hawaiibake

I know I am a noob, but I had a situation today that I really need help with. I went to work, parked my truck and 10min later it was fully on fire under the hood. Not an electrical fire but a blazing inferno. we managed to put it out quickly with a nearby hose but there is significant damage to all things plastic under the hood. I am looking for a donor vehicle to try and put all of the stuff back together again. Also i had a poer steering leak, so the steering box was pretty well coated, but i dont think power steering fluid can spontaneously combust.

Am i crazy for thinking I can rebuild this thing? What could have caused the fire in a parked truck in the first place? I really dont want it to happen again, as i park next to the house.

Any input would be totally appreciated. I have used the information on this forum to help me with many projects.

Thanks!

abecedarian

the power steering fluid is auto trans fluid and does combust rather easily.
could be a combination of fuel leak and ps leak causing problems.
fixing it would require replacement of all the soft parts around the engine and the wiring.
if you could find a roll-over or rear-end total, you'd have a good donor for nearly everything you need. even if you could find a total from a front-end collision, you'd have a good chance of frankensteining it to life.
check wrecking yards for a full front clip and you should be golden. wouldn't even need a whole truck then.
but this might be a good chance to do a 3.4 swap. you'll be out nearly the same at this point.

JDMSLIK

where you located?

I wish my truck spontaneously combusted

neoworm0

Power steering fluid burns great!

bigt

im guessing hawaii by his handle!!

hawaiibake

I wish I had known how combustible PS fluid was. Live and learn. I live in victoria BC now, i was deported from hawaii. Long story. lots more places to wheel around here. Found a guy who has parts. I have never done any of the wiring stuff before. is the wiring harness just one piece? is i all located in the engine bay? I still have no idea why it started burning in the first place...

Matt16

Your exhaust manifold is right beside the PS pump. When you stop, the under-hood temperatures increase briefly as there is no more air flow.

abecedarian

the only ways I know of getting deported from hawaii are either being obnoxious haoli or just obnoxious.

you'll need the whole harness, up to and including EVERYTHING in the engine area- engine wiring, battery wiring, headlights, etc.

hawaiibake

obnoxious haoli! HAHAHAHA! Nice to hear someone who even knows what that is. I actually lived illegally in the states for 7 years, they finally cought up with me when I came back from thailand with my wife (she is hawaiian). they denied me entry and kicked me out to vancouver. I tried to sneak back in through the forest south of winnipeg and they got me on a hidden camera in the trees. not a good time. Now i live in victoria bc because it is the warmest place i could find in canada.

hawaiibake

So i just tore all of the crap out that is burnt. Looks like the harness is melted right where it comes out from under the intake manifold, and right on top of the radiator.

Can i just splice a new harness on there? are all of the wires different colors so i can just match them up?

everything else seem doable. need new distributer. that looks to be where the fire started. need a LOT of vacuum lines!

abecedarian

Hawaii caught you trying to enter illegally through the forest south of winnipeg? Hawaii must have some good surveillance cameras.

Oh, you meant the U.S.A. caught you. Well, that makes more sense.

thook

Engh......were it me I would just replace the harnesses entirely. By the time you've matched everything, cut, strip, and solder you will have spent just as much time and banged your head on a wall even more. It's tedious stuff. But, that's just me.

hawaiibake

how hard is it to replace the wiring harness? it goes back through the firewall yes?

Matt16

ROTLMAO! I didn't know they had surveillance cameras. Why didn't you dress up like a bear, deer or giant skunk?

904_runner

hey my truck caught fire when i got it, it was from fuel though.

Ended up repalcing the wiring harness, every vacuum line, plastic, hoses, a lot of stuff. Sorry to hear that, its quite devistating, i know.

Good luck fixing it up

gte718p

Whats his name might shoot your ass, dump you in a freezer, and try to sell you for millions as an authentic big foot.

I'm against illegal immigration and all that, its called illegal for a reason. But dude if you can't sneak into this country there is something wrong with you.

cbrsport17

living in canada you can get your hands on imported JDM toyotas with Diesel Engines!!! you should do a swap and get a diesel or just get rid of yours and buy a good running Diesel toyota!!!

91 4Runner

I don't like to post site addresses on other sites but this local to you. One of them might have what you're looking for...

http://bb.bc4x4.com/

Hope this helps....

Larry

hawaiibake

thanks for the local 4x4 site, lots of great stuff there. yeah illegal immigration is illegal, can't argue with that.
i had a business that employed american workers, they were not as happy i had to go
i am looking at a 4 runner after work for the parts, not sure if the wiring harness will match?

mt_goat

There are a few differences in 4runners, even if you had the same year. You should try to get the same year and model harness as your truck. The pins on the plugs to the ECU may be different.

The engine harness pulls though the firewall pretty easy once you unplug the ECU connectors. There is a big hole under that rubber boot. Just pull the boot loose from the firewall.