Earlier on, as I was driving home at about 10pm, the stereo suddenly turned off then back on. I thought little of this and carried on, as it came back on immediatly. About 1/4 mile later it happens again, and this time the lights went off too, as did the ignition. I pulled over and as I stopped, smoke came out of the engine bay. As I opened the bonnet, fire breaks out, from around the side of the manifolds, and a wire is hanging loose, glowing red hot. I run to the boot and kill the battery, and then back to the engine to extinguish the fire. Thankfully, the fire was caused by the melted plastic covering the wire and did not get near the carb or fuel line. The problems didn't end here though, the wire in question was a power feed to a stereo, installed by myself, which had come loose and dropped onto the manifold, this shorting the electrics, cooking the wire so hot that it melted through, (it was thick stuff too, gauge 4 I think) and had also put a hole in the braided oil pressure line that I have also run through the bulkhead. I only found this out once I had removed the traces of stereo wire and checked engine after starting her up before moving off! Without any tools apart from pliers and molegrips, I had to clamp the oil line with the grips, after trying for a while to remove oil line and put in the ordinary sensor. It was impossible to remove the oil sensor with the tools I had, so this method was the only option. Thankfully I was able to gently drive the remaining mile or so home without further ado.
So my point is.....
I, like others too, am trying to work on my mini on a very tight budget, and as a result of this had skimped on cable ties, thinking the wire would stay put, which they generally do! But being on your own, in the middle of knowhere, with your car on fire is not nice. I know I should have used proper ties and all that so don't want lecturing, this post is mearly to highlight something that happened to me as a warning for other people, young or old, as I know I would have been devastated to have had to ring my dad to ask him to collect me, standing next to the smouldering shell of my burnt out mini. I was scared that might have happened but fortunatly I caught things just in time.
So guys and girls:
CABLES AND WIRES NEED TIDYING AWAY!
Learn from my stupidity.
Ps. Mods:sorry if this is in the wrong section but it's sort of technical....
