bladz311

iTrader: (1)

I was out driving around with my friends a couple nights ago. It was pretty snowy out. I noticed some white smoke coming out of my exhaust. At first I thought I had sucked up some snow in my intake and that it was just steam, but it was way too thick. I pulled over to see what was going on. My friend was following me in his truck. He pulled out around me to see what was up, then he screamed, "Hey, something's on fire under your hood!!!!" I popped the hood and jumped out of the car to see what was burning. Right below my turbos there were flames. We started throwing snow down at them to get the fire out. I finally got it out after about 10 mins. It didn't spread at all. The turbos leaked oil out everywhere which I think is what caught on fire. Does anyone have any ideas what happened??? The turbos/engine are only 5000 miles old and have a warranty, but Sevenspeed doesn't want to cover it because somebody reset my power fc. They told me it was fine to drive my FD until they had time to tune it. They even said it was alright to race it at Street Outlaws back in September. I waited over three months and this happened. BTW, I turned my boost down to a 20% duty cycle on the commander. Sevenspeed said that should be about 7lbs of boost and my car would be fine to drive until I got it in for the tuning. The mechanic at sevenspeed told me that the turbos got so hot from running lean that they were probably glowing white and the bolts pulled out and the seals burned away. Now how could the turbos being hot make the bolts unscrew themselves?? Can somebody help?
Thanks,
Jesse

streetraceseven

500 for the motor

bladz311

iTrader: (1)

I don't think the motor was hurt because i shut the car off and got the fire out before it spread at all. Plus the oil was in a big puddle below the car so it still had oil when i shut it off.

Talek

The turbos wouldn't get hot from running lean... The only ways the turbos would get super hot are if you boosted too long too high or if your cooling system malfunctioned. I can't remember if our seq turbos are oil cooled or water cooled.. but if they're oil cooled and one of the lines ruptured, would leak oil and maybe catch fire.

rynberg

Ummm...that's not correct. Running lean will raise the temperature of the exhaust gases and will make the turbos hotter.

On the other hand, the mechanic stating that the turbos will glow "white-hot" and the bolts will pull out? umm...time for a new mechanic.

spurvo

Our stockers are water AND oil cooled.

jupiter

I was in the same situation.
Fortunately it was a minor flash of flame and not a 10mn. cook out. I found out that my stock Y pipe connector was loose and was collecting oil over time around that area which caught fire.
But you're saying it was smoking out through the exhaust??

Destroy

The oil coolant lines inside the turbo get down to the size of a pin hole, if anything gets inside you are screwed, I speak from unfortunate expirience. Crap int the lines->no oil->shaft tears up the seals cause its too hot->tear up your turbos and possibly blow oil everywhere... and oh yah, get a new mechanic

wonder1and

I suggest since your car probably is not running right now take the turbos off and look for a ruptured line or the origin of the oil then determine how smart this guy really is... good luck post pictures if you think you might need a second opinion on something...
-R

bladz311

iTrader: (1)

Ok, I'll jack it up tomorrow and take a better look. Gotta clear all the damn snow outta the way first, haha. I hate snow, but my garage is too cluttered with rx7 parts, haha.

Node

iTrader: (1)

If you don't know what you're talking about don't say it.
You're wrong, running lean will cause your exhaust gases to be hotter.

Node

iTrader: (1)

Take it back to SevenSpeed and have them take off the turbos and possible parts that may have caused this fire in front of you.
Inspect it with them.
This way they will know everything that you do and no one will have any reason to lay false blame.

Tom93R1

iTrader: (2)

Actually I would have to agree with Talek. The hot gasses blowing through the turbo are already so hot that another 100 degrees higher from running lean isnt going to affect the temps of the turbos much. I have heard that if running too rich the unburnt fuel can ignite in the turbos causing them to heat up, much the same way that running lean keeps your cat cool and running rich can make it glow like a light bulb.

Exit13B

Jesse,
If your post was accurate, then the replies following it would be correct and justified; however, you are misrepresenting the facts of your situation, and also the comments made to you.
In short, your block and turbos are indeed under warranty. Now, if your adventures offroading or running over the mailbox ripped a supply line from the turbo causing subsequent damage -- then there might be some difficulty with us getting you turbos repaired under warranty. You were advised to get the car to us immediately after your friend reset your PFC. With your porting and additional modifications, the base map will run exceedingly lean on your car (and thus the recommendation to turn the boost down to safely drive the car here, although a careful right foot is perhaps the best boost regulator of all) The intention was not for you to continue driving the car with no programming; it was intended as a method to 'limp' the car here without causing any damage, as the loads under cruising conditions ARE very close to the base map for your particular setup.
Furthermore, you were advised to have the car towed here immediately on the night you experienced the above listed problems. We offered to pay your tow bill if indeed the problem was caused by a warrantied defect in the turbo rebuild. Again, if there is external damage to the turbos caused by your accident, then it would be unreasonable to expect us to absorb the tow bill. You must realize that we are not the turbo rebuilders. We are placed in an uncomfortable situation when a freshly rebuilt turbo is defective. WE must absorb the labor of removing the unit, absorb round trip shipping, and a large chunk of TIME. Furthermore, there is no markup on a turbo rebuild -- which implies the burden of support for the product should be on the turbo rebuilder; however, this is simply not the case. It is a loss for both parties. We are a mediator of sorts between the customer and the turbo rebuilder, and we do everything in our power to insure each claim is covered under warranty.
An engine fire is a VERY serious issue. Why you have chosen not to have the car towed down for repair, but instead have waited over a week to post here is disturbing. The sooner the car is here, the sooner the cause be located and repaired.

blackscorpio

Ditto

bladz311

iTrader: (1)

George,
When I called sevenspeed the night of the engine fire, all I heard was that sevenspeed probably wasn't going to cover anything because of the reset PFC. Also I've been trying to get it down to sevenspeed to get tuned for about three months or so but everytime I call I'm told to call back next week. I was finally told to bring it down on a monday, but the engine fire happened on the preceding thursday or friday. Also, I've never taken my car off roading. My girldfriend's driveway isn't paved, so thats where the mud came from. When it rains, her driveway tends to get pretty soupy. I also have never run over a mail box. I hit some ice while turning onto my street and slid into one very slowly. It left a little ding on my fender which I was able to pull out mostly and didn't leave a mark on the mail box. The reason I haven't towed it down yet is because of the way I was spoken to on the phone. I also do not have a lot of money like eveyone else on the forum here seems to. I work at sears installing tires and batteries, and go to college. I don't appreciate being almost yelled at when I'm standing outside in the snow with my dream car that was just in flames.

Jesse

Exit13B

I did not hear every conversation that took place that night. We were 3 or 4 hours past closing time, and it was passed on to me that you called 4 or 5 times. We have no intentions of screwing you out of a warranty claim on the turbos. In the one conversation I did overhear, it was stated that we could not determine the validity of a warranty claim without seeing the vehicle, and that it would be best for you to leave it alone so that no vital clues are 'lost' during disassembly. I wish we could pick up the tow for you out of pocket ahead of time, but I hope you can understand why we must evaluate the vehicle first. I believe it would be in your best interest to keep your passengers from playing with the PFC -- PERIOD. If this is a problem, we will gladly lock the vital settings so your passengers will not tamper with them. However, it would be simpler for you to lock the commander in the glove box -- or simply leave it on the monitor function. I can understand why some of our frustration was conveyed to you after X phone calls about the same topic, each with the same response: bring the car in. Your PFC was programmed with a broadband free of charge. Can you understand why the employees would be frustrated that our efforts were reversed by the actions of a curious passenger? Sadly, we did not save a copy of your program on the PC at the shop since it was tuned uniquely for YOUR vehicle.
Get the car down here! If you are completely strapped financially, we will pick up the tow tab with the understanding that you may have to reimburse us for it if the problem is unrelated to the turbos or short block. The holidays are fast approaching, but we will fit you into the schedule as expediently as possible.