Have not discussed it with Memphis. They would just tell me it would void my warranty. Already past warranty point anyway.
I had a hopper fire once in my pre-Chinese Made Elite, but I believe it was my fault.
Just a guess but I think this is what happened:
A brisket was too far to the back and fat cap was beyond the drip tray and grease dripped onto the ramp.
Pellets stuck to the grease and started to build up and eventually caught fire.
The change they made "may" have prevented it, don't really know.
I thought a simple fix for that would be drill two holes in the back ledge the grates sit on and bolt a piece of SS to it, wider than the ramp, and front to back would hang over the drip tray.
That way any grease dripping down would slide off and onto the drip tray instead of the ramp.
Dang, why didn't I think of this before I had the other SS stuff made.