can faulty ignition cause fire? (without key?)

Neighbour's 92 Accord burnt down his garage/home during the night. Fire department investigator ruled faulty ignition caused fire. Insurance investigator said that the ignition was de-energized at the time (ignition contacts were open) and that it couldn't have overheated that way. Thoughts?

Reply to
bertbarndoor
Loading thread data ...

I had a vehicle burn while it was parked... key in my pocket. It was an electrical fire.

As long as there is an energized battery in the vehicle there could be an electrical fire if there is a fault in a circuit. The fire above could have been in the ignition circuit rather than in the switch itself. Net result was the same. Is the adjuster claiming fraud or something?

Reply to
John Grossbohlin

For starters, Google and find articles like

formatting link

"bertbarndoor" wrote

Reply to
Elle

What kind of Ford was it?

Reply to
Gordon McGrew

| >I had a vehicle burn while it was parked... key in my pocket. It was an | >electrical fire. | | What kind of Ford was it?

E250 Econoline. Sheriff's Deputy noticed it while driving by...

John

Reply to
John Grossbohlin

Was the insurance investigator working for the auto insurance company or the house insurance company?

Although I have no reason whatsoever to believe that this fire was intentional, I do want to point out that just because cars *do* catch fire accidentally, this doesn't mean that this fire was not intentional.

It also seems to me that if the insurance investigator learned that the key was out of the ignition and didn't investigate any further, he didn't do a good job. Sometimes the locking mechanism fail, such that it is possible to turn the ignition on without the key. In addition, even if the ignition switch didn't malfunction, there could have been a short in the wiring.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

-------------------------

Considering HONDA recalled about a billion ignition switches for safety reasons just a few years later, why doubt his was any less troublesome. I know a friend who's '91 ignition switch exhibited all the problems of the recalled ones . . . look for Ignition Switch Recall (most models)

formatting link

'Curly'

Reply to
motsco_

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.