First of all YES this is a legit question lol I recently totaled my tC out on the turnpike here in Miami but here's what happend. Trying to avoid someone rear ending me ( which now i wish he did ) I lost control and hit the guard rail head on, slid back into traffic in the left lane and was then t-boned sending me over to the right shoulder. Now during this process which had to have only been a minute or two long some how a fire was forming rapidly in the engine bay and creeping inside the car. Now mind you the car did have a fuel tank of gas but what I'm not sure about his how it grew so fast. Friction from the tires maybe? fuel line/rail getting busted and just pumping fuel onto the engine perhaps? Or something electrical? Not to sure an just figured someone might be able to shed some light on this. The specs on the car, 05 Scion tC with only an intake and HID kit. I know some cars catch on fire depending on the type of crash they are involved in but is it normal for tC's? Any info will be greatly appreciated

 

this is normal

 

engine fires can happen to any car... fire only needs fuel, oxygen.. and heat.

components easily found underneath a hood of a car.

 

Squal said it almost perfectly... I would like to add one variable to the equation though.

crappy driving + fuel + oxygen + heat = fire aka typical things you find in any car but especially a tC

 

I'm ure you can look under the hood and partly determine source. Was fuel rail loose or broken? fuel line damaged? Im sure some wires were cut in the wreck, did that start it?

Still sucks though...nothing worse then having to set there and watch your car go up in flames...

 

I wouldn't say any car is "supposed" to catch on fire. But it happens. Sparks from the accident, heat from the exhaust? Any of that mixed with fuel - which a line could have easily ruptured... and from there is will just spread to whatever can burn.

 

shoulda let him rearend you. I was driving through miami on the turnpike and it was 4 lanes and a crap ton of constuction. the two right lanes exited and some douche decides to not take the exit cause it wasnt where he wanted to go and just cuts over while i am there i shoulda hit him but was afraid i woulda spun into the other lane after contact and been killed. So i moved over just enough to pass him but into the other lane where a tC was. lol But he had just enough room to slide by as well. I was so ____ed. Anyways thought i would share. I for sure woulda totalled the car but prolly coulda lost my life so i took the live road and still have my dented bumpers and the tC.

 

They only catch on fire in Miami because Miami is full of crappy drivers.

 

uh, hope you are okay

 

with a wreck that bad im sure any car wouldve great thread

 

Only if you added that option from the factory.

It was a big thing when "This is Why I'm Hot" came out.

There are unlimited scenarios where a car can catch fire, but wrecking one helps fuel the fire. Pun intended.

 

Alright thanks for all the helpful info, with all the fishyness with toyota recalls there's been cops and lawyers wanting me to look into why it caught on fire and spreaded so quickly. But I'm not gonna worry about it, I figured things like that will happen with that sort of wreck. Well all i got from the crash was some abrasions and a dislocated shoulder but being able to get out of that car an walk away with my life I think out weighs it all.

 

what a fail. you're driving a car that is propelled by internal combustion, basically thousands of tiny explosions, which are fueled by volatile gasoline and compressed flammable oxygen lubricated with hot oil. all conventional cars operate like this. now, when being smashed back and forth by other cars, it isn't entirely unexpected for all these danger but carefully controlled liquids to spill out through leaks and catch on fire. now, when the car realizes it has been in an accident, usually it cuts off the fuel pump so the gas will stay in the gas tank, and not keep getting sent to the engine fueling the fire further.

as a counterpoint, ford has had problems years ago with the cruise control modules on the expedition and their pick-up trucks short circuiting and catching fire, even when the cars were parked and turned off. that is an example of design failure. a car catching fire because it has been in a serious collision is not.

thank you and good day.

 

short answer. no.