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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Maintenance and Repair / August 200693 Passat smoke under hood
Hi all, just bought a 1993 VW Passat GLX V6, 170,000 miles. Looked good, test drive for half hour in various conditions. Drove for two days before white smoke started coming out from under the hood and through the A/C vents; temp light came on. Pulled over immediately and had it towed to my mechanic.... who was on vacation. Next day drove it a few blocks to Jiffy Lube and on the way it smoked again. I stopped and checked the coolant level and there was hardly anything in the damn thing! Construction guy on the road dumped water into it and I headed to Jiffy Lube; changed oil, told them about what happened, they said they filled the coolant and I should be alright just have it checked when my mechanic gets back. Sure enough not halfway home the smoke started from under the hood again. It looks like smoke, not steam. Under hood every time and through the vents the first time while A/C was on; left A/C off after that. Hard time distinguishing smell; kindof burny possibly electrical but I'm not real sure. Took it back to my mechanic who got home this morning; right off the bat he found a coolant leak where a hose connects to the thermostat housing. Could there be something else going on as well? Any questions I should ask my mechanic? What do you think I should expect? I want to do some research on my own, not just take one person's word for it - you never know. Thanks much, Cris Most problems are found by observation. Start by cleaning engine compartment. Wheel Cleaner or Simple Green works well. A soft brush and some patience will strip years of crud from wiring. With a clean engine, little stuff shows right up. You've probably got some melted fusable links or connectors if you are seeing smoke. > Most problems are found by observation. Start by cleaning engine > compartment. Wheel Cleaner or Simple Green works well. A soft brush > and some patience will strip years of crud from wiring. > > With a clean engine, little stuff shows right up. You've probably > got some melted fusable links or connectors if you are seeing smoke. With an obvious coolant leak??? Where the hell do you come up with burned electrics? Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view! Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590 (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page) You saw smoke, you were out of fluid, filled it and saw smoke again. Filled it again at the oil change place, continued driving and blew more smoke and your mechanic found a leak. What is so puzzling? Other than the leak, you might just have fried the engine from driving it with no coolant. You could have burned out the valve guide seals that will now make it an oil burner. You will know soon. If it puffs blue smoke when you first start it, you have burned the valve seals. If it puffs blue when you give it gas, you have burned out the rings, if it starts going bang bang bang, you have burned out the bearings. Or you might just be lucky and nothing at all happened..... 'Most' people do not continue driving an engine that is appearing to be on fire or belching coolant from under the hood. Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view! Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590 (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page) > Hi all, just bought a 1993 VW Passat GLX V6, 170,000 miles. Looked > good, test drive for half hour in various conditions. [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > Thanks much, > Cris Gee aren't you a pleasant person. > You saw smoke, you were out of fluid, filled it and saw smoke again. > Filled it again at the oil change place, continued driving and blew more [quoted text clipped - 54 lines] > > Thanks much, > > Cris Some days the wrong side of the bed seems to be the one I roll out of.... sorry but... You seemed like you were looking for some reason to say the vehicle was a bad one. Unfortunately anything bad that now happens to the drivetrain is your fault for driving it with no coolant. Had you waited after the first tow, rather than drive it empty of coolant, you might have had some recourse with the seller if the engine blows smoke or knocks now. Mike > Gee aren't you a pleasant person. > [quoted text clipped - 56 lines] > > > Thanks much, > > > Cris > Could there be something else going on as well? Any questions I should > ask my mechanic? What do you think I should expect? I want to do some > research on my own, not just take one person's word for it - you never You are dealing with a 13 year old car with 170k miles.... Of course there is something else going on!!! It's old, it's tired and it needs love. Keep an eye on the fluids and don't continue to drive it after it overheats and you will likely get a few more years out of it. At this point the only thing you can do is watch it VERY carefully to see if anything else is leaking. Steve B. |
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