smoke/steaming front right under the hood

well you read it guys. I got home from a very short drive and noticed a lot of white stuff (smoke or steam) coming from what seemed the front right section under the hood. I know that's where the turbo is, but I just had a new one installed just over 6k ago. Let me give you the full breakdown.

 

jumped in the car after not driving it a ton the past few days. I usually try to be nice to my car and let it warm up for a minute or two first at least. this was a quick run though and I had to go right away. jumped in the car and drove off without letting it warm up, I drove maybe 2 miles each way, never revving over maybe 3.5k. it wasn't until I got back home and put the car in reverse and backed into my driveway. decent amount of white smoke and was definitely from under the hood, not exhaust.

 

I haven't popped the hood yet and looked because I park outside, its night, and its raining. perfect trifecta. went out 10 minutes later to see if it was still smoking and it wasn't. that's all I got. THOUGHTS?

Coolant. Pop the hood and figure out where the leak is coming from.

Coolant. Pop the hood and figure out where the leak is coming from.

 

is that a common problem? im checking it out this afternoon

It is some kind of coolant leak. On an 05 I would put money on the radiator end-tanks since we've seen a bunch of 02-06 radiators starting to fail the past 3 years or so. This is fairly common on radiators that have plastic end tanks as eventually they will leak.

 

It isn't a very expensive repair if that is the case.

 

-Mike Paisan

 

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It is some kind of coolant leak. On an 05 I would put money on the radiator end-tanks since we've seen a bunch of 02-06 radiators starting to fail the past 3 years or so. This is fairly common on radiators that have plastic end tanks as eventually they will leak.

 

It isn't a very expensive repair if that is the case.

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/145749898/original.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://www.whiteline.com.au/images/logos/perf1.jpg

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Crack an egg in the radiator, right? I've seen McGuyver!

Crack an egg in the radiator, right? I've seen McGuyver!

 

Haaa. Nah, just get a replacement they are fairly inexpensive.

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/145749898/original.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://www.whiteline.com.au/images/logos/perf1.jpg

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http://youtu.be/NewO-rxyUTYupdate: so I took it out for a short drive to see if that was a fluke or something real. it did it again and started to overheat. I took a short crappy video to help in the aid of my legacy... please watch

 

I didn't see any steam in that video... Do you see white residue anywhere?

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/145749898/original.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://www.whiteline.com.au/images/logos/perf1.jpg

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it was kind of hard to see because I filmed this once I had gotten home and pulled over once to let the engine cool off. its right around the 5-6 second mark that you can see a little puff of smoke.

 

I didn't see any steam in that video... Do you see white residue anywhere?

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/145749898/original.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://www.whiteline.com.au/images/logos/perf1.jpg

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Any recent work or changes to the car?

 

I just did my timing belt and to make things easier I took the radiator out. I cleaned off a bunch of corrosion/old dried up coolant from the connections and ended up having leaks after I put it all back together. A new upper radiator hose and clamps fixed my issue...

just over 6k ago I had the engine rebuilt/new turbo, and maybe a little less than a month ago I had a new cracked radiator drain plug installed.

 

Any recent work or changes to the car?

 

I just did my timing belt and to make things easier I took the radiator out. I cleaned off a bunch of corrosion/old dried up coolant from the connections and ended up having leaks after I put it all back together. A new upper radiator hose and clamps fixed my issue...

thoughts on cost?

 

Haaa. Nah, just get a replacement they are fairly inexpensive.

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/145749898/original.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://www.whiteline.com.au/images/logos/perf1.jpg

11+ Years Maintaining, Modifying and Educating TriState Subaru Enthusiasts.

Call directly as We carry almost every manufacturer now, so before you buy parts call us.

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thoughts on cost?

 

If you can do it yourself you shouldn't be paying more than about $200 in parts for OES stuff with hoses etc. If you wanted an all aluminum one, we can offer the Koyo or Mishimoto one, shoot us an e-mail and we'll get you a price.

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/145749898/original.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://www.whiteline.com.au/images/logos/perf1.jpg

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Did u ever fix the problem and find out what it was? Last night my car seemed to be doing the same thing, I gotta check again to make sure.

yea, i think it was just a blown radiator hose from what i remember

see if the smoke is coming from the uppipe heat shield area

I had a cracked valve cover gasket, and the oil was dripping onto the heat shield, and the heat shield would evaporate the oil creating a faint white/very light blue smoke coming out of the hood scoop

if you turn on the ac, there would be that horrible smell too

It only happened once after I was driving for a while and then was racing a friends 350z lol and engine had been on for a while. It hasn't happened since and I checked oil and coolant levels were fine. Will keep an eye tho. Already had valve cover gaskets changed

These cars are know for the passenger side valve cover leaking. Check the back corner of the VC.

These cars are know for the passenger side valve cover leaking. Check the back corner of the VC.

 

Passenger side CV joints as well.

 

-Mike Paisan

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/153798190.jpg

Maintaining, Modifying and Educating TriState Enthusiasts since 2001.

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see if the smoke is coming from the uppipe heat shield area

I had a cracked valve cover gasket, and the oil was dripping onto the heat shield, and the heat shield would evaporate the oil creating a faint white/very light blue smoke coming out of the hood scoop

if you turn on the ac, there would be that horrible smell too

 

These cars are know for the passenger side valve cover leaking. Check the back corner of the VC.

 

It only happened once after I was driving for a while and then was racing a friends 350z lol and engine had been on for a while. It hasn't happened since and I checked oil and coolant levels were fine. Will keep an eye tho. Already had valve cover gaskets changed

 

I just decided to go through the maintenance section...I have this exact problem.

 

If I let the car sit for a few days, I get a white smoke coming from what I can tell is right below the turbo, where the uppipe is. Usually it dissipates quickly, but last month the car sat for 3-4 days and it took awhile to burn off.

 

It smells really bad, my first thought was coolant, but I don't think there are any major coolant hoses back there, anything I could see at least. I also couldn't see anything really accumulating anywhere either, or the source of the white smoke.

 

I have an aftermarket uppipe, so no heat shield on that, but what should I be looking for to see if I have a cracked valve cover gasket.

 

I do have oil consumption issues for sure. It seems like there is plenty of oil until 3k miles, but then if I stretch it to 5k its almost empty.

 

Assistance is greatly appreciated

First off, don't let the oil get that low, always keep it full.

 

Here's my leaking valve cover, mine wasn't to bad.

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN4731.jpg

 

Look up with a flashlight from under the car.

First off, don't let the oil get that low, always keep it full.

 

Here's my leaking valve cover, mine wasn't to bad.

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN4731.jpg

 

Look up with a flashlight from under the car.

 

Ok..so that is the bottom side of the block? Right next to where the exhaust manifold is? It's that seam that was leaking?

Did you notice any leaks on the ground? Would it even drip? I've had my under cover off for some time now and have had no oil leaks under the car that I could notice. I am assuming to fix this, you had to take apart the whole engine? Is there some sealant or compound that would help this out in the short term. I'll get rid of the car if something major needs to be repaired at this point.

No, just replace the valve cover gasket. it's done with the engine still in the car. lots of threads here about doing that. google it.

Thanks for the help! Looks like I'll have to investigate this weekend.

Definitely lots of how-tos on google

you can do it with the engine still in the car

 

it's a bitch to do it tho...