Burning smell/ Smoke from engine bay???

[Scott25]

Hi guys, I have a '90 Rev 1 G-Limited import with 85k on the clock. Im noticing that after a long run or after a more spirited drive, there is a really bad burning smell, and some light, whispy white/grey smoke coming from the left side of the engine bay in particular. The temp gauge remains constantly just below the middle of the dial without fluctuation and the car itself drives/sounds well.

Ive checked oil, coolant, water levels and all are good. Any ideas what might be causing this?? Would a full service be the answer perhaps or am i missing something. Its my first mr2 so any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Scott

[KarlBristol]

Its ashame that your not closer mate, as I'd happily have a look and try and sort it out for you

To me it sounds like your engine warms up and then something rubs against it causing it to burn. Id have a good look around your engine bay, looking for any signs of obvious burning or marking. Also make sure you check the underside of the car, as smoke can be a pain to trace!

[Scott25]

Hey thanks for the reply Yeah I must try and pinpoint where the smoke is coming from but it is definately venting out from the left side of the bay after a drive. I must also add that the car overheated badly once last week, so Im assuming at the minute this is related.

Although the car drives well, the temp gauge sits perfectly in the middle but the burning smell and smoke are still there??? In fact, sometimes, it drops to a quarter and then rises to the middle again??? After reading through the site, im starting to think I might have a gasket/thermostat/coolant/rad issue perhaps??? Would any of these lead to the smell and smoke after a run????

[dantheman]

I cant be sure what the problem is but i would check for oil and coolant leaks. Possibly they are leaking out and burning off, maybe because they dripped onto exhaust or something. If it was a coolant leak it might not show up as a drop in coolant level if more coolant is being drawn in from the overflow tank.

I would check this by getting the car up in the air, getting the engine up to temperature then wedge something in the throttle body to keep the revs at 3000 rpm. see if you can see any smoke and locate its source.

[Torero]

From the left side, it could be the rubber boot on the driveshaft is snagged and is heating up on harsher revs.

Worth checking out.

[Scott25]

Thanks for the replys guys. I will be investigating the cause of the smoke this evening hopefully if it happens again. Just one further question, I think I can hear an intermittent 'buzzing' sound also, even when the car is off. I think it might be coming from the charcoal canister??? Can anyone shed any light on this noise for me, is it faulty???