AND NOW THE REST OF THE STORY....

[SHOdded]

Well said.

[BiGMaC]

Let me answer the why am I mad at Ford question.... Because I do not think that the tune (91 Livernoise) was the cause of the failure and if they were able to determine that what I did would cause such a problem then I would have accepted my fate. However not wanting to investigate and not speaking to me about it along with the attitude at the dealership caused me to have a not so lovely feeling for FMC. My mods were 91 octane, airaid and the one step colder plugs gapped at .30. I was using a dash cam because I bought the Gopro 3 from Costco and I drive around a lot and I have caught some pretty interesting stuff with it like my car catching fire for instance. I used to own a heavily modified WRX for 7 years I drove it hard and I had done all the work myself and I never had any failure. As far as wide open throttle before the incident yes I aggressively left the light and it was approx 13-15 degrees outside on a fully warmed up engine. There is no external evidence of an engine grenading and there was no rod knock while I was driving it to the parking lot. There was also no oil leaking on the ground either. I do not know where the oil was when the dealership told me there was evidence of an oil leak. In closing I am more than willing to accept blame when it is my fault until it is proven that it was something that I had done I reserve the right to be pissed.

Regarding the quote in this post: As far as the cause of the fire all the rest is now and will forever remain, even with expert opinion, pure speculation for the very reason Tractorak is angry.... no investigation done by Ford when it could have been.

Thank-you Dean for sharing.  I agree with your position completely. 'Nuff said.

[SwampRat]

IIRC there was a spark plug change not long before the incident.  I still think it was a plug or a coil.

A dead coil or plug wouldn't have caused that.  If it did throw a rod, detonation would've.  Tune typically leans out fuel trims, more boost, timing adjustments, throw in frigid dense air.....boom!

Sounds like a valid point as far as ambient air temps and lean fuel trims are concerned , especially at WOT . I wish we had an Expert that could chime in .

[yowen]

In closing I am more than willing to accept blame when it is my fault until it is proven that it was something that I had done I reserve the right to be pissed.

Ford should be responsible in figuring out if it was your fault or their fault that the car caught on fire? In a freak, isolated case of an engine fire? On top of that it was a modded car. I'm with Ford on this one, you went on to deal with this with your insurance company and got a payday that almost couldn't have been any better. As a whole could their customer service be better? Yes. I'd like some dang taillights with chrome that does NOT fall off.

[breeves002]

Well I just got around to reading this, sorry. I'm amazed the car kept driving. That's a serious testament to those coils in the front!

Situation sucks, happy you're happy with the new car though. I've heard bad things about dealing with ford directly but I haven't had to deal with them yet. Only dealings I have had with my warranty have been positive.

[Larrylu]

In closing I am more than willing to accept blame when it is my fault until it is proven that it was something that I had done I reserve the right to be pissed.

Ford should be responsible in figuring out if it was your fault or their fault that the car caught on fire? In a freak, isolated case of an engine fire? On top of that it was a modded car. I'm with Ford on this one, you went on to deal with this with your insurance company and got a payday that almost couldn't have been any better. As a whole could their customer service be better? Yes. I'd like some dang taillights with chrome that does NOT fall off.

I would think it would be a great idea for Ford to find out if the "freak, isolated" case was in deed just that or if it could point out a possible potential weakness in the engineering  which could prove life threatening somewhere ....sometime. This Ford attitude reminds me of what GM is fessing up to with the ignition switch failure issue. The SHO seemed to run pretty smoothly while smoking. I doubt it threw a rod or even dropped a cylinder.  What flameable product got spread and ignited by what seems to me to be a question Ford should want to answer.