[Jeller]

Normally I wouldnt say this, but I would put that through your insurance, thats why you pay it right?

How is it any different than if you rearend someone, both are "still your fault" correct?

[ajsalida]

Originally Posted by dsbj

You're right. Anything is possible. That is why I mention an insurance claim because fire is generally covered and it may be just coincidence that he has a meth setup. A claims adjuster may be able to tell. If its what you suggest, the OP might be covered and save himself $xxxx and he shouldn't feel guilty about it either. My 2 cents.

Yeah good point. The reason I brought it up (fuel fire under valve cover) is I replaced my spark plugs for the first time couple of weeks ago, and I've never seen a DI system up close like that. I was looking at the fuel lines to the injectors, and thinking about the high pressure and how easy a fire would start if someone didn't connect everything up thing just right. Esp since the area is covered and sealed by the valve cover, leaked fuel could not evaporate off as easily.

[Bleep]

I'm surprised people are talking about the cap being on tight...it's just a dinky plastic cover that never seals properly and pops off if a breeze rolls in

[MisterSkiMask]

Originally Posted by Arcadia335

I'm not going to claim insurance. I gotta sleep at night. It's at a mechanic right now.

Good luck with the repairs

[Mike@N54Tuning.com]

Originally Posted by Bleep

I'm surprised people are talking about the cap being on tight...it's just a dinky plastic cover that never seals properly and pops off if a breeze rolls in

The cap should click shut and stay on like this. If it doesn't then replace it with a new one!

RE: The fire very sorry to hear OP. If these valve cover fires are more common I wonder if we are all better off leaving the plastic engine cover and foam off all together? I know some do.

Mike

[Conki9788]

Do not forget, the extreme sex factor of the BMW can cause intense concentrated heat which can possibly lead to flame.

On a serious note, insurance claim ftw.

[Ilma]

Originally Posted by Bleep

I'm surprised people are talking about the cap being on tight...it's just a dinky plastic cover that never seals properly and pops off if a breeze rolls in

Yup.....not a strong seal on that cap. I'm not disputing that.

But it still doesn't explain why the caps in all the pics in this thread appear closed. You would think that vapour pressure building in the tank would pop them open - so how do they close themselves after?

On my cap I make sure it snaps all the way around the filler neck.....360 degrees.

On occasion it has sealed completely on one side but not the other......giving only the appearance of being completely closed.

[dbjb]

Originally Posted by Ilma

Yup.....not a strong seal on that cap. I'm not disputing that.

But it still doesn't explain why the caps in all the pics in this thread appear closed. You would think that vapour pressure building in the tank would pop them open - so how do they close themselves after?

It's extremely weak. I wouldn't be surprised if it popped open and then shut by way of the spray from the extinguisher. Maybe the OP or mechanic closed it before snapping pics. It only needs to open a little for vapors to leak.

For those running WW setups, I think it's time to go through your fridge and pantry to look for a cap that will screw on tightly.

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by ajsalida

If it started under the valve cover why not look into an injector leak or fuel line? They're all right there next to the spark plugs and coils (and under several thousand PSI of pressure). Wouldn't take much to ignite even a tiny bit of fuel under there. Wouldn't jump to the meth hypothesis until this had been ruled out.

This is where I was headed with my cause for my fire. Something more gasoline related, perhaps electrical short that ignited the gasoline vapors. I was running my car pretty hard when it caught fire. My oil temps were fine though. I have an aftermarket oil cooler. I'm going to rule things out as I go.

[Wedge1967]

Doesn't matter, same thing happened to me. Installed my new DPs at HPF and Chris and I took it for a quick spin and it wasn't more than 1 mile of driving the car hard and the foam under the valve cover was on fire. After taking it back to the shop, we found the sub pan was wet with meth. Overboost had the same fire and his WW tank light was on and he also didn't think it was meth related, but the light can come on and you'll still have meth in the tank. He was running 80/20 when he had his fire. I was at 90/10 when I had my fire. Lucky for me I was able to slap the top of the cover to put the fire out and we watched it for a while then took the cover off to make sure there was no damage before heading back to the shop.

Good luck. I would chalk this one up to another WW fire and if people don't get the picture and stop using WW for meth storage, it's only a matter of time before we'll read another story just like this. Granted, lower % of meth is harder to burn, but you get the meth warm enough even with a 50/50 mix it will catch. Especially when you're on a track running your car hard, the pipes could have been glowing. Someone needs to put a go-pro and go run hard to see how they heat up.


BTW, Overboost also found when fixing his car that the boot on his lower control arm or steering rack was melted. That was a turning point in his opinion regarding the meth fire. If it was a leaking injector or coil fire, it wouldn't have burned the other parts on his car. Even if you put a better cap on the WW tank, you still have the overflow on the tank and the tank will splash meth out the overflow as you drive the car. If that overflow runs out onto the sub pan, you have another source. Just not a good solution. If you don't believe me, ask Big Tom, Jeff, or Overboost.

Originally Posted by Arcadia335

Meth tube was untouched...I'm not saying I disagree with you but...all meth lines were untouched and I'm thinking if my Meth caught, my whole care would be toast...

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by ajsalida

Yeah good point. The reason I brought it up (fuel fire under valve cover) is I replaced my spark plugs for the first time couple of weeks ago, and I've never seen a DI system up close like that. I was looking at the fuel lines to the injectors, and thinking about the high pressure and how easy a fire would start if someone didn't connect everything up thing just right. Esp since the area is covered and sealed by the valve cover, leaked fuel could not evaporate off as easily.

I replaced my spark plugs about 5 months ago. That also crossed my mind. Maybe I didn't snap the coil on good enough. Since my spark plug change I have raced my car several times.

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by MisterSkiMask

Good luck with the repairs

THANKS!

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by Mike@N54Tuning.com

The cap should click shut and stay on like this. If it doesn't then replace it with a new one!

RE: The fire very sorry to hear OP. If these valve cover fires are more common I wonder if we are all better off leaving the plastic engine cover and foam off all together? I know some do.

Mike

Once again, my personal thoughts are the fire more than likely had nothing to do with the meth. (anything is possible until we find out for sure; which we may never find out the exact truth!!!) I will never run my cover again. Maybe if there is an aftermarket cover that does not have a foam material. The pit stop fire guy repeatedly sprayed the engine bay with a water extinguisher and the fire would not go out until I physically ripped the cover off like the incredible hulk!

Whether the fire started due to meth, gas, electrical short, rats chewing on my shit, when I race in the future the cover is coming off as well as the engine cowl.

May consider plumbing a halon system. This isn't my daily driver and race car only so it may be worth it!

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by Conki9788

Do not forget, the extreme sex factor of the BMW can cause intense concentrated heat which can possibly lead to flame.

On a serious note, insurance claim ftw.

Yes, sex factor is high on the car but I was in it, automatically cancels.

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by dsbj

It's extremely weak. I wouldn't be surprised if it popped open and then shut by way of the spray from the extinguisher. Maybe the OP or mechanic closed it before snapping pics. It only needs to open a little for vapors to leak.

For those running WW setups, I think it's time to go through your fridge and pantry to look for a cap that will screw on tightly.

The fire guy used his thumb to make a fog pattern with the pressurized water extinguisher. It was not more pressure than you average shower at you house. My mechanic never touched the washer cap cuz I was the only one that opened the hood to take pics as he was helping another customer.

I do have one 3/8" hole in the cap though.

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by Wedge1967

Doesn't matter, same thing happened to me. Installed my new DPs at HPF and Chris and I took it for a quick spin and it wasn't more than 1 mile of driving the car hard and the foam under the valve cover was on fire. After taking it back to the shop, we found the sub pan was wet with meth. Overboost had the same fire and his WW tank light was on and he also didn't think it was meth related, but the light can come on and you'll still have meth in the tank. He was running 80/20 when he had his fire. I was at 90/10 when I had my fire. Lucky for me I was able to slap the top of the cover to put the fire out and we watched it for a while then took the cover off to make sure there was no damage before heading back to the shop.

Good luck. I would chalk this one up to another WW fire and if people don't get the picture and stop using WW for meth storage, it's only a matter of time before we'll read another story just like this. Granted, lower % of meth is harder to burn, but you get the meth warm enough even with a 50/50 mix it will catch. Especially when you're on a track running your car hard, the pipes could have been glowing. Someone needs to put a go-pro and go run hard to see how they heat up.


BTW, Overboost also found when fixing his car that the boot on his lower control arm or steering rack was melted. That was a turning point in his opinion regarding the meth fire. If it was a leaking injector or coil fire, it wouldn't have burned the other parts on his car. Even if you put a better cap on the WW tank, you still have the overflow on the tank and the tank will splash meth out the overflow as you drive the car. If that overflow runs out onto the sub pan, you have another source. Just not a good solution. If you don't believe me, ask Big Tom, Jeff, or Overboost.

I definitely believe your story. Thanks for sharing it. I will have my guy check the sub pan. Does the windshield washer reservoir have an overflow exit?

This is why i started this discussion. I was hoping to catch more stories about the same type of fire. Thanks...

[JamesM3M5]

Hmm. Definitely going to move the tank into the trunk now, but I don't think methanol was the cause of this flash. People need to understand that liquid fuel/methanol doesn't burn, it's the vapor that burns. If, while moving at speed, there is enough methanol vapor concentration to ignite, I'll eat my hat. But I don't think there's any way this fire was caused by meth vapor while at speed.

I would test the wiring to see how it burns, and definitely the acoustic foam under the decorative cover. I would even argue that running the car on track with the cowl and covers off would be better. Have a halon extinguisher handy for track use, since many insurance companies don't cover track events, timed or not!

[dbjb]

Originally Posted by JamesM3M5

Hmm. Definitely going to move the tank into the trunk now, but I don't think methanol was the cause of this flash. People need to understand that liquid fuel/methanol doesn't burn, it's the vapor that burns.

You lost me here. That's not true.

[caliguy562]

There may be something to this. Take the reservoir cap out of the equation. There is an overflow hole somewhere on the ww tank. If vapor is the issue, I'm pretty sure that is the source. Things get out under the hood in these cars quickly and I recently dodged a bullet with a ww pump that was pissing out meth. Didn't discover that until the morning after I ran the car hard. I will be draining my tank as soon as I go out this morning and replacing with water.

Good luck op...you're a stand up guy and hope all works out for you.

[dbjb]

That foam is just for sound deadening. For track use, I would pull it off but leave on the engine cover. If the OP still has a piece of the foam, he can try to light it. I bet once lit, it will just smolder. That is where most the damage comes from regardless of what actually starts the fire.

[cn555ic]

I always have stated I never liked the WW tank used. Never a advocate for it especially those running more than 50/50 which is a large % of us. Just not smart and to save the extra time and have ease of install is just basically doesn't make sense as for safety of the passenger And car. Hope u get it fixed and those of you even getting the better cap, I would really consider other options like a tank in trunk. Meth under the engine gets heated and the vapors needs to escape some how and it might as well just pop out the cap. Pressure is much stronger than a pressure fitted WW cap. Just My opinion

[Arcadia335]

Originally Posted by dsbj

You lost me here. That's not true.

Not to start a science debate here but the vapors are what burns. Meth has a very low vapor pressure (like alcohol) and the vapors readily escape to the atmosphere and vapors are what ignites. Whatever...not really important i guess...

Kinda lika a log on fire...its not really the log, the heat from a flame causes pyrolysis a rapid decomposition of the material and the vapors ignite. Again, not important...but i have nothing else to do since my car isn't here.