A woman’s 2000 Pontiac caught fire Wednesday as she was turning onto Silverbrook Avenue from South Third Street in front of the Chalet of Niles.

The woman escaped the car without injury and called authorities around 2:30 p.m.

The Niles Fire Department, Niles Police Department and SMCAS responded to the scene and shut down Silverbrook Avenue as they worked.

The woman said she had noticed her car overheating as she made the turn. She then stopped the car and exited to call authorities.

Niles Fire Chief Larry Lamb said that by the time the woman had called the authorities there was likely already a fire under the hood. The fire was traced to the engine compression area.

According to the woman, the car was serviced two weeks ago, but the servicing was likely not related to the incident, authorities said.

The cause of the fire had not yet been identified and Lamb said it could have been a number of issues, including either electrical or mechanical

“We are not going to be able to figure it out right off the bat,” Lamb said. “Could electric, could be fuel, could be brake lines.”

As the car billowed smoke, fire fighters ripped off the hood to extinguish the fire. It only took the crew about 10 minutes to put the fire out. Authorities continued to spray the car engine area with a hose to cool the car down.

The fire left the car totaled.