I recently noticed that my car was starting to smell like oil burning off. Soon i realized that from time to time there would be a bit of smoke form under the hood I looked under the car and noticed that oil is dripping onto the cat but i am not sure from where. There is not alot of room in the back of these engines to see.
View 3 RepliesYesterday I made a 3 hour round trip with my car, and on the last leg coming back into town, I noticed my check engine light came on, and I saw white smoke coming from underneath the hood of my car, along with a burning smell. Luckily I was able to make it home just fine. I've googled this issue, some people have suggested coolant leak.
Also, I checked the oil levels today and they appeared to be slightly below the lowest level tick, which could be why it was having issues yesterday. Last time I got an oil change was November of 2015. I'm surprised it's this low considering I normally don't commute farther than a couple miles each day.
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.
View 12 RepliesToday was the first day I notice smoke from the wheel well, it wasn't heavy smoke but enough to caught my eye. The past few days I been smelling burning oil from that side of the car. I am not leaking oil from the motor because I check it everyday. Why it would smell and be smoking from the wheel well?
View 3 RepliesI can smell burning oil and when stopped see oil smoke coming from the right front area. Theres absolutely no fluid on the ground ever even after sitting for days. I cant visually see any oil leak on the engine but I cant see the back. Im guessing its a valve cover leaking just enough on top of the exhaust on that side. Ive seen the gasket/plug seal set from $25 to $80. Some include the timing chain area gaskets/seals. Is that necessary to change at same time? Also, is there a gasket where the intake manifold and valve cover meet needing changed along with?
2004 Passat 2.8l V6 GLX
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?
View 1 RepliesLately my 2002 v6 has been smelling like it's burning oil from under the hood. Around the front exhaust manifold, there's a wet black "powder" type substance. Oil levels are fine and the car has also been driving without any issues. The car hasn't overheated but then again, I live in NJ where the temperatures don't go above 35F.
I'll be posting a picture tomorrow.
The car has 144k and the timing belt, water pump, spark plugs were done at 120k.
Just got a weird chemical smell on my way back from lunch and the a/c stopped working. Pulled up to the garage and there was a smell of burning under the hood, plus a fairly loud hum, and also these weird noises that sounded like electrical discharges from underneath.
View 21 RepliesWhile waiting at a stop light my car totally died, there were no warning lights, the car is a 2011 Subaru forester with 52,000 km. I had it pushed off the road, tried to restart it with jump cables but it would not turn over. I noticed an odd burning smell when I opened the hood. There were rat tracks on top of the engine area. I had the battery pulled out and replaced with another fully charged but it did not make a difference.
After sitting for two days, I restarted the car and the engine managed to turn over but very very rough, a mechanic thought there was something loose in the engine. I currently live in Mexico and closest subaru dealership is 5 hours away. I will need to get it towed there but I would like to have some idea of what it may be, my thought is somehow a wire got chewed off but I had driven it about 20 miles that morning and then it just stopped dead.
I have a new 2013 Hyundai Accent (automatic, 4 cylinder) with less than 1500 miles on it. The day I drove it off the lot and up until today, it randomly smells like burning rubber. It happens whether it is hot or cold, driven two miles or thirty miles. The smell is coming from under the hood but I know very little about engines, so I'm not sure what it is. I have told the dealership and they don't seem to care. I may not know much about cars but I know that that smell is not normal, especially in a new car. What could be causing this...
View 7 RepliesI've had my 2001 Ford Ranger for almost a year now 240,000 miles, almost no problems until now. It doesn't overheat, but smoke is coming from the hood and smells like burning oil EVERYTIME I start it up & drive it. I don't think its a head gasket problem, but I could be wrong.
View 3 RepliesHad numerous problems the last 9 months, and we've replaced the thermostat, water pump, clutch fan, flushed radiator. Last week we thought the heater core had died (air blowing cold, but gauge not indicating any overheating). But it just need flushing, had a clog. Has been kicking out the heat ever since.
What is bothering me though is that the temp gauge always seems to be right at the C, even after driving for a while. Before the van had issues, it stayed right between N and O.
Then this morning, I hear a loud pop, smell horrible burning antifreeze and smoke/steam pouring out from the hood (I managed to park it immediately, had just dropped son off at school). After I'm parked, all the antifreeze puddles underneath.
So hubby comes, and we see that the top radiator hose has blown, with a lovely crack/hole from one side to the other. Now, that hose was old, and probably was a big part of the problem.
We fixed it, and I just drove it again, but I am watching the gauge. And the van is blowing nice, HOT air from the heater. But the gauge is staying right at the C. Used to run between N and O. It is jumpy...not jumping towards hot, but little jumps...below the C, above the C, up to the N, back down to C...it just seems strange to me; it doesn't go past the N at all and spends most of its time at or below the C.
I guess I am wondering if there is any other reason why the hose could've blown this morning besides it being old and worn out....for example, excess heat and pressure building up that for some reason is not registering on the temp gauge? It's making me nervous. Is there something else besides the thermostat that could cause erratic temp gauge or cause gauge not to show me the true engine temp?
I don't know much about cars. I have a 99 Mercedes e-320 and I started smelling a burning, but when I opened the hood, there wasn't any smoke. What could it be and is it still safe to drive?
View 7 RepliesTook about a 200 mile trip this weekend, stopped at a rest area about halfway through and smelled burnt carbon, smelled like a burnt clutch almost. It was very strong and there was smoke coming from the engine. It wasn't a lot but it was cause for concern. I checked the oil, last oil change about 1500 miles ago but no problems there, temp gauge was in the middle. Let the car sit for a 10 mins or so and then headed of again. When I got home that night, couldn't smell it and there was no smoke. Car has 42K ... Also, I got an airbag fault light about 30 mins from my house.
View 8 RepliesSo yesterday I was on my way home from work, and I had smelled a little burning and then I saw smoke from the steering column???? i pulled over and it had stopped no lights came up? the car is fine now..? I don't know whats going on?
View 4 RepliesSo I took off today and my friend behind me in his ford ranger was telling me my car smelled like ish, and there was a lof of black smoke coming out my exhaust.....
View 1 RepliesI have a 2002 Honda Odyssey. The other day while driving, and today after just starting up, the car makes a whining noise, multiple lights on the dash illuminate (charge, all door open indicators, brake, and brake light bulb indicator) and when I open the hood I can smell a slight burning smell. I thought maybe something was frozen, but the belt is not unusually warm, and all the pulleys I can see are turning.
View 17 RepliesI have a 2001 F150 4x4 supercrew XLT 4.6 with 150,000 miles. I have a few things happening in the truck, and although it is still running for now, I would like to get ahead of this before something catastrophic happens, and I don't know if everything is related, or everything is falling apart separately.
1. I have been noticing a burning smell coming from under the hood after driving, every time I drive, but no noticeable leaks, and oil level is fine. I have seen light smoke coming from the exhaust but inconsistently. A mechanic said it was probably the valve cover seals leaking to the manifold, but I would think there would eventually be less oil on the dipstick?
2. When on the gas, over 2200 RPMish, the air and AC switches to defrost. It seems like a vacuum line leak somewhere, but can't find it.
3. Generally, the truck seems sluggish, sometimes unwilling to shift gears or accelerate at freeway speeds. Not sure if its the transmission going out again (had it replaced at 125000), or spark plugs?
We have a 2015 Santa Fe Sport AWD (without turbo). It has about 4,200 miles on it. Recently my wife complained about a burning smell that she hadn't noticed previously.
I drove it and noticed the smell. Pulled into our garage and left the engine running and noticed a minor, but noticeable amount of smoke coming out from the hood on the passenger side. When I opened the hood it appeared the smoke was coming from the lower, back side of the engine.
I later went out and started the car and let it idle for a bit. Didn't notice any burning smell or smoke. Later drove it again and noticed the smell and a little smoke. So it seems like it occurs when the car has been driven rather than simply started and not driven.
2002 Santa Fe V6
Ran the AC yesterday for the first time after a long cold winter. Seemed fine for about 15 miles but then I came to a stop and all of the sudden smelled burning plastic/electrical... white smoke started blowing out of the vents. Pulled over, popped the hood. The smoke appeared to be coming from the passenger/rear side of the engine.
Drove it another 15 miles home (had to) but with no AC or even fan on... made it and noticed the smell and smoke but only very little.
This morning I started it up .. got under the hood and clearly can smell it coming from the same area. That is the alternator at the back of the engine passenger side right? Voltages read fine... seems to be charging ok as well.
The only indicator that it is going bad is of course the smell and smoke... I can feel it is getting very hot.. too hot to touch after only a few minutes running. Spun bearings in it maybe? Just thought I'd put that out there before I start tearing it apart.
I have a 93 Aerostar RWD 4.0L that I was driving around town a few weeks ago and I noticed it wasn't braking that well. The pedal is usually firm but easy to push and very sensitive...instead it was a lot firmer and didn't brake as quickly when i put my foot down. The van itself felt a little under powered, like something was holding it back and I had to put my foot down a lot more to get it up to speed. After awhile I began getting a really bad burning smell coming in through the driver window. I pulled over and saw small faint lines of smoke coming out of the front driver side wheel well, upon closer inspection I got a good wiff of burnt brake pad (I am familiar with the scent) and the hub cap on the wheel was really hot. I automatically assumed the caliper was ceased.
Later when I had free time took the wheel off removed the caliper from the wheel and everything looked fine. I was able to push the piston back in with ease using a C-clamp, but there was a lot of corrosion in and around the piston, I wire brushed it off and greased and cleaned everything up. I took it out since then on a few short trips to the store, everything seemed fine. Today however it happened again, and I began smelling burnt brake pad from the same wheel well. It only seems to happen when I have been driving it for a long time like 30mins to 1hr, short trips everything is fine. Is this the caliper or the Master cylinder? Due to the excessive heat around the wheel hub should i maybe think about replacing the inner and outer wheel bearings as well?