[opeldean]

well its chriistmas eve. I went to Target to get the usual staples of chocolate
donuts,count chocula cereal,and milk. It is 10 degrees here.Car started and ran great. It was a great ride and the twins were doing well in the cold dense air.

I parked in the lot and when i returned i hit the ignition i had grey smoke in the interior and from the hood. I quickly shut her down, pulled the hood and grabbed my fire
extiguisher THAT I ALWAYS CARRY. I fumbled with the extiguisher unit as it would not fire, i was pressing on the wrong buttton or something, finally it went and out came the powder as folks stared at me.

My only loss is a filter.When i got home ...this what i learned: My lid was leaking as my screws were all 1/2 turn loose,so was the other unit. the powder is a good way to ID your leaks. Oldopelguy i credit you and the story you told about your fire in the kadette,therefore i have since always carried on
extiguisher...

today i am wiser,more experienced and a better mechainic than yesterday.These are things we dont tell our wives..."just a long line at the store is my excuse"

I drove home from target no problem, in all the commmotion I lost my keys,but I had a spare set hidden under the license plate..another thing i have learned.always have a spare set of keys hidden

 

[baz]

bummer glad you are ok and you just need a filter all the best for tomorrow

 

[nobody]

I'm sorry to hear that but glad it ended as well as it did. I lost my first car to a carb fire so just the mention of it scares me. I don't remember where I got it and refilling it was a pill but I have a halon extenguisher.

funny story to maybe lift your spirits on the same line.

First wife wanted a Samurai when they first came out so we went to check them out driving the white GT. Salesman was asking of trade in and wanted to drive the GT. He gets in pumps the gas probably a dozen times then turns the key. it fires up and off. I reached in and turned it off with one hand and got the extinguisher with the other. Put it out very calmly and refired it for him. This was a twin OE with 11:1 and everything. We went for a test drive of the samuria but felt it had no power. This was with a different sales person after the first had to go tidy up. At least no mess in the drivers seat so no problems.

 

[MICAH1]

Close Call

O Dean, close call that time and damn lucky that you were not in flight with a higher fuel pressure throwing out more gas on those lines. With all that you have done for Celeste, there was no way that she would self destruct right before Christmas and the end of 2004. NO WAY!!! Glad to here all is well. Merry Christmas to you, your family, and the four wheel lady.

 

[opeldean]

why it caught fire

I am not certain of the cause of the fire. I think she back fired some gas into the air filter.then the sponge rubber filter caught fire. i dont think the gas wetness at the lid gasket was the cause.I dont remeber flames on the lid,it was just the filter burning.

will it happen again? is it a timing issue? if i had a cold air intake with the filter
away from the carb throat, i dont think this would have happened.

isnt it rather common for a carb to cough up a few flames?

 

[MICAH1]

Other than a cold air intake, is there another fire-proof material for the filter basket that will comform to the current application? Run that question to the guy in Italy..

 

[greensmurf20]

i'm glad you and celeste made it through ok, i can't imagine what it'd be like to loose a car to fire, or anything else for that matter. my raider had some fuel leaking and backfired out the carb, it caught fire also. i kicked all the gas cans and explosives away from the sled, and luckily had a frost free spicket in the garage and filled up a 5 gallon bucket of water to kill the flames. roasted my fuel lines, which i replaced all and the filters, i rebuilt the carb, and took the rest of the motor to a professional to set the points and timing, so i dont have to worry about this problem again. altho i do believe loosing a vintage classic opel would be much more heart wrenching than loosing a old collectors military edition snowmobile.

 

[ConreroGT]

Whew! That was a close one. Good job as fireman. I was planning on getting a fire extinguisher....now I will be SURE to have one BEFORE I fire the motor for the first time with duals.

 

[nobody]

Dean with the cam that you have you should not be backfiring and it's probably timing related.

Side drafts have been know to spit a bit but only mistiming or a very eratic cam will couse it to ignite. Also be sure and ground the carbs it's amazing what static can do.

I think yes a air box and cold air would have made a difference.

With those air filters I often debated a high micron screen instead of the foam. something like this.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=1467&item=5545194994&rd=1