CarreraG50 Posted 30September, 2014 Report Share Posted 30September, 2014 Following on from the 918 posted by FlatSix, Burnt to a crisp in a matter of only a few minutes, this poor 986 Boxster didn't even stand a chance. A complete and total write off, to say the least, this car went out in a blaze of sorrow and misery. As the owner of a nearly identical Guards Red 986, this picture made me sit up and take notice this morning while drinking my coffee. I sure hope mine won't befall a similar fate. The images were posted to the Texas Department of Transportation's Twitter feed this morning while the incident was still in progress, and appear to have since been removed. At around 7:10 this morning, the Boxster's engine compartment became completely engulfed, and as you can see, the car quickly lit up like a Phoenix. Due to the inevitable looky-loos, traffic on I-45 was slowed to a very slow pace, funneling down to only a couple of lanes while the clean-up process was carried out. Being that the flames clearly originated from the engine compartment, there are really only a few things that could have happened. Of course it is just conjecture, but the mind immediately jumps to a total engine failure, possibly the infamous intermediate-shaft bearing failure. If this was the case, a hole could easily have been punched in the bottom of the case, evacuating several quarts of hot motor oil directly onto the even hotter exhaust manifolds, leading to a quick starting fire. Of course, the fire could also be attributed to a fuel line breakage or even something electrical. At this point, any forensic evidence of the failure's cause is likely long gone. In an act of sanity and clear-headedness, the driver quickly pulled the Porsche over to the shoulder of the road and swiftly extricated himself from the car, avoiding any physical harm. I can only imagine the feeling of going from the high of commuting to work on a brisk morning with the top down to the lowest low of watching your Boxster disintegrate in front of your eyes. Talk about getting up on the wrong side of the bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
withers Posted 30September, 2014 Report Share Posted 30September, 2014 Nooooooooo Hopefully caused by a dodgy mechanical remedy. Or a deliberately lit one. I'm sure yours is safe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ Posted 30September, 2014 Report Share Posted 30September, 2014 on '100 Porsches and Me' they visit a wrecker in the US, and he talks about the amount of engine fires in Boxsters started by lit cigarettes into the air intakes forward of the rear wheels. Sad to see Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazzieman Posted 1October, 2014 Report Share Posted 1October, 2014 More and more people are dabbling with the mechanicals of these older cars too...t hanks to pelican and other forums. That can increase the risk , or sometimes decrease it as home mechanics sometimes are more careful than cut price , busy independents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airhead Posted 1October, 2014 Report Share Posted 1October, 2014 Pffft. Dunno what all the fuss is about. I've lost 2...or is it 3 VW Beetles the same way! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caver Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 oh the pain....the pain.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonR Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 Pffft. Dunno what all the fuss is about. I've lost 2...or is it 3 VW Beetles the same way! Chalk me up for one beetle as well … Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 this is the fix for a lot of VW beetle fires the other one is not putting in line the fuel filter above the distributor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niko Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 Chalk me up for one beetle as well … Yep put me down also for one kacklewagen, pipe from carby had a habit of popping out and spewing fuel out, with no real drama. Used to just jump out push the pipe back in and all was good.......until.....driving past what is now the Arts a Centre city bound, with two rather tall American visitors in the back, my daughter about 7 and my wife all squeezed in.....looked in the rear view mirror, only to see St Kilda Road for about 50 yards behind us on fire, leading to the back of the Beetle. Uh oh.... Abandon car.....urgently, only problem I was doing it up at the time so had no door handles, window winders installed. One loose handle only available. Finally opened both doors with people spilling out both sides. Very embarrassing. At least the yanks had a good story to tell when they got home.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazzieman Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 Always carry a fire extinguisher. And a spare. You might even be someone's hero one day! I've read that aftermarket extractors (headers) can rub against the power steering lines and cause a leak. Might be worth getting this checked if your Boxster is non-standard in the exhaust dept.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niko Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 Always carry a fire extinguisher. And a spare. You might even be someone's hero one day! I've read that aftermarket extractors (headers) can rub against the power steering lines and cause a leak. Might be worth getting this checked if your Boxster is non-standard in the exhaust dept.... Actually while my old black kackle (with an original fabric sliding sun roof) was burning to the ground on St. Kilda Road, a chap appeared out of nowhere with an extinguisher and certainly minimised the damage. Re the aftermarket exhaust, it goes in for a service in the next four or five weeks so I will get them to check it over, although when we fitted it all looked good. Good advice re the extinguisher. From now on after the photo on the first post I just might stick one in the cabin, another cheap insurance policy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firstone Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 In my limited experience with the boxter, the flexible oil filler tube eventually splits which would then spill onto the exhaust headers. Bugger to fit a new one and impossible without 'remote hose clamp pliers'. It should be a periodic service item IMO. Cheap part to purchase. RHCPliers $90 repco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatSix Posted 2October, 2014 Report Share Posted 2October, 2014 Yep add me to the beetle fire list too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazzieman Posted 3October, 2014 Report Share Posted 3October, 2014 These fires cause a lot of damage. On a similar note, I read in the last 911&Porsche mag that plenty of Boxsters and 996s are now being written off with relatively minor damage , given their low value (this is in the UK). I guess there comes a time when the really good ones will start to appreciate. Plenty of old 911s etc were crashed and burnt off the market. Just as well they made millions of them in the first place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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