Truck caught on fire. :(

[Peregrine]

I was on I-64 eastbound and got off at Hurstborne. While I was going down the long ramp my truck was sputtering and while I was about to merge onto the road the engine died. Well this is pretty much normal because I have a Holley on it and the weather has been wacky lately so I just chalked it up to that. I pulled over and tried to crank it over once or twice. After it didn’t start I figured I’d let it sit there for a little bit and try in a few minutes because it’d worked before. All of a sudden I smelled this funny smell and was like “crap, that smells like smoke.” I got out and opened the hood and the whole passenger side valve cover was covered in flames. I shut the hood, called 911 and while I was on the phone got into my glove compartment to get my insurance, registration and school parking permit. I had the thought go through my head that I didn’t want to go through the paperwork to get another permit. I went to the side of the road and called my parents. Some friends saw my truck when they drove by and stopped and gave me their jackets to keep warm. The fire department arrived and proceeded to show ignorance of opening a older cars hood and crow bared my grill to open the hood. After it was out we figured out that the braded fuel line that splits the fuel supply between the primary and secondary fuel bowls had split and spewed fuel onto the distributor and then the firewall. This explains the blue flame coming out of my defroster vents. I called a roll back and now my truck sits in my back yard with pealed paint, ruined grill and soggy interior. I’m going to have to go to the insurance company tomorrow and see what I can get out of it. I’ll probably buy it back from them and part it out. This sucks. What’s weird though is for the past month I’ve feared that it would catch on fire for some reason or some other horrible thing would happen to it. Standing on the side of the road watching all of my fathers and I hard work go up in flames and be pried open was the most sickening feeling I’ve ever felt. I’m still in shock. It also sucks that that one braded line was the one thing we hadn’t touched because it was factory and I had no reason to question its stability. Now I get to play the "what was it worth" game with Allstate.

[OLDROCK&ROLLER]

Sorry for your loss. On the bright side its sounds like you're OK.
good luck with Allstate, to them its just a old truck..unless you had
it insured for a certain amount.

p.s. you can get classic car insurance cheaper than regular insurance with allstate.

[see ten]

Ouch! It's good that you made it out OK. You can buy another truck but I would guess that your family and friends would miss you. I have a fire extinguisher mounted to the seat bracket on the passenger side of both of my trucks. I used to keep them on the driver side ( which is the ideal location, you should be able to reach one from the drivers seat while buckled in) but you can't adjust the seat with the extinguisher in the way of the adjuster. It's also a good idea to know how to use one before you need it. During the panic of a fire is not the time to read the instructions. Maybe you can still save the truck or buy another and use your toasty one for parts.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Originally Posted by OLDROCK&ROLLER

Sorry for your loss. On the bright side its sounds like you're OK.
good luck with Allstate, to them its just a old truck..unless you had
it insured for a certain amount.

p.s. you can get classic car insurance cheaper than regular insurance with allstate.

I have Allstate on both of my 72's, BUTTTTTTTT I have them under a
special policy, I can't drive them, it's like a antique storage policy? or of
something of the sort, they pay out against theft, fire, vandelism, wind,
rain, tornado's, etc... I pay $8 every 6 months and $16 a year each, GQ
is covered for $15K and the 2WD is covered for $5K, with out a doubt in
my mind CLASSIC INSURANCE is the only way to go, Soon as mine are in
driver situations I'll be changing both of them over to HAGERTY, my $.02

[ChevLoRay]

I guess that youth plays a part in the situation, but I would not have closed the hood. However, that being said, if you have comprehensive insurance...it pays for glass, theft, etc.....you should simply ask for an adjuster to look at it and the two of you put your heads together and come up with a plan to repair the damage.

I had an electrical fire on my truck. The adjuster came and said that although he had body shop experience, he was not very informed at to what was available for our trucks. I had already priced a new harness, so that much was a given. He asked who would be doing the work. I told him that I would be doing it. He gave me money for parts, then figured the hours and materials to do the labor (paint, etc.) and deducted $50 from the total and I got a check for about $200 more than it cost me to fix it.

So, don't assume it will be a total. If you have full coverage, just ask for an appraiser/adjuster. Do your homework on parts that you will need, so you'll have the $$ amounts handy. Back it up with data and you should be able to get the money to fix it, without any problems, after your deductible.

[68haywagon]

I'm glad your OK. As much as I hate to do this I'm going to use you as an example. Wal-Mart, K-Mart, etc sell a automotive fire extinguisher for under $15. I bought one for every vehicle I own, just for this kind of case.

I am sorry for your loss, hopefully the insurance will help you out. Have any pictures of the damage to help us judge if it's fixable?

Mike

[Skruffy]

Originally Posted by 68haywagon

I'm glad your OK. As much as I hate to do this I'm going to use you as an example. Wal-Mart, K-Mart, etc sell a automotive fire extinguisher for under $15. I bought one for every vehicle I own, just for this kind of case.
Mike

You could use me too. On June 30 a few years ago I was coming back from the DMV after just picking up my new license sticker. I felt the truck cut out a couple times, then saw flames through the firewall (aptly named), pulled over and watched it burn because I didn't have a simple fire extinguisher. I do NOW.

[Peregrine]

I closed the hood because it was very windy and the hood was opened in the direction it was coming from and making the fire 10 times worse.. I figured it would have been a bigger fire if I left it open, so I shut it. Might have been a mistake, no way to know though really.

[shaneschevys]

I dont think I could just sit there and watch something that I put alot of time and money into burn up. If it was just a gas fire a t-shirt or a rag could have put it out.

[ChevLoRay]

I understand closing the hood, if it was windy. Last time I checked, wind and fire created a much larger fire. I guess you had to be there to know what to do, so you did what you felt was right at the time. It's a shame that the fire department used a tool to jack open the hood.

So, do you have comprehensive insurance?

[Ole Blue 68]

Sorry 'bout the truck Brian, that had to be hard to sit there. My dad's car burnt to the ground in a parking lot a few months back. The fire dept. pretty much let it burn.

But this brings up a good learning discussion. Without an extinguisher, would it have been better to leave the hood open or closed? My reaction would be to close it to reduce the amount of oxygen getting to the fire but that would probably push the flames down towards the engine and back towards the cab. What do you all think?

[Yukon Jack]

Sorry for your luck - hope it works out with the insurance claim.

[krue]

Without an extinguisher, closed is DEFINITELY the way to go. In fact if you know you have a fire, don't even open the hood to start with.

[phantom dually]

What time did this happen. I was in that area all day. I just happen to work for a Fire & Security Co. I would have stopped and put you out if I was around!! Give me a PM sometime I will hook you up with a nice Fire extinguisher. I live off Dixie by Hooters.

[Peregrine]

It was around 1:30 am between Sam Swope Pontiac and Liquer Barn across the street. I'll send you a PM in a bit, thanks!

[Longhorn Man]

I've always been told never open the hood untill you are ready to put out the fire. When I had that happen to me, I was ready to put it out, and opened the hood. Upon opening it, I was greeted whith a HUGE fire ball and a mushroom cloud. I had just fed it all the oxygen it needed.

I'll agree to making sure you know how to use one, and those kiddie brand ones with the plastic BS on the head, are one step better than worthless. I had to use one one time and ended up blowing the fire out. Buddy of mine helped, we both passed out after that too, oil fire on the headers while adjusting the valves on an 82 K/5.

[matthufham]

that's terrible news there brian. this is the third fire story i've read on this board, so i'm going to buy a huge fire extinguisher for my truck when it's done. i'd hate to lose all my work in a glimpse.

[tnblazerk5]

man sorry to hear about your ride and yes it sucks to see your truck goin up in flames
mine tryed that a few times i killed a new bluejean jacket and sum other shirts and other stuff i had in the cab at the times of the fires now i carry a fire ex in everything i own, by the way i still have the truck

[Rollie396]

That's terrible!I figured on having an extinguisher in mine since I started the build and this thread puts it at the top of the list.
I can't believe the FD pryed open your hood,where were you when they did it?
I woulda been screamin bloody murder at them if they even got close with a pry bar.
At any rate,I hope you get it all fixed up and back on the road.I'll bet that truck means as much to you as mine does to me.

[roughedup72]

Sorry to hear about your truck, I had the same thing happen on mothers day this past year, I bought my truck from my brother who had just had the engine rebuilt, a 700r4 tranny installed and a sweet looking paint job on it, It was a 1970 longbed. I did the same thing when i opened my hood and saw flames, Closing the hood didn't hurt as much as the firemen who didn't know how to open it.
The insurance company only wanted to give me 600.00 for it. After the reappraised it they gave me 3900.00 plus my towing fee minus my buy back which was 800.00, I turned around and sold it to my Other brother for 1000.00 and he and I went to the salvage yard bought a distributer and wiring harness,He already had a carb and by the end of the day we had it running again, I ended up buying another one, now I'm on the road to restoring again. So I know what you going through,good luck and hang in there.

[Peregrine]

roughedup, what kind of insurance did you have? I'm hoping I can get it appraised and get at least a better amount of money out of it and then put the whole damn thing up on the for-sale board as a parts truck. It'd break my heart to tear it up to part it out, it needs to go in one fell swoop.