Acura :: Plume Of Smoke Coming From Under Hood / Major Oil Leaks
Jun 2, 2014
Originally, the inciting event was a plume of smoke coming from under my hood. I had the car towed and they said my radiator blew up and did the repair. A week later, I was smelling what I thought was radiator fluid. I took it back and they said I had three major oil leaks. My wife didn't understand why they did spot the leaks just a week earlier, if they were that major? All that said, I had been going there for awhile, so I trusted them. They fixed, or they said they fixed, all three leaks but when they returned the car, it would kind of rattle intermittently whenever the car was stopped but running.
I had no such problem before bring it in for the other issues. They kept it for another few days, almost a month in total with all the repairs and they said they got it to where it was barely noticeable. Well now, just two weeks late, it has been getting worse and worse, the rattling of the car when the car is stopped. And tonight, all of my warning lights suddenly came on- engine warning, brakes, everything all at once. I spent two and half grand with this shop and they returned it with a problem it didn't even have before. It needs timing belt, that was the next thing to get repaired.
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I have a 97 Ford Ranger / 2.3L / 4 cylinder (L4) / 5 speed manual / XL Supercab / 140k miles. I had been having some Check Engine issues and ran rough in town stop light to stop light. But was fine on the highway.
On several visits to the parts store, their OBD tester showed:
PO303 (Cyl 3 misfire detected)
PO141 Bank 1 Sensor 2 O2 Sensor (heater circuit malfunction)
PO171 Bank 1 Combustion Too Lean (the most recent new code to show up)
And the following would show up sometimes, but other times not:
PO 402 EGR Flow - Excessive Detected
P1409 EVR (I cant remember the exact error message for this)
Regards the PO141 code, O'Reilly's sold me a Bosch O2 Sensor (Bosch 15719) and the sales rep told me it was the sensor closer to the engine. And with the attached cable length on the sensor showed was indeed the sensor closest to the engine. But I've been advised the Sensor 2 is for the 'downstream' sensor, furthest away from the engine. And the other sensor, that I replaced is the upstream sensor. And the error continued.
Then back issues showed up and I had back surgery this past year and thus drove the vehicle sparingly. Never resolving the check engine issues. (My bad). Ran on the highway ran fairly well. But recently noticed longer acceleration times and unable to top 65 in 5th gear. I bought spark plugs and plug wires and had plans to change next week.
Yesterday as driving down the Interstate, was 90 miles into my trip, I noticed loss of power even in fourth gear. (note it was the hottest day of the year at 100F). It seemed I used more gas than usual for that distance. I stopped for gas on the Interstate and power seemed to improve. Then about 130 miles into my trip I hit some heavy stop and go traffic, and wasn't able to keep an idle and the engine died numerous times if/when I didn't give it gas at a dead stop. The heavy stop and go heavy traffic and the issues persisted for a half hour for more than five miles. Then when traffic opened up the truck seemed to have a bit more power in 4th gear again. And up to that time all my dash gauges were showing fine. Then a couple miles or so down the interstate, driving 65mph in the inside lane, the check engine light started flashing quickly. And at the same time a sudden loss of power, rough sounding engine with heavy white smoke coming under the hood. And looked back in rear view mirror, with nothing but heavy white smoke. Managed to cross three lanes in heavy traffic and was able the vehicle to the outside emergency lane, finally coming to a stop.
Looked under the hood and saw oil dripping everywhere but with all the oil everywhere I could not find a prime source. Looked like the oil came from the top end of the engine and dripped down. Measured the oil at the dipstick and it seemed like I was at least a quart plus down (I checked the oil before I left on the trip). And it didn't look like any water was in the oil. And my radiator overflow tank was at the proper level. So I figured I lost all that oil during that period of "white smoke".
So had my vehicle towed home. Today in daylight, I did some more inspection and removed the air intake system (hoses and canister) from the air filter to the throttle body. There was significant oil up to the canister piece that fits on the air filter canister (but no oil in the actual air filter), and significant oil inside all the hoses up to inside the throttle body (up to the butterfly which I could see),
When I disconnected these hoses I noticed the blow-by hose connected to the intake hose system was not connected to anything. And a tube opening on the valve cover was open without the a blow-by hose attached and, with no clamp. So I assume all that oil and came out of that blow-by tube on the valve cover, (white smoke created by hot oil hitting the engine).
So appears to me that its not a blown head gasket or worse, which I first feared.
I have the vehicle parked at home.
QUESTIONS: So what are the suggested steps to troubleshoot and repair? Besides reattaching everything and putting a clamp on the blow by hose? And installing new spark plugs and plug wires. I previously replaced plug wires around 60k, even though the manual recommended 100k mile replacement. (And a couple yeas back I had the dealer replace the PCV, which was recommended in the manual and included in the warranty. The timing of the initial check engine lights appeared shortly thereafter).
Is there suppose to be a large amount of oil in the air intake system after an incident like this and should I try to clean/flush out the hoses and the inline canister?
When I disconnected the inline canister from the hoses in the air intake system, unfortunately I failed to document the direction which the canister goes. It has outside markings "ADP with a forward arrow with some horizontal lines, and then at the other end upside down markings with a greater sign PP less than sign. Should the forward arrow point toward the throttle body or toward the air filter (I'm thinking in the direction of air flow, toward the throttle body). I've taken some photos of the engine with air intake hose system unattached, if that might work...
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OK, so go out to my 1994 Acura Legend, crank it, hear a loud hum that doesn't go away, then bluish smoke appears from under the hood. Immediately shut off the engine and open the hood to release the smoke. Haven't touched it since.
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I have a fleeting issue that of course only happens on rare occasions. I have a 2011 Elantra Limited. I drive it pretty easy. On three different occasions, when I really had to get on it to get into traffic, I have left a huge plume of smoke. From what I can tell it's darker in color, but it's been usually evening so I can't really tell. If I punch it again, it's fine. I have mentioned to the dealer each time and they say nothing shows amiss.
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This morning I went to drive my car and the check engine light, along with the D4 light on the dash went on. The D4 light started blinking. When I drove the car, it felt really heavy like it was not shifting right. There was also a bad smell coming from the hood. I took it to get the code read and it was P0758. There seems to be something wrong with the transmission and I am just wondering how much it will cost, and if it is worth it. The car is in great shape, I just had the timing belt changed.
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my car has white smoke that comes out of the tail pipe after i have just driven it, it doesn't do it while the car is running. Nothing is ever coming out of the hood. I dont know if both these issues are related, but when i turn on the heat my car shakes really, really bad. Over the summer the ac would never pump out cold air. So i just never turn on the ac/heat
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Where the heck am I supposed to get a Saturn part as none of the dealerships exist! It's a maybe 8-inch small hose that goes from the top of my engine to some kinda shaft; the shaft goes to my air-filter. That's all I need is this skinny hose as smoke is coming up from beneath the hood! Is there a name for this particular hose? Embarrassing as heck but I don't think (am I right?) that this will cause any major harm. (I've already begun cleaning beneath the hood.)
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Got my joe z exhaust put in today. After getting it installed i was obviously getting on the car to see how it sounds.. I came to a stop and smelled that sulfur smell that people normally do when getting on their engines but also noticed some smoke/steam seeping out from under the back of my hood. No overheating though. Immediately got alarmed and shut off the car. Popped the hood and everything was fine. No smoke at all. Turned it back on and all was normal and drove the car again and there was nothing.
What could this be? something serious i hope not. i do not drive me car hard at all. its got almost 14k and changed the oil at 10k. this has never happened before. It was hot today though like 90+ ... Maybe it was just from driving it hard?
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Saturday I was driving to my friend's house. My A/C is broken (just happened 2 weeks ago) so my windows were down. I hear a loud boom. I hear a clicking noise when I accelerate but it stops when I take my foot off the gas.
I am 5 minutes away from his house and he's a mechanic so I just wait until I get there but as I'm turning left, I notice my car is smoking. When I get there, I couldn't even put it in reverse to park and there was smoke coming out of my hood. He and another mechanic friend said it was a blown head gasket.
I had it towed to a mechanic and he said it was a blown head gasket and quoted me $1,800. I know nothing about cars so there's no way I'm fixing it myself.
Is this worth fixing or should I just get a used car and sell it as is or for parts?
It has 230,000 miles on it and I drive 80 miles per day for work. No other problems except the A/C as far as I know.
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I've got this weird problem , it started a month ago. Sometimes I would drive for half a hour, park the car, stop then engine and some white smoke comes out of the hood after a few seconds. But sometimes I can drive the same amount of time, park, stop the engine but no white smoke.
The only time I did notice it happening is when my temperature gauge isn't working properly , sometimes it will give the right reading (which is right on the middle) and while driving it will drop to 0. Also sometimes there is a smell of rubber burning I think (Doing my best here). But I've checked Google for people with my problem but all I read is either people with tail pipes issues or smoke directly in the drivers cabin. My white smoke is only when I kill the engine. There is no smoke coming out of the tail pipe nor in my cabin. Only a rubber burn kind of smell.
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My wife just sent me a text saying she noticed her car (2005 Elantra GT, auto, 140k) making a chugging sound and then saw white smoke coming from under the hood on her way to class.
I'm at work, so I'm trying to pinpoint the problem from my office, but I'm guessing the white smoke is the result of a coolant leak? Bad seal somewhere? What would cause the chugging that's related to a coolant leak? Or maybe it's not coolant-related at all.
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My 06 Elantra with 115K miles on it broke down in the middle of the road on Thursday. The smoke was coming from under the hood. Towed it in to a Hyundai dealer, they looked at it on Friday and told me I needed a new radiator, the old one cracked at the upper seam line (whatever that means). I told them to go ahead with replacing a radiator, which they did. Today, Saturday morning, same problem, the car is blowing smoke from under the hood, spilling the coolant on the road. Towed it back to the dealer again. They say that the new radiator broke down, it cracked in the same spot as the last one and they're trying to figure out what's going on. Haven't heard from them again today and they're closed right now. I hope they will fix it on Monday. What might be causing this problem? Are there any other parts that might be causing the radiator to break like this? Is this a common problem for Elantra XD?
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I have a 2006 Camry SE 4cylinder. Started the car this morning and heard a vibrating noise from under the hood. Popped the hood and listen closely and it was the alternator wire vibrating. I put my hands on the wire to confirm the vibration. I shook the wire and the vibration stop, but then smoke was coming out of the alternator. Is this a sign of a bad alternator?
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I've tried replacing it, and while it fits in there nice and snug, within 10-20 minutes it vibrates itself loose again and I have smoke coming out from the hood from the oil spilling out onto the engine. Is there some easily-removable caulk I can fasten the oil cap in with? (so that when I need to fill it with oil I can still get to it, natch).
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I parked my car last night in front of the house at 11:30pm last night. The car has not been driven since. At around 1pm the next day my car alarm went off and I went to shut it off and noticed very minor misty smoke coming out of the hood by the windshield. I opened the hood and could smell electrical smoke. I could not find any noticeable damage. Checked fuses and relays. Does not seem to be a problem. However when I get close to the fuse and relay panel under the hood I could hear a clicking and very distant occasional hiss sound. I tried to start the car and everything seem to work but when I push the start button nothing. At this point I disconnected the battery. I called lexus and the rep said he had seen this before and indicated that it is probably a ground or something that corroded and shorted out.
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I have a 1985 Silverado where a mouse must have chewed through the main electrical wire that goes from the battery to the starter. Without knowing this, I tried to start the truck, it turned over a couple times, then a burnt electrical smell and smoke was coming from under the hood.
I replaced the wire and the starter. Now I have all electronics restored but when I turn the key, nothing happens. The lights don't dim and it doesn't even click. If I arc the solenoid on the starter, it turns over and runs just fine.
I have checked all the fuses and relays under the dash. Those don't appear burnt out and I've tried swapping relays and that doesn't work either.
Is there anything else that could have shorted out? Are there other fuses or relays that I'm missing? Or is there something with the ignition that could be causing it?
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I have a 2001 nissan altima. About 4 weeks ago it started over heating, smoke coming from under the hood, not the gauge raising. I took it to my mechanic and he replaced the big hose going from the radiator to the engine. I got it back and about 2 days later it started again overheating again, smoke under the hood. Took it back and he said the radiator is leaking it was under a year old so he replaced it, i drove it home on a sunday and monday morning I drove to work 5 miles at 10 am break it had two puddles under it. He said it's the radiator again, replaced it and we went to pick it up and he said it blew again. Sounds odd to me He finally said they thought it was the fans. The gauge never ran hot only the smoke coming from under the hood. If your looking under the hood it was wet on the left side. Needless to say he has had my car for almost 2 weeks and it's still not fixed. My question is should I go get it and take it somewhere else. What damage will it do to drive it somewhere else?
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My 2001.5 Passat traditionally does not start easily when it is less than 6degrees outside. Today it was that cold..it started easily..but about 30 minutes into my drive to work..I realized it was a little smoky and exhaustish smelling in the car..once I realized it wasn't the car next to me..i realized if I turned off the heat..the smell went away..but at the stoplight..i could see smoke coming from under the hood..out the corner by the passenger/dashboard... Car has 80,000, recent oil change, what it is?
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When I drive home from work at night I see a thin white smoke come from the right side on my hood. (Headlight area) I open the hood and I can't pin point it....smells vaguely on burnt rubber. I am new to a TDI so maybe I'm just being an idiot, but what is it? I drive spirited on the way home, but dont floor it. I do have one hill thats pretty steep I usually charge up...(fun to burn the rice rockets who struggle!) I thought maybe parking brake? Its only got 750 miles on it, so maybe its oil burning? 2006 v10
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On my way home from work traveling at 65 miles an hour, all of a sudden the oil light came on and i got steam or smoke coming from under my hood, and had to be towed home, after it was towed home I tried to start it and and the engine makes this whining sound now.it sounds as if it is trying to turn over but with less of a cranking sound. is the engine gone in it or could there be another issue?
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I purchased a Certified Pre-owned 2008 Lexus LS 460 in January 2011 with 29,000 miles. On April 2, 2011 I was parking my car and smelled wires burning and then saw smoke coming out of the hood. I immediately cut the engine, got my kids to safety and called 911. The firemen threw water on the engine and disconnected battery. It was towed to a local Lexus dealer and has been there since. They believe it was the starter, but the repairs as of yet are not complete. I submitted a claim with headquarters to give me my money back or a comparable vehicle. I am concerned about the safety of this vehicle and any residual chemicals and smoke that may remain with the vehicle.
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