Suprast4R

ok so after this happening many times to me, i decided to come on the boards to ask you guys.

whenever i floor my car past 60-70 i always get a burning smell in the cockpit, it has happened alot but today it happened about 3 times so i got worried that something might be wrong. i have asked numerous friends and got some conclusions that *its a normal thing* or *change your oil*

my question for you Sc guys, especially 300's since thats what my car is, has this ever happened to you? is this normal? if not, how can i fix it? thanks guys.

rscott

what kind of smell? theres like 100 different burning smells that can come out and 100 more different sources.

rscott

im thinking it may be oil from a leaky valve cover gasket or your dist leaking oil look around for leaks then look around for any wires that may have come loose. Plastic has a distinct smell and so does oil. Look around for any leaks or loose connections.

Suprast4R

actually now that i think about it some more, its leaning about towards plastic since you mentioned it. but i am not sure, i cannot really remember what kind of burning it smelled like. i will go have it checked out soon though, more help guys!

joshthorsc

Check to see if your car is leaking oil. I have a sc400 and when I floor it for awhile I also get that smell, but my car is leaking oil from the rear main seal which drips onto the exhaust pipe and causes a burnt oil smell. But then again, I've also known alot of people get that smell after they've driven their car hard.

W4SIM

I sometimes get a burning smell from my 2.5TT. Now more recently after a hard drive or a long drive after i park the car up i notice smoke coming out from underneath the car. Nothing major, just visible. I opened the bonnet when it happened yesterday and it was coming from behind the engine somewhere.

Could this be oil leaking on my exhaust and burning? If so, where would the oil be coming from?

rscott

Its likely that it is the rear main seal as well if the smoke is coming up from the rear. The color of the smoke is usually a pretty sure way to tell. Oil burning produces white smoke. If it is enough to have visible smoke coming from under the hood, it might be something you want to have checked out. That sounds like its burning alot of whatever it is burning.

SC400Dude

My car has the burning smell of oil after hard driving or extended trip driving. I also have an intermittent rear main seal problem. Sometimes it leaks and sometimes it doesn't. Weird, but nonetheless, something is burning. Then again, I have over 277,000 miles on my car.....

Have your car checked dude...

rscott

damn 277k is kind of alot bro.

mikeloc24

A sure way to tell if it's the valve cover gaskets is that you'll see white smoke coming from under the hood, hopefully it's minor smoke, mine was. Those gaskets cost $21 each from the dealer, pretty cheap, and you need 2 of them (one for each side). It's the labor that will run you because of all the crap you have to remove to replace the gaskets. Also, there's an o-ring under the distributor cap, replace that too as it's most likely crumbly from engine heat. It's $2 from the dealer.

Also, make sure what you smell isn't your brakes. Most people don't realize that when you drive hard you also, as a consequence, often have to brake hard. Good luck.

rscott

dist o-ring is kind of a pain in the *** to change...
sure way to tell is if the heat shield underneath is caked in sludge.

as far as the valve cover gasket, if you can see oil dripping down, its a sure sign. Mine are leaking. Ill take some pics later today when i get back to my car

BAZ

My soarer smokes after a hard drive, had it checked out & apparently it leeks from the transmission box!
[ yet to bother fixing it ]

Suprast4R

im leaning toward baz's issue, everyone elses sounds like great suggestions of what mine could be. hopefully when my new bushings come in, and i go to have it installed, i will have my problem checked out, all of it is free since im under warranty

Ice350

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, I had a slight burning smell on my 95. The dealership found the valve cover gaskets needed replacing. I've always wondered why manufacturers use cardboard or plastic for gaskets. I mean we all know an engine gets hot. Over time, regardless of how good the car is, the thing will need to be changed. Why can't this thing be made of something more durable? Anyone know the answer.

rscott

you dont have to use those paper gaskets. You can also use a tube of the silicon valve cover gasket maker. Its a little messier, but done right it will work fine and seal perfectly.