I guess if the 9201 is preloaded, than the difference isn't 10%. Just don't know.

But I found my shoulder bolt was corroded and was leaning to one side. Maybe it was tensoined too much?

 

The Kempf tool is designed for both. Instead of speculating about how Jay did something wrong or his tool doesn't work, just ask him. If somebody has the directions, it's probably in there. I know it has been discussed on Rennlist before.

 

Yes. I hope you replaced it with a new one.

 

I'm back from GA and may have time to take a look at the fire damage Saturday. My biggest worry is its proximity to the fuse box. The carpet in that area caught fire so we sprayed a lot of water in there. ("So who's the U-boat Commander?")

Just in case, has anybody here ever replaced a 928 fuse box? The fire was exhaust related, but it sure acted like it was being fed by fuel or tranny fluid.

More to follow. Paint melted off part of the passenger door. Strangely; I don't feel very bad about the outcome of this incident. All I could think about when I was falling down my stairs enroute to to the fire was how my house and family were at risk by my hobby car in the driveway.

When laying under there facing the fire with my hose I kept visualizing the gas tank exploding like a Hollywood movie, but my brother reminded me that gas tanks tend to feed fire more like a huge BBQ grille instead of exploding.

Thanks for all of your support. I'll keep you all posted, but progress may be slow as my job travel and responsibilities recently tripled.

BTW - Dave calls me "Sparky" now

Chris

 

Chris,
You've got the right attitude. It's easy for me to say, figuring that it wasn't my car.....but that's a very sane, selfless sentiment to have in light of what happened.
I hope that your damage is minimal, and getting it back & running isn't too time & $ consuming.

 

I'd be more worried about the harnesses than the central electric (fuse) panel. The CE panel pops right out.

How did the carpet light on fire??? The only ways it could get to the carpet near the CE panel are through the firewall (it's purpose is to prevent such an occurance) or through the small grommet where the O2 sensor wires pass through which is abive a heat shield.

Post pictures. You probably ought to start a new thread for the fire damage discussion.

 

Chris,

I think its time to schedule another party - a restoration party.

 

I've pretty much ignored my car since the fire. Maybe in a couple of weeks I'll put the battery in and try starting it.

 

Matt:

That is ugly galled up. I've not seen one so corroded. Like it had no oil and filled up with water. All the tensioners I have personally seen have been serviceable and just needed new seals. They cleaned up with brake cleaner. The metal surface you show might look better after some scotchbrite, but they look too far gone. Sometimes a new/used tensioner is the answer.

 

dr. bob has already suggested this was a cat fire fed by unburned fuel. It's not quite the usual mode, in that the car was just idling. The cause, as he described, is failure of 1/2 of the ignition system, so fuel from the cylinders that lose spark dumps into the hot cats.

I have driven my 89 on 4 cylinders when the ignition monitoring system false alarmed and shutdown the fuel to half the injectors. The car lacked power, of course, but it did run, and it took me a minute to realize what was going on. Actually I drove for quite a while. I was going up a mountain road and the car started shifting at odd points and lacked power, but I didn't put 2+2 togther for a while. On a level road, you might drive for many miles. And it is possible the car would idle with only 4 cylinders firing, although it would be noticeably bad. So, check the ignition. The monitoring system was installed in 89 to prevent what happened, if this is the case.

Based on the fire location, this is a very good guess. If it was not the cats, then you may have another issue. However, I have seen this very problem after a TB job before. The right side coil if often loosened and slid forward to allow removal of the right side TB cover. If someone forgets to move it back and retighten the clamp, it can short out against a body part. This happened to another list member's car. I helped do the TB. I asked as we were buttoning up if the coil had been resecured and was assured it had been only the find later it hadn't and led to a cat fire when it shorted on the ride home.

 

That is precisely what happened. It was running so weak that I decided to idle it in my drive to warm it up for diagnosis, but it caught fire when I was in the house.

After reading your post I just found the passenger coil wire was not connected. Thanks for solving the mystery! I've re-installed the coil wire and my battery but it won't start.

The starter spins the crank but it never starts. Additionally, the front air dam vents open and close non-stop whether the key is in the ignition or not. The next step is to start chasing wiring damage problems. Ughhh...

 

Before you get too deep into the damaged wiring, do yourself a favor and unplug the LH and EZK boxes. There's always a wild chance that rustling through damaged wiring will cause problems in these boxes.

Start out with a carefull removal of the CE cover. Tale LOTS of pictures of how the wiring is layed in there so you can restore it all after your work.

The cats, unfortunately, sit right under the front seast footwell and barely behind the electrics panel. A fire inside, as you described previously, is caused by the heat from the cats raising the temp of the metal floor, the sound deadening and the carpet to something above the flash point of probably the sound deadening. After that, the fire causes other stuff to outgas flammable vapors and the fire grows. The insulation on the wiring melts well below the flash point of the sound insulation I suspect. You'll know right away when you pull the CE cover.

The front air shutters are controlled by a module that sits to the right of the passenger seat, under that carpeted cover. Same module controls fan speed, both based on temperature readins grom the sensor at the front lower driver side (on US cars...) of the radiator. That cable routes along the center tunnel IIRC, pretty much right over where the cats are.


You might want to put out an early request for a wiring harness/CE/ control module package from a wrecked or parts car. If that CE area was hot, and it sounds like it was, the ends of all the sub assemblies and harnesses there are going to be ugly. Buying bits and pieces, and trying to patch or splice things will quickly turn into a nightmare.

 

Chris:

Update?

 

Thanks all. I will print and use this info when I have time to look at the car again. I just returned from several days in TX and am going to make a presentation in AZ most of next week. This weekend my wife has chores for me, but I'm hoping to peel a layer of this wiring onion next weekend.

It's good info that the shudder controller is to the right of the passenger seat. The fact that it is so far from the fusebox may mean there's more hope than I anticipated. The passenger carpet barely started to burn before I doused the area with a hose. The battery was disconnected quickly and the water was all out by the next day. The ony visually apparent damage is a melted edge of the carpet on the bellhousing mound and the exterior of the passenger door.

I'll upload some pics when I get a chance.

 

By the way, the Kemp tool is being shipped back tomorrow.

Bill, I've set your tools aside and hope to drive down to drop them off in a reasonable timeframe. The pipe and 3/4" ratchet weigh so much that it's a great excuse for making the scenic drive. Let me know if you need any of them right away and I'll overnight it.

This weekend my wife and I prepped our house to put it on the market. Not sure if it will sell or not, but now that those major chores are out of the way I can turn some weekend attention back to the 928, probably next Sunday.

Chris
540-327-2730