Vehicle Fire

[aximony]

I might be getting a good price on a truck I'm interested in due to an interior fire.

But, before I go ahead I wanted to get your opinions on the matter.

The frame shows no visible signs of warping, in fact the exterior, the engine and undercarriage were unaffected by the fire.

The interior, however, is all burnt. The question is, will sand blasting and coating the interior restore the metal, and is it safe to drive this vehicle after restoration?

I mean, do vehicle fires usually damage or weaken metal for good, or is the strength of the metal unaffected by a normal burning fire?

 

[M543A2]

Tempered metal will definitely be affected by the heat of a fire if it is intense enough. Metal that is not tempered, like body panels, could warp, but the temper is not there so it will not affect it. There could be warping to the point doors, windows, and such do not fit right anymore. Since the fire was apparently contained in the interior, and heat goes up, the frame should not be damaged like it would have been if the whole vehicle was in a burning building. One clue might be to look at the rubber isolators that are between the body and frame. If they are not burnt out, then the heat likely did no damage below the body.
After considering the clues to how far the damage went, and satisfying myself the only damage was the interior, I would personally not be afraid to go ahead with a restoration. I have seen it done on combine and farm tractor cabs. In the case of a full-frame vehicle, the body is just riding on the frame, not a contributor to the structural integrity of the vehicle like a unibody is.
For farm tractors that had gone through a barn fire, we considered that if the oil in the gear boxes was not vaporized out, the gears, etc. were still good.
Regards Marti

 

[pjpiche1]

Most of the time, a burnt vehicle is totaled not because it is unsafe to drive if repaired. It is totaled because the heat from the fire distorts all of the exterior body panels. The cost to replace all of the panels, Interior, dash, and wiring is not feasible. Philip

 

[Crash_AF]

How extensive is the damage from the fire? I have repaired a Dodge 3500 that had a column fire that destroyed the dash, windshield and seat, but didn't hurt the surrounding metal.

What exactly is fire damaged and what is just smoke/water damaged? Pics would help immensely.

Later,
Joe

 

[aximony]

Marti and Philip, thank you for your input. I'm going to go ahead and buy it then.

Joe, to answer your question, I don't have a picture, sorry. But, it's safe to say that the fire consumed the interior of the vehicle. The dash, seats, fabric, vinyl and steering wheel have all been reduced to charcoal, not ashes, just chunks of charcoal. The windows
were all shattered in the process, too.


I'm going to check the rubber isolators between the body and the chassis just to make sure the fire didn't extend too far.

 

[Scarecrow1]

Don't forget to post pics .....as you know we all love them ... Do you know why it burnt ???

 

[derby]

You might want to give the local body shop a call . I seem to remember something about paint problems with burnt steel. If the price is right I would not be afraid of it as long as it was contained to the inside of the cab. You can always get a cab and doors from someone that is parting one out. That way you don't have to chisel all that old melted stuff off. And you will have the wires and under dash stuff you will need anyway. You may find that You will not be able to get all that burnt smell out either ,but the multi is no sweet smell anyway. I had an old Yamaha that cought fire it was a mess,melted plastic and wire. I ended up scraping it. good luck with your new ride!

 

[xm708]

burned truck

I am jumping in on this late but I would buy it. I bought a 1997 ram 3500 that had an engine bay fire and it cooked the hood ALL the wiring except the rear chassis harness and all rubber components under the hood, dash board steering coloum, headliner It was a wreck and totaled too. It was a one owner rig with all original window stickers and never driven in the salt and had 79,000 miles on it. I sandblasted primed and painted the fenders and firewalll in and out and I do not regret my decision at all. I say buy it and fix it if you have the time parts are relatively cheap one at a time.

good luck

ed

 

[ALFA2]

Buy the truck especially if the price is right, and you like to fix things the way you want to.
Because of the word "burn", you can expect the price to be just above scrap price usually.

If the frame or the cab tub are burnt to "rust" color, this will cost more to replace, and the truck is just a large collection of parts that happen to be all together for your convenience.

As to the painting, there are products available, brush or spay, that turn rust or former rust into hard primer, and no additional rust will develop there.
Slow and more work, but not expensive or difficult to do.

I hope it helps.

ALFA2

 

[Crash_AF]

What kind of truck is it? If the interior damage is that extensive, I'd suggest trying to find a donor cab to replace the whole thing. Biggest problem with that will be the VIN, so make sure you document the whole rebuild process and then talk to the DMV to find out the procedures for getting the VIN straightened out. You may have to get a state issued VIN if you change the cab, but it's probably less work than trying to rehabilitate burnt metal and clean all the melted crap off.

Later,
Joe