....I believe that Agnes caught fire because of electrical shorts (created by the impact) combined with diesel being ejected from a return line that may have been knocked off by the impact..
She was hit in the passenger (right) front, where the positive battery "junction box" is, where the alternator cable goes "up" to the battery.. All of the cables were burned out of their casings-- so I can only assume. Years ago, I'd done the higher amp (Saab?) alternator upgrade. I drove primarily short (less than 10 mile) drives, and in in winter, was having problems keeping the battery strong enough to start the car, in the sometimes brutal Ohio Winters. I had upgraded the wiring-- for the charging system-- as I recall "stock" was 55amps, and I'd gone to 90 or 110.. I'd also gone to an electronic cooling fan-- which I would do again.. It was attached by relay, to the "key-on" electrical system, with a circuit breaker.
Otherwise, the car was bone stock..
As I said, Katie had said, she remembered the engine hadn't stalled-- so it would still be producing alternator output, and if an injector return came lose, diesel could be "spraying" under the hood.
The fire chief was actually a first responder to my daughter's accident. He's actually a personal friend of mine, and had met my daughter (ironically about two weeks before the accident) previously. I'd asked him if he had any insight, from a fire investigation standpoint.. He believed, like me, that Katie's shock, and the engine not stalling/being shut off were probably contributors.. He, as well as I-- couldn't find a specific "point of ignition" but-- it may have been trapped in twisted metal, which would "coincide" with my assumptions that it was primarily an electrical incident.
The car would've been unrepairable either way.. I'll have to post pictures..
I'm glad my daughter is okay.. Now the process of "stripping" our old friend of anything usable-- and the hope we'll be able to find an affordable w126 to replace her with..
Posted by: ajrn@hotmail.com
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