Tractor Fire

[jjmaes22]

Well - A very bad start to the morning.

Just got going this morning - after letting the tractor warm up for 5 minutes - start moving across the site to get the plow hooked up. While backing up into the plow I hear a loud pop - and turn around to see the rear of the engine on fire.

I turned off the tractor ASAP and hopped down to get the hood open as soon as possible.

As soon as I got down I could see tons of fluid (not sure if oil or hydraulic fluid) on fire in the engine and under the tractor.

So I jumped back up - restarted it - moved it away from the ground fire ASAP and then re-turned it off - got the hood opened and put out the fire with the little extinguisher that I keep with each piece of equipment that I have.

So - after all of that is done and out - there is more - the whole **** wiring harness is still smoking - as are the relays, etc..
Then I was off to get the battery disconnected and keep that from re-catching.

So - after 10 minutes of work this morning - we are done.

Going to call the dealership ASAP tomorrow morning. Brand new tractor - under warranty and with Mahindra insurance - what do you guys think? Totalled? I know the entire wiring harness is gone - and still unsure what else. I still can't see what happen or what started the fire.


Good news - kept it from all going up in one huge fire - good reason to keep an extinguisher. Bad news - we are in the middle of building 2 buildings - cleaning ground - plowing, etc..

 

[mfreund]

If the insurance decides to fix it you may have wished you let it burn. Good luck.

 

[daugen]

Sorry to hear you went through this. Sounds like something not tightened properly, external oil line?
As long as your engine was off when you dumped that dry powder, I doubt you hurt your engine despite what a mess it is now.
New wiring harness, new paint job, new relays, thorough QC, and figuring out what went wrong so it doesn't happen again, you could be back in business soon.
I wonder if Mahindra would pay the dealer to give you a loaner...

 

[MIKE R]

How many hours on it. The dealer should loan you one in the time being they are fixing yours.

 

[jjmaes22]

51 hours

 

[Nissan197]

Sorry to hear about your bad start to the day. Keep us updated on the cause if one is found. I would hope with only 51 hours you will be able to get a loaner until yours is repaired or replaced. Good luck.

 

[MIKE R]

51 hours

Its not even broke in yet. They should just replace the tractor. It looks real bad on them when a tractor fresh off the lot catches fire.

Did you just do an oil change?

 

[creekbend]

I'm sincerely sorry to hear about your misfortune. It it were me, I would read the warranty and insurance papers before going to the dealer. This may better prepare you for negotiations. Best wishes.

 

[DT86]

If the insurance decides to fix it you may have wished you let it burn. Good luck.

When my Kubota caught fire I put it out, the dealer told me to "let it burn next time".

 

[jjmaes22]

ya - i've heard such things before - but I don't think I could do it. Would be very very hard to watch.

I guess talk to me after this week and see how it goes with the dealer - maybe not so hard next time.


How did things go with the Kubota? End up having a world of problems? or some magic happy ending?

 

[jjmaes22]

No oil change yet - Only thing that I have done to this point is check the fluids each weekend - only had it 4 weeks.

Any guesses on what normally causes such a fire? Hose bust and catch off of the manifold? Or electrical that burns through a line? etc?

Went back this afternoon and crawled under it - can't see what the cause was - it was burning and leaking on the very rear left side of the engine - right up against the firewall. Looks like the starter is right there - but most of the hydrolic lines look to be on the right side.

Just very sad and a little pissed off right now

 

[daugen]

if you take some pictures and post them, it's likely someone could be helpful to you.
You wouldn't have oil everywhere unless something came loose or you put a hole in your block but I think
you would have heard that. Antifreeze doesn't burn, and electrical wires usually trip a breaker before there's a problem.
But applying diesel fuel or motor oil to a hot engine will sure get things exciting in a hurry. I'm guessing a loose oil fill or external oil line like
a turbo oil line. Unless you snagged a line crashing through the woods, did you do any offroading recently? Otherwise something likely
came loose. Hope it's something simple and the damage is only cosmetic and parts swapping.

 

[wirenut]

WOW! What a bad day. I will think about this every time use my tractor. Hope it can be resolved to your satisfaction, as you deserve some good news. Very interested in what happened and hope it is not a common problem. Good luck......(sounds weak after what happened)

 

[JD 4520]

Any guesses on what normally causes such a fire? Hose bust and catch off of the manifold? Or electrical that burns through a line?

From what you described, I would guess a fluid leak occurred and caught fire from something hot. The fire burned the electrical cable. The fluid leak could be a number of things including something broke, to a hose that worn against something hot or rubbed something that turned. It will be interesting to hear what the expert claim adjuster has to say.

If you aren't happy with the official answer, you may want to get a second opinion from an expert.

 

[MIKE R]

A local horse club has a Massey 165 that the battery lead was rubbing on a oil line, it arched and heated the oil line red hot and caught the oil on fire.

 

[jjmaes22]

Given that this is a brand new tractor - 4 weeks off the lot - 50 hours - do you think that it's a warranty issue or an insurance claim?

I was assuming warranty - but really dont know what to expect tomorrow

 

[JD 4520]

Given that this is a brand new tractor - 4 weeks off the lot - 50 hours - do you think that it's a warranty issue or an insurance claim?

I was assuming warranty - but really dont know what to expect tomorrow

Totally depends on: what actually happened, what failed if anything or if its operator error. That is why you may want to get a second opinion if the official answer comes back with operator error and therefore your responsibility. If its a faulty part or something that is determined to be the responsibility of the manufacturer then you will have a warranty claim. Hopefully the latter and hopefully you have a dealer that will work for you to get it resolved to your satisfaction.

 

[DT86]

How did things go with the Kubota? End up having a world of problems? or some magic happy ending?

Magic happy ending for sure. It was a rat/mouse/bird nest on the valve cover beside the muffler and turbo. I actually put it out before anything on the tractor caught fire, just the nest. I was lucky to have noticed it when I walked by because I had driven up to a friends shop and was walking in the door. I turned around to see flames shooting out from under the hood. If I'd made it inside it might have been and hour or three before anyone went back out side.

The only damage was to clean up all the powdery mess from the extinguisher, which I've been told is corrosive.

I sincerely hope this all goes well for you.

 

[AchingBack]

jjmaes22, a just quick reply to say, way to go with having the fire extinguisher at hand. I'm feeling you may have a brand new tractor coming your way.

 

[Cigar Face]

A local horse club has a Massey 165 that the battery lead was rubbing on a oil line, it arched and heated the oil line red hot and caught the oil on fire.

just curious but new massey tractors have engine oil lines?? you asked earlier if the guy changed his oil. In all my years i have not seen an actual oil line especially one that runs over a battery cable. That has to be the weirdest thing i have heard of. Every motor i have worked on has an internal oil pump that distributes the oil internally