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 Post subject: Glowing embers...
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:37 pm 
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848cc
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Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 12:06 pm
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Location: Toowoomba, QLD
Lads, my mini has something weird going on with it.

When driving at night I can see glowing embers coming from the car in the rear-view mirror, I can't tell where it's coming from, my guess is the exhaust but I'm not 100% sure.
Has anyone else had this problem before? and is there any way to fix it?


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:41 pm 
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Postally Verbose
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Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 9:12 am
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Location: Northern NSW
Can you get someone to drive behind you and see if they can see where it's coming from ? Check there isn't anything touching the battery causing sparks to flare on something in the boot and fall out the drain holes . Does the exhaust pipe come out under the rear beaver panel to the point the sparks/embers you're seeing are burnt paint flecks from the underside of the beaver panel ? Also look to see that your battery cable under the car isn't smouldering and dropping bits of burning insulation .

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:41 pm 
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1275cc
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Location: SE QLD
Shite - I would get that looked at. I had an old Ford do this and it was the exhaust manifold disintegrating.

Either that or you have a galvanized bin wedged under your car... :lol:

Seriously - I would get someone to follow you and get an idea where it is coming from.

1018 might be able to help or Chow

Hooroo

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:48 pm 
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848cc
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Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 12:06 pm
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Location: Toowoomba, QLD
The exhaust is in the middle, when i bought the car it head was shot, and the exhaust was pretty rusty, could it be the packing in the muffler getting red-hot then blowing out?

I'm pretty sure it's not the insulation, I pulled over one night because I thought the car was on fire, no glowing bits and it didn't smell like anything was burning either.

One thing though the car does burn alot of oil, the bottom end need attention...


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:52 pm 
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1360cc
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Do you park the car on grass?


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:58 pm 
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848cc
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Location: Toowoomba, QLD
No, the car gets parked on either concrete or gravel.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 1:26 pm 
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848cc
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Joined: Tue Feb 20, 2007 12:44 pm
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Location: Sydney
I had this happen on my very first Mini. It had a straight through exhaust.

I'm pretty sure it was carbon building up in the head or exhaust and when I got out on the open road at higher speeds and everything heated up more than normal it would flake off and shoot out in a shower of sparks.

Frightening the first time it happened. I thought it was bits of the inside of the engine shooting out the back. It didn't seem to do any damage to the engine.

After an engine rebuild (years later) and proper tuning it never happened again.

Pete


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 2:09 pm 
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Give Ash some flowers Nick .
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Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2006 1:22 pm
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Location: Toowoomba Region, QLD
Hey Pete,

PM me your details if you would like me to pop around and have a look. I have this arvo off.

I'm a nice fella, I promise :P

Cheers, Nick

<edit> Chooka, I have also sent you an email.

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Last edited by 1018cc on Thu Jun 26, 2008 5:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 4:46 pm 
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1275cc
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Joined: Mon Sep 19, 2005 4:57 pm
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Location: Gulgong
This used to happen a lot years ago with cheap mufflers when new- the insulation used to burn and come out the exhaust as glowing propelled embers.

So a disintigrating muffler is certainly an option.

Mike


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 5:32 pm 
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Causing or creating vexation

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It could be bits of carbon or....... It could be drops of water! :shock:

Is it using any water? Sometimes when a head gasket goes bad or a head cracks it will let water into the combustion chamber and out the exhaust. (minis usually blow compression into the water and not water into the cylinder)

I had a truck that used to tell me when it was time to change head gaskets by spitting sparks out the exhaust pipe at night. :wink:


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 6:03 pm 
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848cc
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Joined: Mon Aug 27, 2007 2:23 pm
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Location: Wamboin (Near Canberra)
Like this?


Image


Pretty sure it was just carbon flaking off the lukey when it got hot.
Set fire to the grass on the previous stage of the rally :oops:


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 6:26 pm 
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998cc
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:lol: never seen a car do that before lol


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 7:37 pm 
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998cc
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Location: Belconnen, Canberra
Tspeed Jem wrote:
Like this?


Image


Pretty sure it was just carbon flaking off the lukey when it got hot.
Set fire to the grass on the previous stage of the rally :oops:


Ha! I remember that. Didn't realise that you had photos. Cool! :D


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 9:28 pm 
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848cc
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Austin850 wrote:

Ha! I remember that. Didn't realise that you had photos. Cool! :D


email sent


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 9:30 pm 
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998cc
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Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2006 2:22 pm
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Location: Cootamundra, NSW
mine used to do it, i had a strait through berkley exaust... i had to be flogging it pretty hard for it to happen but it did

aren't most exausts packed with steel wool then fibre glass?

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Mearcat wrote:
Sheesh! As entertaining as this may be to some, can one of the mods throw a big bucket of cold water on this and please shut this sh!t fight down


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