About half a mile down the road, my car starts making weird noises and then there is a large jolt and I start to lose power. I look in my mirrors and there is smoke. LOTS of smoke. Luckily, I'm at an exit and I pull off the highway and onto the shoulder of the exit ramp. There is decent visibility, so I figure it's as good a spot as any. I grab my purse and get out of the car. I thought it was overheating until the smoke started getting thicker and black. I called 911 just in case and halfway through describing the situation to dispatch, I see the flames.

The firefighters let me sit inside the truck because they had air conditioning and o watched as my poor old car burned up in front of my eyes. 

The fire was contained to the engine, but the cat isn't salvageable. And I knew that I wouldn't be driving a baby around in that car anyway, but still. I loved that poor car. I bought her when I was 18 with every cent I had been saving since I had been in middle school. She was a great car and served me well through college, in blizzards, trips to the mountains, and long commutes.