Well today is a sad day.

I had an appointment to the garage d'o install a thousand dollars worth of parts on my recently bought 914 for my 35th birthday.... Also I wanted them to check for the strong fuel odor since I got it out after the winter.

Today it was the first really hot day... 19 degree C and it was sunny. I took the car out... 5 miles of slow driving.... I hear a strange "glurp" while accelerating.... I look back, there was smoke, flame ... I park get my girl to safety, I found water... I extinguished the fire.... Before the firefighter arrived....still they gave the engine bay good rince.

I towed the car to a nearby garage... I think there was still something to do with the car.

I put a cover on the car and I go home.

6 hours later the police call to tell me that my car was on fire...again. I and the firefighter did not think about disconnecting the batterie.... Probably a spark....

I don't know what h will do.

That was me 2 minutes before...

Argh that sucks. Sorry to hear about it. Wait to see exactly what is damaged before making any decisions. Maybe it is minor. Maybe it is a good opportunity for a 3.6 swap.

-Steve

Unless you have a budget close to 20 k for a refreshed 3.6.
The better option would be a 3.2.
Most of the 3.6 market are being impacted by Singer's power plant of choice at this time.

Dude I been there . Take some breath. I hope you are fully covered for it. Insurance can be a great thing for sure. Take some time & access what happened. Your car certainly looks intact & savable. Strip your drivetrain & all associated burned stuff. Replace your wiring harness from the engine bay to the fuse block. Find a donor car & you'll get your car back. All depends what happens with insurance if you have coverage. May pay enough for you to just buy another 914 . Best of luck bud.

Takes a while to realize you were lucky in this situation. Could have been so much worse. You & your daughter are safe. Sucks abut your car but it's replaceable & fixable. Keep your chin up

Sorry to see that happen. I have had this experience in the past. This is the time for other drivers to consider adding a halon fire extinguisher to there driving equipment.
Craig at CAMP

Glad you and your daughter are safe! I came SO close to the same fate... A plug came loose on one of my carbs and poured gas all over the engine. Super scary. I can't even imagine what you went through. How quickly were you able to pull over and get out?

The fact that you and your daughter got out without any injury is the most important fact in this accident.

very eery. Sounds exactly how my 951 caught fire. Hopefully the insurance comes through, and you get her up and running!

Sorry about your car, but glad to hear there were no injuries.

I was waiting to get the parts on the car to get a professional evaluation..and without that l was insured only for others.

I will see on Monday what the damage is and what the instance say.

Glad you and your daughter are OK. Fire Dept should have known to DC the battery, that's basic car fire 101 stuff..... get a very detailed account of the damage before you sign off with a agreed settlement with the Ins company. It's always harder to go back after they cut you the check.

That doesn't bode well . Hopefully there is some coverage bud. If there isn't I would pull your drivetrain right away. Leaving it as is will most likely mean nothing will happen with it. It will be a constant reminder & not in a good way. By getting into it some you may find the fix isn't as bad as you think. In my mind helps get past the experience. To each his own of course. Just hope to keep you in the game with your 914. It is savable

Fuel smell, did you replace the 40 year old plastic fuel lines? I removed the cigarette
lighter and replaced it with a battery cut off switch. When I worked at a body shop, we had a few wrecked cars go up in flame in the storage lot from electrical shorts.

Sad day indeed. I think this is the third teener that a member lost to fire since I've been here. I carry an extinguisher but have never needed it; thank God!

Sorry for your loss.
Glad you 2 are okay.
Hope it works out for you.

Breaks your heart,then tests your resolve.
So begins the slow never ending task of the re and re of the 914.
A great way to get reacquainted,all over again.
A learning experience.
Bon chance.

/

Sorry for your misfortune.

Post pictures and get an idea of what is ahead. Damn near all of us have had to rebuild our cars at one point, make a point of getting those smiles back.

The garage don't think it worth the repair.

They think it will cost more then 5k$ to put it back on the road.

Do you know if there is a engine replacement that is not too expensive ?

They say every thing that was not metal is a total lost in the engine compartment.

How handy are you with tools?

You can get a used 1.7L for relatively cheap. You can get a used main wire harness and engine harness for the electrical.

You'll need some other assorted parts, but they can all be sourced used. I think the 5k quote from the shop is probably more labor than parts.

If you can do the work yourself, you can probably get her back on the road for 1/2 that.

I have a 1975 harness (Full car) that I bought and would love to resell. I have to see what I have in it. (if it would help)

Take the bull by the horns and see what you can do. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy.

Glad you and the kid are OK. Hope you can bring the teener back.

Start a list of items you're going to need and post it here.

I'm sure there's some spare parts floating around that you can get for either low costs or possibly donated for just the shipping costs.

This stinks........ Very glad you got your little girl to safety and that you and she were not injured. I'm about at grandpa stage, and worry about this, makes my heart hurt. I have FE's in every car, only needed one time, saved my families life.

In time the pain of the fire will pass and you will use it to make the car better!

Thanks for all the informations.

I don't have a garage... if I want to be realistic, the work will have to be done by someone else.

I will try to get a list of the part I would need... on maybe I will bring picture of the interior of the engine compartment and you will be able to tell me what I need.

Thanks again for your support.

Any members semi close to you? Be great to have a 914 owner assess the damage. No garage does make things a little tougher. I'd be happy to help if you were closer. Be happy to help with parts if I have anything you need. Get a list going & let's see what we can do

We're just 300 miles south of you, mostly on I-91.
Another engine fire car just arrived here today.

I'd highly recommend Chris. May be a trip down to him but well worth it. He could do the job much better than any shop in your area. Even if the decision to move on comes. I think you could feel better about it after Chris checked it out

Take it to Racer Chris at Tangerine Racing in CT. He'll assess the damage, fix what is necessary and knows these cars like few others. You won't be disappointed and I bet he'll save you a lot on what you would spend at other places.

Mr. Foley would be the ideal guy to check out your car, let you know what's needed, and provide a fair estimate.

Sorry about your car, the main thing is that you're both ok. Having to put your car back together is really just a sidebar to what could have been a terrible story.

Hope all works out well.

Is Mr Foley and Chris the same person ?

I will try to get detailed picture of the car... and we will see what you guys think I should do.

Yes, one and the same ...

Don't know if it would help in this situation but one of the members here sold a fuse bank for the battery wires. I know Chris can do this and others. Better blown fuses than a short to a fire.

Good Luck getting the car back on the road soon!

Do you know another 914 owner in Sherbrooke?
Someone ordered SS fuel lines from me in February.

My brother told me he saw one... but I don't him. Can you ask him if I could contact him. Towing my car to you in the USA would be expensive... I think ... and exchange rate is not really good right now, but I will look into it.

I was not able to go to the garage today during daylight to take pictures... I will try to go tomorrow morning.

Here are the pictures and one vidéo of my car.

Wow my english in the morning really suck !

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/sr8uj6zo89ip924/...0421_080031.mp4

It's not as bad as I originally thought (mechanically).

You'll need an engine compartment relay box
Round relays and a voltage regulator
Engine and alternator wiring harnesses ... and possibly new battery cables
Distributor cap and sparky wires ... (maybe a distributor)
Possibly an alternator (and belt)

Driver side carburetor will need to be evaluated to see if it's salvageable ... if so, you'll need a rebuild kit (might as well get two and do both)

Your tins look like they'll clean up OK (bead blast & repaint)

Engine bay rubber seals may need replaced (914 rubber has a nice kit)


Others may chime in, as I may have missed a couple of things ...

I'll check my inventory and let you know what I have laying around

Everything you mentioned I probably have on a shelf or in a drawer, including carb rebuild kits.

Waiting for an estimate!

I worked on it some today, should be ready to email on Monday.

I can not thank you enough for putting of your own time into this.

The car is on its way to Chris Foley ... thanks to Jody from Whitehorse transportation for the great price and service.

Lets hope for a painless resurrection.

Vincent

Vincent, Happy to hear that your car is going to be fixed up right and proper. You'll be enjoying it again soon!

Never give up! Something good will come from all this.

You are in very good hands