Chomper149

iTrader: (2)

I have a stock 94 that has started to smoke from the engine bay. It appears that all of it is coming from the transmission tunnel. Looking from the bottom of the car i sometimes see smoke coming from the cat but not every time that i see it coming from the tranny tunnel above. I have no smoking coming from the tail pipe. Before i only noticed the problem when i pushed the car in hot weather. sometimes the smoke would happen. The problem has gotten worse and the last time i was home the car started to emit some smoke once the engine reached operating temps. The smoke to me is darker in color. it doesnt appear to have the blue tint that would signal it as oil smoke. Its a thicker black smoke that reminds me of possibly rubber burning. now the car also has a oil leak on the drivers side front cover but i do not think that is causing the smoke even if oil got on some parts while driving. the car also smells a bit like gasoline since ive had it but this problem doesnt always exist even if i smell gas. plus i assume thats a bit natural with a rotary
So i am going to jack the car up this weekend and turn it on to see if i could find the source of the smoke.
After searching the form i couldnt find much of anything on this. The closest thing i could find was that someone with a t2 had a ground wire that overheated an emitted similar symptoms i did.
basically im asking if anyone here has had similar problems as this or could think of what could be causing the smoke? any pointers on what to check when i put it on jack stands and look in depth for anything causing it?
Looking from above you can not tell where the smoke is coming from nor can i think of why such smoke would be occuring.
any help can get would be awesome. thanks

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

This is just one of those you are going to have to narrow down the area where the smoke is coming from first. Once you have that, then you'll be able to get some online help.

RXtacy

iTrader: (7)

Possibly an exhaust leak?

Chomper149

iTrader: (2)

if it was an exhaust leak wouldnt i see smoke coming out the tail pipe end?
ill let everyone know what i find out tomorrow when i jack it up and check for the cause.

twinsinside

iTrader: (34)

regarding the gas smell : Do a search on FPD + FIRE. If that's the original stock parts in there, especially with the smell of gas present I'd replace that sucker.

Chomper149

iTrader: (2)

ok so after jacking the car up today it looks like is coming from the exhaust. i saw some smoke coming out of where the downpipe and cat meet. also so smoke forming around the precat and the main cat. So now the

Chomper149

iTrader: (2)

so after checking today it looks like it is the exhaust. i saw smoke around the precat and main cat and saw smoke coming out from where the precat meets main cat. so now the question is why is it smoking and how is it smoking at that section but have no smoke come from the tail end of the car?
also a quick question regarding my oil leak. Im not entirely sure about this but ive read that the front cover is not pressurized? Since i have a leak at the front cover and if it is unpressurized like ive read then does that mean it should not affect my oil pressure? using the dummy stock oil pres gauge it reads close to what it should be but not exactly. 3k rpm the oil pres is above the 1st dash but just by a little bit.

oo7arkman

iTrader: (2)

Smoke before main cat, and no smoke out of tailpipe... I guess that means your cat is working. <Explains smoke/no smoke question..

Oil pressure should be around 60psi at 3k rpm. Oil leak around the front cover could be the front cover gasket, or oil pan gasket if the leak is on the bottom of the front cover. Front cover should not be pressurized.

Side note, if you still have the precat you should look into replacing that. It creates an exorbitant amount of engine bay heat that is very detrimental to hoses and other parts.

Also like mentioned above, if you are smelling fuel your first priority should be to fix that. Many FD's have burnt to the ground b/c of fuel leak issues. Please keep a fire extinguisher in your car, it could save you.

Chomper149

iTrader: (2)

so the exhaust is naturally that smoky? I didnt think exhaust gas would be this smoky before hitting the cat. which is why i didnt assume it as an exhuast leak
2nd the leak is coming from the front gasket cover, the gasket seal has failed not the oil pan seal. So since the front cover isnt pressurized it shouldnt affected my oil pressure at all right? that and it def is pressurized a bit because it leaks very little at idle but if i rev it (up to 3k or so) the leak flow increases. Is it also ok to run the car normally like this? i dont beat on my car at all but if i redline now and then with this leak is it a big deal? I dont have a new oil pressure gauge yet, i am looking into which one to buy currently.
Also i have a downpipe sitting in my garage. i was waiting to get a new main cat since mine is cracked and possibly an A/F so that i wouldnt need to pull the dp multiple times.
I will def look into the fuel smell. I already drive around with a fire extinguisher. ive seen tooo many stories here.
thanks so far for the help ive gotten

oo7arkman

iTrader: (2)

Upon startup there is condensation in the tailpipe, particularly in systems with both cats, that will cause some smoke. Also, cold starts the FD runs on the rich side and can also cause smoke but depending on what all kinds of junk is in those 17 year old cats..

Behind the front cover is the oil pump and oil pump chain that will be throwing oil so that could be causing some of the oil leak you are seeing. Try using a little rtv sealer where you think the leak is to try and seal it up. You may also try snugging up those bolts but look up the torque specs b/c if I remember correctly they are not torqued really tightly...