FIRE!! 48 GMC Panel bed caught fire!

[BBEEP]

So, this is going to be a 're'build thread soon, I guess. I have driven this truck for years, towing cars on my trailer & generally having fun. Last Thursday I towed my Impala to Salem, Oregon (about an hour). When I took the exit, I noticed smoke in the back--inside. I pulled of the road, thinking that a tire was rubbing, or a brake was locked up. Unable to determine the problem, I parked the truck, unloaded the car from the trailer and continued on the other 2-3 miles. An hour or so later I came back with my friends pickup, loaded my Panel on my trailer (no smoke), and towed it to the fairgrounds where my Impala was.
As I walked by the trailer, I noticed smoke coming out the drivers window!! (I never tow with a window down, thankfully I did this time) Upon opening the back door I saw one foot flames in the middle of the floor!!! Thankfully there was an extinguisher in my truck and I got the fire out soon.
This is an early Panel, and as such, it has the wood planks with metal strips like a pickup as opposed to plywood used in the later models. I need to let the insurance adjuster know what is involved in replacing the wood.
So here are the questions: Is it wider or longer than a shortbed 1/2 ton?
And is it like a pickup, where you have to remove the bed for install? When I removed the plywood floor from my 52 Burb, it was under the body. Do I have to lift the body of the Panel?

HELP!!

[Alvin]

I don't have answers to your questions.. but WOAH that's pretty crazy! Glad you had an extinguisher handy!

[no moa]

Did you install the exhaust? I'm surprised there is no heat shield there?

Glad it wasn't worse!

[BBEEP]

I had exhaust installed YEARS ago. Towed a 59 Cadillac from the Canadian border to Eugene . . .

[no moa]

wow. 59 caddy. Did you get your captains licence to tow that barge?

Guess the wood finally had enough.

[463]

from your pic it looks like the rear end has pushed the exhaust up towards the floor . what i see is scrub marks on the pipe. a over load on the rear and a bad bump will give you this. i would the exhaust relocated to stop it from smoking your ride.

[BBEEP]

Originally Posted by 463

from your pic it looks like the rear end has pushed the exhaust up towards the floor . what i see is scrub marks on the pipe. a over load on the rear and a bad bump will give you this. i would the exhaust relocated to stop it from smoking your ride.

Exactly. It decided to burn after all this years . . .
Rerouting soon!

[463]

look at the brake line thats rubbing on the exhaust up there. lucky you did'nt burn the line off.

[55dude]

glad you caught it because your panel if really great looking and would have been a huge loss. had to have been in direct contact to burn like that.

[special-K]

Man! I'm glad you were right there and saved it.

I'm pretty sure the body sits on the wood. Can you look through the fender wheel and see? The wood will be longer than a shortbed,but longbed wood can be cut down. I believe you'll need more than provided in a kit for a pickup if the floor is wider. I guess you're just looking for replacement pieces,not a whole floor.

[tmoble]

I just ordered a set of those stamped heat protectors the re-pop vendors sell. Ouch.

[71swb4x4]

Originally Posted by 463

look at the brake line thats rubbing on the exhaust up there. lucky you did'nt burn the line off.

I think that's the vent line for the pumpkin.

[sgtusmc]

Just my 2 cents. The rear does look really close to the floor. With towing or heavy loads it's only going to get closer. I'd cut the opening a few inches wider and build a metal plate with a 3-4 inch hump around the area. Line both the top and bottom of the hump with heat shield mat. With the thickens of the wood, I doubt you'd even be able to tell it was there. You could even hinge it for access to the rear-end.

[Dan Bowles]

Even with steel, you should be about 2" from exhaust to anything critical. It may have been ok years ago because the wood still had some moisture in it. It has baked dry and then some.

I work in OEM exhaust and you'll see more and more manufacturers putting the heat shields on the body side rather than the pipe side because someone will install an aftermarket system made cheaper without them and have a problem. They don't want the liability. I with the sarge above in saying, build a cover, a hump, a plate, something. You'll be safer in the long run. Also, check for any other tight features. If your exhaust guys made this kind of tight fit here, they may have done it somewhere else as well.

Glad you got away with minor fixes.

[VA72C10]

Wow, glad you caught it before it got worse!

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by no moa

Did you install the exhaust? I'm surprised there is no heat shield there?

Glad it wasn't worse!

Exhaust too close to the wood an no heat shield was/is the cause of the fire for sure.

The axle didn't bottom out against the exhaust at some time and push it up closer to the floor than it had been before? With it crossing right over the pumpkin (at least from this angle) that seems possible.

I think those go together pretty much like a truck bed does but didn't pay much attention when I pulled a crusty parts burb I had apart a few years ago. That part of it was pretty rotten.

[mr48chev]

Years ago Jean and I would throw a spare mattress in the back of the truck make up a bed throw the suitcases in on top and snap the cover back over it and off to a rod trot in Central Texas. The Mattress caught fire on one trip on the way back home. The heat shield over the pipe was missing on my truck at the time.

[Russell Ashley]

I'm glad you had an extenguisher or that could have gotten ugly real quick.

I think I would just fix it myself and not get my insurance adjuster involved with it though. I suspect that you would pay more in increased premium down the road than the cost of the repair.

[OrrieG]

People do not realize how combustible old dry wood is. I have remodeled a lot of 80+ year old homes and always advise the owners not to use the old wood we pull out for firewood. It is so dry that it burns very fast and very hot, not like firewood you just cut out of the forest. Also the reason old buildings don't really burn but explode.

Given the choice of pulling the body, I would just cut in an angle framed patch panel and obviously adjust the tailpipe.

[BBEEP]

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

I'm glad you had an extenguisher or that could have gotten ugly real quick.

I think I would just fix it myself and not get my insurance adjuster involved with it though. I suspect that you would pay more in increased premium down the road than the cost of the repair.

Are you kidding me? Thats what I have insurance for!! That may be the case for minor damage, or just barely above deductible, but this isn't the case.
The interior panels all curled up, the rear of the seats have holes in them as well as the panels on the side. There are even ember holes in the front carpet. The smoke damage is terrible. I have cleaned it and can barely drive it, because it stinks so bad. The seats and all the upholstery need to be thrown out, and possibly even the wiring and the stereo. The drivers mirror on the outside took the flow of smoke and ruined the glass. One exhaust pipe and muffler are shot, the brake fluid got cooked, and maybe even more.
I think I'll collect my insurance money & fix it . . .

[Russell Ashley]

Sorry about that. That's more damage than I could see from your pics. I just thought you were talking about replacing the floor wood and carpet.

[BBEEP]

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

Sorry about that. That's more damage than I could see from your pics. I just thought you were talking about replacing the floor wood and carpet.

After rereading my reply, it sounded like I was attacking you. Not my intent at all. Guess I'm still a little upset about it. That whole near-death experience thing . . .
I'll keep you posted on what Grundy says about it.

[Roddude]

My 50 panel had one peice of plywood with the metal strips over it, not seperate planks like a p/u. I believe the plywood was cut to shape and installed during the building of the body. Why I say this is because I couldn't get it out in one peice. I was replacing the wood anyway so i cut it in half from frt to rear and removed it in two pieces. To replace it I needed two sheets of oak plywood i made a ship lap joint in the middle. Using the old wood as a templet I lined it up so the joint would be under the center medal strip. Then install the side with the lower half of the ship lap joint. Install the other side and Gorrila glue the joint. Done! ps. I sealed all the plywood with fiber glass resin before I installed it. Not an easy job, but it can be done. Not to break your stones, I would also install a heat shield. Hope this helps, Good Luck.

[Roddude]

Sorry I forget to say I did have to lift the body to get the wood out. If yours are planks you'll need enough room to slide the planks in and out as the mounts bolts go through the wood.

[Roddude]

[QUOTE=Roddude;4485772]My 50 panel had one peice of plywood with the metal strips over it, not seperate planks like a p/u. I believe the plywood was cut to shape and installed during the building of the body. Why I say this is because I couldn't get it out in one peice. I was replacing the wood anyway so i cut it in half from frt to rear and removed it in two pieces. To replace it I needed two sheets of oak plywood i made a ship lap joint in the middle. Using the old wood as a templet I lined it up so the joint would be under the center medal strip. Then install the side with the lower half of the ship lap joint. Install the other side and Gorrila glue the joint. Done! ps. I sealed all the plywood with fiber glass resin before I installed it. Not an easy job, but it can be done. Not to break your stones, I would also install a heat shield. Hope this helps, Good Luck...