column began to worry me. I shut it off and flipped the battery cutoff switch and coasted to a stop and pulled off the road. Got it towed home because I sure wasn't going to put any electrical power into the car until I figured out what had gone wrong.
I ended up with several burned and damaged wires and that was it, but it could've gone bad quickly.
You'll need to log in to post.
