Electrical Fire
 

I recently purchased a 2004 Mazda RX8. After going out on the town last night, I parked my car in the parking lot. About 30 minutes later, my car caught on fire! The firemen and police stated that this began as an electrical fire, and moved underneath the car to the fuel tank, which caused an explosion. Needless to say, my car is GONE....just melted away.

I was wondering if anyone out there has heard of electrical fires in Mazda RX8's?

did you get all the recalls done on the car ?

holy carp!

I have taken my car in for every recall, every service repair, everything. That's why this is frustrating. I've read other unofficial websites where these cars are prone to electrical fires.

This is the first I've heard of an electrical fire in an RX8. Could you give us these websites?

holy freakin hell man! that is awful, and the first i've ever heard of.

Did you have any mods on the car, especially those that had to tap into the car's power source?

"I've read....."
 

" I've read other unofficial websites where these cars are prone...."

I call Bullshit - name where you read this.

S

Methinks mysql101 asked the right question.

inquiring minds want to know......links please!

God! I'm looking. I am a girl, I don't know what the hell happened. All I know is that I asked a guy, he looked it up, and said that the car is prone to this problem. You guys are jumping down my throat on a day where my car MELTED before my eyes, for a problem that I didn't cause. I've had all the recalls done, oil, etc.

I just wanted some advice, and to see if anyone else had these problems. SO CHILL OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am having the worst day ever, and now this website is full of jerks!

http://sg.answers.yahoo.com/question...4090227AAyKNA0

Very unofficial but there you go! THanks for being supportive of a 24 year old Mazda owner

If your car is toast, of course you have our sympathy.

However, you DID state that YOU read on websites how the '8 is prone etc., not "I asked a guy who read it somewhere...."

We, here have never seen any tendency to explode, and are truly interested, if the info is available.

S

Speaking only for myself, I feel your pain. It's just that this sort of thing doesn't "just happen" to any modern car, particulatly a somewhat-high-end Japanese car, unless the electrical system has been kluged or improperly modified. I also searched "RX-8" "electrical fire(s)" "prone" "Mazda" "wiring" and a few other keywords, and found nothing. I dont think anyone meant to flame you, some are just standing up for their cars, and if there is any truth to the guy's claim, I for one would like to know about it. Finally, condolences and I hope you are well insured.

Oh, the knowledgeable poster also informs us that the RX-8 was discontinued after the 2004 model year due to these fires.

I absolutely LOVED my RX8. It is the first car I bought myself..I splurged on my dream car. I am looking for answers. I had a question, and I get grilled. I will try to ask him where he read it next time I talk to him. I WAS A LOVER OF THE MAZDA! I thought I could get support from others.

How would you feel if your daughter's car exploded?

I would damn well for sure find out the reason.

http://www.farrin.com/legal-news/pro...ire-hazard.php

Maybe this happened. I don't know.

Sorry for your loss, but you are at least lucky that you weren't inside.

With regard to the link, a recall (3305G) takes care of this problem: holding the rev high for a long time (more than a few min) while the car is parked can cause the exhaust pipe to heat up, and some parts get deformed.

http://www.finishlineperformance.com.../pdf/3305G.pdf

Since you said that all recalls are taken care of (I think the PCM, the computer controling the engine, won't allow this condition to happen after recall), this is an unlikely cause of your "electrical fire" (unless the damage was done before the recall, and the dealer didn't thoroughly inspect the damage).

As others said, this is probably an isolated incidence. But it's good to know what happened. You do have insurance, right? Probably, insurance company will investigate the case in more detail, and let all of us know what they find.

Did you leave your car running?

How does that fit with the fire department thinking it was electrical?

Or do you think that tort lawyer set it on fire?

I'm not an owner of an 8, but soon will be so I've been researching everything. This is the first I too have heard of an electrical fire in a RX-8. The post from Yahoo Singapore has no validity. I don't think the question was answered in regards to your car and if you had any mods that connected to a power source.

Sorry for your loss. It sounds like you really loved your car as much as many 8 owners.

did you have an aftermarket sound system in the car. alarm? remote start? anything not factory that were electrical in nature? this may help us help you figure out what is going on

Wow that's crazy that happened to you. I've never heard about this before. I would definitely hit up Mazda and ask them to consider this a warranty defect and replace the car. There is no reason you should be taking the hit for an elecrical fire. Unless you've modified the electrical system. Write to Mazda North America and see what they say. I suspect they would be very interested in finding out what did happen to your car. If they blow you off or hassle you about it Send them the police report and tell them you're going to go to the local news etc.
Good luck!

Skeptical. I'm just not sure how you can have an electrical fire with the car off for 30 min. Sounds more like you parked over something flammable, if your car did in fact burn. This is absolutely NOT a common occurrence. You'll need more than one very sketchy reference to state otherwise. And I'm gonna need pics of your charred 8 before I grant you any credibility.