My Bronco Raptor Fire Total Loss Experience

[timhood]

I recommend this product:

https://www.h3rperformance.com/products/ford-bronco-fire-extinguisher-roll-bar-mount-four-door

I don't. If he had, he'd be driving an older fire-damaged-and-repaired Bronco instead of a new one.

Seriously, though, I would not purchase a fire extinguisher with the expectation of being able to put out a fire under the hood. I'm not sticking my hand under the hood to release the latch when a raging inferno is happening. I don't have room in my 2-door for a Nomex suit in addition to all of my off-road gear!

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[VirginiaHeritage]

Glad you got out unscathed.

I’ve got a fire extinguisher on board but if I see significant flames coming from under the hood and everyone is already safely out and there isn’t another vehicle or structure within burning distance, I would probably just stand back and salute while it burned. No point in risking major injury over an insured vehicle.

Given the other cases posted here (this is at least the third), I have a question: has it happened with every Bronco engine? I recall a Wildtrak and an Outer Banks having similar events, but don’t recall if they were 2.3s or 2.7s.

 

[Desmolicious]

I once had a Mercedes 300E catch fire just after I drove it away from the dealership after they serviced it. South Coast MB in Torrance.
I noticed smoke coming from under the hood, pulled over, popped the hood - saw flames starting by a electrical box of sorts. The only thing that I had on me was a bottle of sunblock.
It put out the fire!
Dealership repaired the damage, but only after I created a scene on their salesfloor saying very loudly the car was fine, it caught on fire immediately after they worked on it. Apparently they didn't like me scaring away their customers.

Your experience was far more severe, glad no-one was hurt and it worked out.

 

[TacosTuesday]

glad to hear ya'll came out safe. really disappointing to hear they couldn't find the cause. any malfunction or failure that can be so catastrophic and not known why is definitely a bit scary

 

[khsonic03]

Glad you got out unscathed.

I’ve got a fire extinguisher on board but if I see significant flames coming from under the hood and everyone is already safely out and there isn’t another vehicle or structure within burning distance, I would probably just stand back and salute while it burned. No point in risking major injury over an insured vehicle.

Given the other cases posted here (this is at least the third), I have a question: has it happened with every Bronco engine? I recall a Wildtrak and an Outer Banks having similar events, but don’t recall if they were 2.3s or 2.7s.

When this happened, I couldn't find anyone else with a raptor 3.0 that had an engine fire. I doubt I'm the first, but I couldn't find anything when I looked. I saw the other 2 you are referencing.

 

[Felix808]

Wow, glad to hear it all worked out in the end. I was surprised that Ford was willing to offer help in this situation instead of referring you to your insurance company.

Glad everyone is safe and it worked out for you

 

[ThunderFlash]

First, thank goodness this all worked out safely and well.
Second, very impressive. You were able to explain the Ford replacement situation without getting hung up on the VERY minor detail that their product nearly incinerated you, your wife, and your dog. We love our Broncos A LOT, but I'm not sure how the thrill of hells wrath whipping up from under the hood and nearly engulfing my family might influence that love. I'm thinking I'd be a little gun shy about getting a replacement.

 

[HalfmuleFarmer]

I don't. If he had, he'd be driving an older fire-damaged-and-repaired Bronco instead of a new one.

Seriously, though, I would not purchase a fire extinguisher with the expectation of being able to put out a fire under the hood. I'm not sticking my hand under the hood to release the latch when a raging inferno is happening. I don't have room in my 2-door for a Nomex suit in addition to all of my off-road gear!

I had an engine fire in a Land Rover and it burned to the ground. I had an extinguisher. I was able to pop the hood. Exhausted the extinguisher in about 90 seconds. It did nothing.

 

[Ninjak]

Glad to hear everyone made it safely and Ford made you whole again.

I dealt with Ford on a different type of problem when my GT350 engine went boom on a normal drive. Short of it all, Ford sent an engineer out to see what caused the issue, and it was determined that the Engine was the cause of the engine going boom. They replaced my engine and my MODS, (Kooks Headers) and I was made whole.

I will admit that the incident did give me pause in buying another GT350, I have been searching for another vehicle to replace my GT500, and when I came across several R's I decided against them because of the failure and fight I had before.

If you have the patience, Ford can do right by you. It's nerve-racking, but it can be the best solution in the end.

 

[Steve_In_29]

Unless a person has really crappy insurance (or paid WAY too much for the vehicle) there should be no depreciation for a 6 month old vehicle.

 

[Neps]

The official cause was undetermined.

Glad everyone got out unscathed!

In this litigious world we live in, if Ford did determine the cause there is no way they would tell anyone. A few engineers, a couple of lawyers, and perhaps a few people representing the supplier might know the truth, but I'd bet they had to sign non-disclosure statements.

 

[Neps]

Unless a person has really crappy insurance (or paid WAY too much for the vehicle) there should be no depreciation for a 6 month old vehicle.

They used to say that vehicles depreciated the instant you drove it off the sale lot, now its the instant the sales contract is signed.

Edit: You are correct insurance should cover the entire cost, just don't try to sell it for as much

 

[Steve_In_29]

They used to say that vehicles depreciated the instant you drove it off the sale lot, now its the instant the sales contract is signed.

I'm aware of the saying. However I stand by what I posted.

 

[khsonic03]

Unless a person has really crappy insurance (or paid WAY too much for the vehicle) there should be no depreciation for a 6 month old vehicle.

There still is depreciation and they don't cover mods (in our case, about $10k in wheels/tires/ppf/tune/etc), personal property, or loan interest. We also paid a very low price for our 2024 because we got it when they were all over $20k off. We wouldn't have been able to get into a new one for the same price, so the replacement transaction was a notable difference.

There is also a deductible. In our case it was comp deductible, so not much, but some people have higher deductibles. And one of the biggest reasons to go with Ford instead of insurance is the fact that if they pay out an $80k+ claim, your rates are definitely going up.

They (insurance) use comps for used vehicles in your area to determine the payout.

When we compared the proposed payout amount from the insurance company vs. what Ford offered, it was significant.

 

[telenerd]

Glad Ford took care of you. Ford also took care of my for my Bilstein shocks. The shocks were leaking and their recall parts were not available. So I bought Bilstein 6112s. They covered the replacement parts and even part of the alignment. It took 6 months but worth the wait! Most companies wouldn’t have done that.

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