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Terry Kay
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Joined: June 22, 2003
Posts: 13331
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 Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2016 4:13 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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"Only The Shadow Knows "
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IdahoDoug
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Location: N. Idaho
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| Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2016 3:04 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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| wcdennis wrote: |
| Another long shot: Could your own exhaust, getting ducted by your bumper be the cause? I know it seems like there would be some soot and scorching under the light, but I would still be curious to see where your tail pipe points. |
No, not enough heat transfer capacity here, with exhaust sweeping around bumper.
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DenverB
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| Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2016 11:02 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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i'll chime in to agree with an earlier post
I think it's reasonable to think someone backed up to your van, tailpipe happened to point at the light and they sat there for a few?
long shot, sure.. but it's plausible and I've had rear plastic bumper corner fall on an -84 onto the exhaust tailpipe and melt similarly in the last few months....
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wcdennis
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Location: Winston-Salem NC
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| Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2016 8:29 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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| Another long shot: Could your own exhaust, getting ducted by your bumper be the cause? I know it seems like there would be some soot and scorching under the light, but I would still be curious to see where your tail pipe points. |
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bluebus86
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Joined: September 02, 2010
Posts: 11075
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 2:33 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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| angrychicken wrote: |
At his point, the etiology will remain a mystery.
Compensation for damage is very mehrcan, but not my style. Not worth the PI work for a cheap, used part.
I'm just hoping that this doesn't repeat itself as I plan on doing quite a bit of traveling over the next few years. As long it wasn't an internal cause, I'm good with replacing the part. |
That's very un-mehrcan of you. Anyway good luck in your new taillight and travels.
The mystery remains, what caused the light to melt?????
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angrychicken
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 1:40 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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At his point, the etiology will remain a mystery.
Compensation for damage is very mehrcan, but not my style. Not worth the PI work for a cheap, used part.
I'm just hoping that this doesn't repeat itself as I plan on doing quite a bit of traveling over the next few years. As long it wasn't an internal cause, I'm good with replacing the part. |
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bluebus86
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:57 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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| Terry Kay wrote: |
You're really dreaming.
One that a window focused the sun "Just" on that lens alone,
Two that the focused reflection totally missed everything else surrounding the lamp.
In plain old english, I don't think so.  |
the focused light may have hit the painted surfaces, but did no damage to the painted surface. The case of the car mirror housing that melted in Tucson only found the plastic mirror housing to be melted, no apparent damage to the rest of the car.
yeah could have been other things, like a hot exhaust. one thing is that the mirror thing could be found out be repeating the parking of the van at similar sun angles and weather and see if a death ray exists.
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Terry Kay
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:50 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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You're really dreaming.
One that a window focused the sun "Just" on that lens alone,
Two that the focused reflection totally missed everything else surrounding the lamp.
In plain old english, I don't think so.
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bluebus86
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:41 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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The nice thing is if it was a window reflection that did this melting, there might be legal recourse for the damages. go back to the location that the van was parked and look for glass that might be inline to do this. I you find such windows, wait for similar time of day and weather and take a photo of the death ray beam hitting the van, and you could maybe be compensated by the building owner.
I recall a case in Tucson where a cars side mirror was melted off by an apartment's reflective windows. the apartment owners paid for the damage.
good luck in the case of the melted lense.
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OddN
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:31 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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The reflected sunlight theory sounds the most plausible in my head, but due to the whitening of the plastic I keep wondering if this could be caused by some chemical solution sprayed on the van?
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kamzcab86
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:21 pm Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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Another possibility: Spontaneous combustion.
Just an observation (i.e. not necessarily a potential cause), but one of the pins on the housing connector is discolored.
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IdahoDoug
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 9:12 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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Yeah, I think an exhaust pipe definitely puts out enough heat. I'm just not sure about how close they'd have to be, and that exhausts are often downward pointing. Also agree there may not be any visible deposits as most vehicles are clean these days.
Notice as you drive around today. Not many exhausts are set up to fire straight back from the rear of a truck parked like that. Maybe a propane powered forklift, perhaps another piece of equipment like a trailer mounted generator, pump, etc. One of those propane powered construction heaters shaped like a jet engine that was sitting on an open tailgate, etc. Definitely possible. The mystery deepens.....
DougM
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bluebus86
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angrychicken
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 8:53 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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No soot. Just dirt from driving around the tail light.
I'm in a small town as a traveler. Doing some temporary contract work. Only been out here for 1 month. 5 more to go, I'm hoping this doesn't happen again.  |
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Terry Kay
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 7:50 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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Usually--( not 100% of the time--just usually) a ton and a half, 2 ton delivery trucks exhaust end exits under the truck--about right behind the cab of the truck-- Midships--take a look as you're motoring about.
The tail pipe does not go back as far as the DOT bumper at the end of the back side of the box body.
The tail pipe doesn't extend beyond the rear of the truck to pull this burn caper off.
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djkeev
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outcaststudios
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 7:20 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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dave -if that were the case then where are the carbon deposits around it? there would be carbon deposits from exhaust dont you think?
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outcaststudios
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 7:18 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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solvents also will soften plastics. i would guess that the lenses are PMMA the only thing that softens that is heat ,or a solvent. did you spill any trichloromethane?
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djkeev
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 5:59 am Post subject: Re: melted tail light? |
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The 2WD Vanagon (I only checked the two I have here) have the bottom of the tail light 24" off the asphalt.
A problem with Vanagon lighting is how low they are, we all know that.
My Pontiac Vibe has the bottom of the tail light 32" off the asphalt, my Ford F-150 is 39" off the asphalt.
My F-150, a low sitting stock unit has the exhhaust tail pipe 18" off the Asphalt.
It isn't a large leap to most delivery Box trucks, raised pickups, etc having an exhaust at 24" or higher.
Exhaust temperatures are high, many trucks aren't diesel so the exhaust gases are clear.
At what temperature does a Vanagon tail light go soft and soggy?
I do not know, but depending upon the plastic used it could be fairly low depending upon it's makeup. Some plastics melt as low as 80*C ...... A temperature easily expected out of a idling tail pipe.
There is no viable alternative. No one is going to sit with a torch and gently heat a tail light until it melts but doesn't burn.
It isn't logical that all the bulbs in the unit would be on long enough to evenly melt the assembly, there would be hot spots from each bulb.
A fire inside? The circuit board where the bulbs insert would certainly show severe burning. (It does not)
No, I'm sticking with my theory of a perfectly parked idling delivery vehicle.
Edit:
My F-150 with the 5.4 idles at between 280* and 297* F at the exhaust pipe ..... that's 137*+ C
Hot enough to burn you.....Probably hot enough to soften a tail light lens....
Dave
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