EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS: Jay Leno Has Breakdown - Hot Rod Goes Up In Smoke

By:Radar Staff

Sept. 9 2010, Published 5:00 a.m. ET

When Jay Leno breaks down, he rolls up the sleeves and gets down to business. That's no joke.

RadarOnline.com caught The Tonight Show host in Los Angeles over the weekend, as his 1907 White Steam Car went up in smoke.

The Labor Day weekend's triple digit temperatures were just too much for Leno's pimped up ride which came to a sputtering stop in the middle of a busy Encino street.

"The car's engine just started smoking in the heat and it looked like it was catching fire," one onlooker told us.

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"Ironically, Jay pulled over in front of a Chili's Restaurant!"

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Instead of calling AAA, locals rushed to help their high-profile visitor and carried buckets of water.

One even brought out a fire extinguisher to put out any flames!

After about half-an-hour, Leno was able to get his car running again and he promptly sped away.

When contacted by RadarOnline.com for comment, Leno's rep wouldn't confirm what happened but did say, "it doesn't seem unlikely given that Jay has a lot of old cars."