??Antifreeze where it shouldnt be..steam Question
 

Hey folks, Just wanted to throw out a question. I have a 94 Ebony and in the last few weeks I have noticed steam/smoke coming from left front wheelwell area. I can really see where its coming from. these are things I know for sure

1. I am losing antifreeze
2. It smells like it is hitting the exhaust manifold.

It doesnt get any worse but I am a bit concerned since if I get stuck in traffic my temp gauge goes up and my AC stops blowing cold.

Are there any "SVX quirks" concerning this? If not, where should I look first. thanks for you comments.. Chris

It does not sound like a common problem. There havn't been many coolant leaks. The driver side of the SVX has a bunch of coolant connection that could be a problem, water pump, heater hoses, throttle body. I think you may want to take a look the next time it's hot and see if you can spot anthing near the rear of the engine, heater hoses may be the problem. A leaking water pump would show up under the engine in front but would blow back to the exhaust when you drive. There is a short hose and pipe right behind the water pump that would act this way also.

You're car's overheating and blowing coolant out the reservoir overflow.

dcb

Not necessarily overheating but I do agree it's coming from the overflow tank.

Overheating??
 

I thought of that first... but there is very little in the res tank, so wouldnt it take alot of the fluid to be pushed back and out to fall on the exhaust manifold?

What would cause it to overheat? themostat?

thanks Chris

Aggressive driving (like autocross) does it for me.

It's running hot in traffic, pushing coolant out the overflow... first you should top-off the radiator, if you haven't already, then start looking for the cause. I'd guess it's losing coolant due to overheating (not vice-versa), and the thermostat is probably a good place to start.

dcb