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I have a Macbook Pro 15" 2011 2.2 i7. Was running like a dream until I tried to add a second drive with an optibay. To cut a long story short a puff of smoke came out of the airport card. After the initial shock I rebooted to find no airport and the machine was running super hot when plugged in running off the mains. My dilemma is the machine works perfectly but is a potential fire hazard. As I soon as I plug into the mains the temps hit 70 quite quickly, too hot to touch underneath. When switched off it comes on by itself when plugged in also. So it has become a big silver coaster. Apple say they will replace the logic board and airport for £465 (which is actually not a bad price) but could it be something simpler. Any help would be appreciated. My household insurance will not cover 'mechanical' parts. If I had spilled coffee, dropped it or was stolen I would be fine. Any help would be much appreciated. I have Applecare also which makes it worse.

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Did you remove the damaged airport card from the Computer? – MrDaniel Aug 15 '12 at 15:59
I've had to replace the logic board in my Macbook Pro 3 times. My greatest empathy. – James Graham Apr 10 at 13:24

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Since you've paid for AppleCare - send it in. It doesn't make sense you would be charged for a repair unless there was some sort of external damage, so perhaps you misunderstand the quote.

Perhaps the pricing was for an estimate if the fault was not covered so you could be prepared in case that were the case.

Call back and ask to have your situation cleared up or drop by a store with if one with a Genius Bar is convenient. I would remove the third party RAM and accessories (as Apple will ask you and inspect for before beginning service) before presenting your Mac for service. Inform them you have had a second drive in the optibay and offer to let them have / evaluate the part if desired to ensure it didn't cause the malfunction.

Here are the North American terms of service - and you can see that Apple may charge you a diagnostic fee if you send them a Mac and the failure is due to third party parts being the cause.

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Since I used a 3rd party item i.e. installing a 2nd hard drive which lead to the damage Applecare does not cover that. The fact I was honest (too honest). Thanks for your reply though. – SheaG Jun 5 '12 at 17:23
I would still send it in. Yes - if you did damage to the mac or the drive caused the failure you should expect to pay, but unless an Apple tech has inspected the insides, it's too soon to know if this is covered or not. I'd still send it in. I've never had a repair where 3PP ram or memory caused anything but delay as the shop can't assure non apple parts are good (so they get removed and returned to you). I've always made sure to let the store know if 3PP parts are installed and usually try to put in the Apple parts when it's in for service. – bmike♦ Jun 5 '12 at 18:56
As bmike said its pretty rare for a 3rd party part to cause this kind of thing. Did you install the part with the battery or power adapter plugged in? It definitely sounds like you need a new MLB replacement though. Nothing else would cause this kind of behaviour. – hellothere Aug 15 '12 at 8:55
@hellothere has a good point I should have put into words. Correlation is not necessarily causation. Absolutely, if you left a screw loose and shorted the machine, didn't follow static safe procedures (with a mat and grounding strap) due to ignorance or being cheap or being in a rush and you know your work was the cause of the fault, then take full responsibility for the failure and don't let Apple pay for your repair. However, the majority of technicians I've known will bend over backwards to help out someone who did good work but had an odd failure after being the "last to touch it." – bmike♦ Aug 15 '12 at 14:51

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