after I got off the interstate on the way to work, (20 minutes into my morning drive) the exhaust was smelling really rich. About 5 minutes after that, all the warning lights came on (like it does when the key's on but the engine's not running). The car continued to run and smell REALLY rich, with a sputtering idle until I parked. The idiot lights all stayed on, too.

I looked under the hood when I parked, mainly checking for fires and/or major leakage, but I saw neither, so I went ahead in to work.

I read in the FAQ that the light cluster coming full-on could be caused by a weak charging system. The alternator belt will be the first thing I look at when I get back to the parking lot today, but is there anything else you guys can recommend checking, given the limited information here = ) since I'll be in the parking lot with a couple hand tools and that's it.

thanks!
-marshall

 

Most likley you lost the alternator belt or the alternator itself is dead.

 

^ I agree. Same thing happened to me a couple times. One time my belt broke (racing an Integra), another I destroyed it (the alternator) when I hit boost cut redlining in 3rd gear. Both times all of my idiot lights came on...

 

cool. thanks for the quick replies, guys.