I now know what a hearse looks like when the engine catches fire.

[Big IV]

Typically I ride to work despite the weather. However, the school has redecorated our shared office and I no longer have a place where I can put wet leather pants and jackets out of the way to dry.  This morning, I chose to drive the 1985 Cadillac Hearse instead of juggle leather all day because it was raining fairly heavily.

I needed to drive the Cadillac anyway. I just had a little work done to the engine and wanted to make sure it was alright before I decided what to do about the transmission (it has a hiccup).

I enjoy cruising around in the long black car. It's fun. So, not a bad day to be stuck in a cool car.

After my morning job, I left to grab lunch at a McD drive-thru and head to my afternoon job. I had the large sweet tea still in my hand. I'd been looking forward to that tea all day.

As I pulled into the parking lot I noticed white smoke in my mirrors. I pulled into the parking lot away from other cars and shut it off. As soon as I stopped the smoke started billowing out from under the hood.

The hood didn't feel too hot, so I popped it open. The front wheel drive engine was on fire. The plug wires that were routed across the front  of the engine were flaming. I dumped my tea on it and the flame went out. The fire-retardant lining inside the hood was smoldering and I had to wait for it to smolder itself out.

As the engine cooled off it stopped smoking. I watched it until it was cool enough to touch then left the hood slightly ajar and went to work (late).

I've arranged a ride home and a tow dolly for the car. I'll drag it home and then figure it out. I want to double check the electrics before I crank it up. I'm also fairly sure the head gasket will need to be replaced. Who knows what else! I'll go over it and figure it out.

Now, I know what a hearse looks like when the engine catches fire, and I have a reason to make a pile of leathers in the corner of the office and ride my bike to work from here on out. I'm safe, just not in the best of moods.

[Bob E.]

Man...that sucks.  Let us know what you found out.  If you just had some work done, maybe someone owes you one.

[Black Dog]

Man Big, that stinks...

Hope it's just wires, but that can be a major pain 

Enjoy riding the Beast!

Black Dog

[Big IV]

I had a buddy of mine replace the power steering reservoir, replace the master cylinder, and redo the rear brakes. He also did a little cleaning and neating under the hood, but honestly nothing that would have caused this.

It sprayed green under the hood so I think it overheated.

The plug wires are gone, so are a few of the other plastic pieces from the heat. Not a big deal. I need to pull the head and see if the gasket went. Also need to check over the radiator and the hoses.  That is slightly more difficult, but not bad. Just time.


It's an '85 Cadillac V8 Front Wheel Drive which is a lot of engine shoved under the hood without a lot of spare room. The hood fits tight almost against the breather. So it doesn't have much air to spare. Someone told me these were prone to over heating. I can see why. Tiny grill. No air space. If it didn't cause a problem then it might not really be a problem.

It's fixable, most things are. Just a matter of time.

Time is the one thing (besides money) that I don't have a lot of these days, so we'll figure it out.

[RDKLL]

Sorry to here about your hearse. Not sure when but our next vehilce is going to be one.....I want a 1996 Cadillac Masterpiece by S&S....it is a low cost and much cooler alternative to a large SUV mainly for the transport of our dogs.

[Big IV]

The hearse is cheap compared to other used cars to buy.  They aren't the easiest on gas. Ours has had a few more problems because it sat so long before we bought it and because we let it sit.

Mine is a Fleetwood with a S&S Victoria conversion. It has a plexiglass divider between the seat and cargo area (to keep the zombies back) to keep the heat manageable. That would help keep your dogs off of you while you ride. Ours slides. Some of them don't have the sliding plexi glass. Might watch for that.

To carry dogs, you'd probably want to take the rollers out and maybe even the flooring. But you'd have options.

I have a coworker that thinks mine is cool. He's been thinking about getting one. They're not that expensive in our area.

[RoadKill]

The Cadillac 4.1 L is not a well engineered design IMHO. I would NOT just pull the head befor doing a little research and talking to people in the know. Those Engines have sealing problems ,especially coolant sealing issues. cast iron heads on an aluminum block totally BASS ACKWARDS engineering for an internal combustion engine with so many heating and cooling cycles.

Regardless of what the engineers were thinking..experience says beware of opening the system unless ABSOLUTELY necessary.

[Big IV]

Doesn't look like anything is noticeably hurt on the engine. We stuck a hose in it and filled the radiator with water. It ran out the other side fairly quickly. Looks like the plastic radiator let go. Little over a hundred bucks to buy a new one. That's not bad.  Doesn't look to bad to pull the radiator and replace it and the hoses.

After that I'll put some new plug wires and check out the rest of the electronics before firing it back up.

The power steering reservoir hose is rubbing the belt and wearing through again.  That hose is a problem.

I wouldn't like the 4.1 in anything I was really running, but in a novelty car it shouldn't be to bad in the end.  Thanks for the suggestions.

[Duey]

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