I'm back, hi, anyone else's car smoke?

[NMTBirdLA]

finally got over to this new forum. i've been off for awhile. hi to "old friends". hi to "new friends."

been enjoying the heck out of my car, but have been VERY stingy with the miles. still not sure if i can afford to keep it. (how can i afford not to!!!)

it's so much fun. been mistaken for a bentley. that was funny. took attention away from both a ferrari and a diablo over by rodeo drive! that was awesome. i think i have some photos of that stuff, but haven't developed them yet.

now, onto the smoke.

twice while i've been driving, i see a small amount of smoke coming from under the hood, driver's side, near the windshield. popped the hood, couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from. bad gasket, maybe? it could be coming from around the exhaust manifold area. anyone have any thoughts. anyone else experience this?


hey to the other "newer" SoCal TBirds. we should get together, but february will be pretty busy for me.

that's it for now.

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[jodrod]

Smoke or steam?

My car overheated and the location that you site is where the radiator overflow container is located. Have you noticed any overheating? Also try the heater. Take it out of automatic mode, turn on just the dash vents, turn off the A/C (comes on automatically when the vent is selected), crank the heat to 90F and see if any heat comes out of the vents. My problem turned out to be the infamous fan module which was replaced. However a couple of days before this happened I could not get any heat when I did the above. The dealer said the two problems were related.

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[NMTBirdLA]

hmmm, smoke or steam? good question. it happened at night. i'd say it was smoke, but i'm not 100% sure. i'll check my radiator fluid levels next time.

the temp. gauge was at it's usual place, a few ticks above "1/2". i've kept a careful eye on this gauge 'cause 1) that's how i am and 2) the early overheating problems.

i'll pay closer attention next time it happens.

i knew i could count on you jodrod to have some insight!!! thanks.

 

[jodrod]

My guage is dead nuts on center but when it overheated it was pegged at the top and the engine also went into preservation mode. Fluid levels were fine, it was the fan module that had quit. I also smelled the steam before I noticed the guage.

 

[Chief]

When in doubt....take it to your dealer!

 

[Eyelawdoc]

What does the mystery vapor smell like? Is is sweet and sugary (antifreeze)? Or does it smell like burned oil due to a leak? Often times smell has given me a valuable clue as to what and where to look for a problem.

 

[NMTBirdLA]

by the time i pulled over and popped the hood, it had mostly dissapated. didn't smell anything, which is why i thought that it might be steam. definitely did not smell like antifreeze.

 

[jodrod]

NMTBirdLA,

When mine did it, the smell was unmistakable. Sounds as if you problem is different than mine. Has it reoccurred? When I pulled into the gas station, I looked under the car and there were just a few drops of water from the overflow tank. If it happens again, check the ground under car just in front of the drivers door.

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