Technical Smoke!!!!

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Technical Smoke!!!!

Ozric-Al

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It's my own fault! I know it. Never, EVER say to someone how reliable your car is! :bang:

Driving to work this morning and notice that the revs are a little erratic. Think to myself "Ahhh, the old ICV. I'll have to have a look at the guide when I get to work." Then, notice a small puff of smoke from the front wing. "Hmmm, is that me or the guy in front?".

Well, it was me. Smoke is coming off the belts on the cambelt side of the engine. Can't see anything obvious but what I do know is that Shabash! did not overheat (was sitting in traffic so if she was gonna, she was gonna), power steering was fine and the alternator is charging the battery.

So, anyone reckon it's a stuck tensioner? Anything else? Gonna get her shipped to PowerFIAT anyway as she was due her cambelt in 5k so hopefully it is just a stuck tensioner and we'll be away.

Bugger! :cry:
 
if the smoke was steam then my money is on water pump gasket. check coolant level, and look for any drips under the engine.

if the smoke was from a seized bearing then it could be on either belt, but you usually get a nasty noise when a bearing seizes so tight that it smokes, and you need to be very careful because a bearing can only take so much heat before it collapses, and when it collapses you will cry.
 
It's definitely smoke not steam chap. You can tell by the awful smell. Smoke gets worse with revs too which is why I only noticed it when I pulled away. No smoke on idle. Oh and there is also a whining noise the pitch of which changes with revs too.

I won't be running her again until she's been checked as I'm not quite ready for the 20VT conversion just yet. ;)
 
Just spoken to Rog at PowerFIAT and he's pretty confident it's a seized tensioner. Just gotta get her over to him now.
 
oh in that case its definately a seized bearing, in an emergency a squirt of wd40 can be used to get you home. if you are lucky it will be something on the aux belt, making it a quick and easy fix. easy way to find the problem is turning each pulley by hand once you remove the aux belt. fingers crossed its the tensioner.
 
Absolutely chap. Have to say I'm taking no chances so it'll be RAC to the rescue tomorrow to get her over to Rog. As I said, she's due the cambelt in 5k (actually no, it's 3k) anyway so it's not as though I'll be out of pocket (as long as it is the bearing).

P.S. Isn't it nice to hear of someone having this problem and catching it before shafting the engine. :D
 
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Isn't it nice to hear of someone having this problem and catching it before shafting the engine. :D
it certainly makes a change, usually it would be a case of
"my car has been smoking and making noises for the last 3 weeks and then it broke down on the way to work this morning."
 
it certainly makes a change, usually it would be a case of
"my car has been smoking and making noises for the last 3 weeks and then it broke down on the way to work this morning."

Lol!! :D

The suspicion now is that it is the Aux belt tensioner not the cambelt tensioner that has gone. She's with Rog at PowerFIAT now and she'll be getting the full cambelt change, aux belts etc done tomorrow as well as a pre-winter check.
 
Oh dear. Alternator is shagged! :(

Knowing that they are damn hard to get hold of I think we're gonna be waiting a while.

Ho hum. :(
 
I would do chap but tbh, I consider the alt as wear and tear so always go exchange recon route. At the end of the day, any in a scrappers will probs only last a year or so. Not only that, they are two types for the HGT (80A and 100A), the 100A being the rarest of the two. Last time the alt went the garage had a hell of a job finding the right one. They eventually took mine off and sent it to be reconditioned as they couldn't get one for love nor money.

Also, the labour is more than the part surprisingly as you have to take off the power steering pump and a load of other gubbins just to get the damn thing off so I'd hate to put in a second hand one only to have to have it changed again in a years time.
 
It's my own fault! I know it. Never, EVER say to someone how reliable your car is! :bang:

Driving to work this morning and notice that the revs are a little erratic. Think to myself "Ahhh, the old ICV. I'll have to have a look at the guide when I get to work." Then, notice a small puff of smoke from the front wing. "Hmmm, is that me or the guy in front?".

Well, it was me. Smoke is coming off the belts on the cambelt side of the engine. Can't see anything obvious but what I do know is that Shabash! did not overheat (was sitting in traffic so if she was gonna, she was gonna), power steering was fine and the alternator is charging the battery.

So, anyone reckon it's a stuck tensioner? Anything else? Gonna get her shipped to PowerFIAT anyway as she was due her cambelt in 5k so hopefully it is just a stuck tensioner and we'll be away.

Bugger! :cry:

it could be the automatic tensioner or it could be the head gasket if not sorted the engine can blow i have had this on one of my cars also check the icv as it might be lose also just spray the tensioner to get you about for now :bang:
 
it could be the automatic tensioner or it could be the head gasket if not sorted the engine can blow i have had this on one of my cars also check the icv as it might be lose also just spray the tensioner to get you about for now :bang:

Been confirmed as the alternator chap but thanks for the input.
 
And she's back! :)

Wallet is several hundred pounds lighter but she's back with a new cambelt, tensioners, aux belt, water pump and a brand new alternator (and a winter coolant change just to be on the safe side), firing on all cylinders, so to speak.

Had a dodgey couple of days where she wasn't revving freely through the mid range but it seems to have sorted itself out now. May just have been the ECU getting it's knickers in a twist after a week of the battery being disconnected but she's purring like a kitten again.

Happy as the proverbial hog in manure! :D
 
your receipt for all that work adds value to the car so think of it as an investment rather than a cost :D

Absolutely. :D

Thankfully the cambelt change was already budgeted so it's not as bad as it could have been. ;)
 
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