'97 3.0 Vulcan GL Wagon 200,145k: White Plume Firewall Side

'97 3.0 Vulcan GL Wagon 200,145k: White Plume Firewall Side

It's been sitting the last two weeks except for very short trips on the weekend. It was getting kind of dicey starting it - cranking and not starting right away. Was starting to have to press the pedal a bit to keep it going. Figured I'd stop driving it and replace the synchro & sensor which I know it needs, but I haven't done that now in two weeks. Might also need a fuel pump, but I'm not sure of that yet.

Anyway ... I drove it about 5 miles today to dump recyclables and when I turned to walk back to the car I noticed a pretty good amount of white smoke coming through the cracks of the hood! So I quickly finished dumping my plastics and glass and got it home (5 miles), popped the hood, but even though there was plenty of smoke I couldn't find a 'smoking gun' - at least no right away. The smoke was coming mostly from the passenger firewall quadrant of the engine compartment. I shot a flashlight all around the water pump area, firewall side of the block, underneath around the oil pan, back up the side of the block. No leaking freeze plugs, no leaking hoses, everything is dry - except for a tiny bead of wetness at the front where the water pump bolts on. It's not the pump itself, it's the next 'layer' closer to the block (maybe this is front cover?). There's no stream flowing anywhere that I can tell, no bubbling of liquid out of anywhere. It's a leak, yes - but very very minor.

Here's the only thing I DID see: the top of the first cat converter appears to be smoking. And there was more smoking near it's mouting bracket and even some coming off the downstream cat.

Does this point to an external leak that I just haven't been able to locate or does this mean coolant is blowing THROUGH the exhaust and excaping through the top of the cat?

The 'smoke' or plume only seems to happen after the car has been driven. I had tried to get it to happen simply by idling the car for at least 20-30 minutes (hot upper hose, fans off and on, etc.), but no 'smoke'. Had to take it out for a drive.

One more thing: Check Engine light is ALWAYS on with this car and here are the current codes: 1744, 340, 430, 1131. One of these is the CMP failure that I know about (340?), another (1131?) is a vacuum leak that I've never been able to get rid of. Another (1744) is a tranny-related issue that I haven't seen in EIGHT years (12/2003), and the other one is catalyst efficiency code that I've been seeing off and on since September 2004. I plan to fix the CMP problem, but I don't know about the others.

Did you happen to notice if the "smoke" smelled like burning coolant or burning oil, or maybe a mix between the two? The "smoke" from the converter would not be due to coolant in the exhaust stream unless there is a hole in the converter letting exhaust gasses escape AND you have a problem that allows coolant to be burned in the combustion process.

I'd suggest you start with a pressure test of the cooling system to identify where the leak really is coming from.

Was the engine idling fine or does it idle rough? You mention that you think one of the diagnostic codes points to a vacuum leak, are you noticing roughness? If you are burning rich it could causing the catalytic converters to be getting very hot. Running lean may be causing all of the exhaust to be getting hot.

Are all of the codes Powertrain, or "P" codes? When listing codes, please be sure to include the full code, such as P0340 rather than just 340. There are other systems that have codes which don't start with "P".

-Rod

shorod:

I THINK it smells (mostly) like coolant. I KNOW that, for months (years?) now, every time I get home from work (25 mile drive) and walk past the front end toward the house I catch a distinct whiff of coolant in the air. It's definitely vaporizing coolant. But it might also be externally burning some oil, too, because I KNOW the pan leaks a bit. Never any spotting on the ground, but I always end up wiping off the oily film during oil changes. Plus, after 3000+ miles I never get 4.5 Qts out of it. It's usually down about a quart, so maybe burning some and leaking some?

For the cooling system pressure test I'd need a 'kit' for that, right? Maybe the one at Harbor Freight? Or could you recommend a better quality set (without breaking the bank ... I think the H/F set runs about $100, which is OK, but I'd spend more for a better NON-Chinese set)?

As far as the idling, it's funny but the car has actually gotten WORSE since it's been sitting dormant on the driveway all week for the past couple of weeks. Before, it was idling rough in the mornings, occasionally sputtering down to almost a stall (and even stalling out), then it would be rough the first mile or two, but then it was OK the rest of the day. Now it's running rough pretty much all the time. Almost feels like low compression, too. Coming out of the recylcling center (at the base of an upgrade), the tach hit 3000 rpm as I tried to get out of the way of oncoming traffic. It was rough and really not moving like it should have been.

With regard to the codes, they are all "P" prefixes. I've never seen any other code other than "P" codes appear on my cars. I'm guessing the other categories are extremely rare? And IIRC, P1131 (which I've been seeing for YEARS), is a lean code - so ALLL of the exhaust is getting hot (which would explain the smoking off the hanging brackets and downstream cat).

I don't know that you'll find a non-Chinese kit, but your local Sears store may have a more professional version for about the same price as the Harbor Freight kit. I picked mine up at Sears and it happened to be just like the version my dad had before he retired, except mine said "Craftsman" and his was some other professional brand.

The powertrain diagnostic codes are most typical, and often the only code types that the standard consumer-grade scan tools will access. But, there are other code families....

The P1744 is a transmission diagnostic code meaning excessive slip was detected during full Torque Converter Clutch (TCC) engagement. When's the last time the transmission fluid and filter was changed out?

The P0340 indicates that Self-Test has detected a Camshaft Position (CMP) Sensor circuit failure. This is likely due to a bad CMP and/or CMP synchronizer. This is a pretty common issue on this engine and there are a few threads that will help you understand what is involved in changing it out. This could very likely cause the poor idle and lack of power.

The P0430 indicates that bank 2 catalyst system efficiency is below the acceptable threshold. I'd fix the CMP issue before getting too excited about this one.

The P1131 indicates that bank 2 catalyst system efficiency is below the acceptable threshold. This could be related to the P0430 and again I'd fix the CMP issue first. If after fixing the CMP sensor and synchronizer you still have a rough idle, then start searching for the vacuum leak which is then probably triggering this and the P0430 codes.

Certainly a typical tune up would not be a bad idea if you are planning to keep this car awhile as well.

-Rod

I don't have my maintenance records with me right now, but I completely replaced the tranny fluid and filter this year (I THINK it was) .. maybe it was last year ... everything's starting to run together in my mind now.

Yeah, I was planning on driving this car forever, so I'll fix whatever's broken. The plan has always been to just keep adding cars right up through the time the kids started driving and we're at that point now with the first one (and the next one two years away).

Autozone rents a tester kit for $75. I've never used one of these before but it sounds like you need access to the radiator? How's that gonna work with my Taurus? The radiator is buried in the nose of the car. Do I just use the plastic tank instead? And what about the adapters in the kit? Will I be able to tell at the store if the kit has one that'll fit?

Looks like the Craftsman tester is the same as a Stant unit? Online pictures look the same with the metal hand pump, case, and adapters.

One of the nice things about the Craftsman/Stant kit is that it uses an inflatable bladder to seal against the opening for the system which means it will work with the pressure tank on your Taurus. The various adapters generally are used to allow you to test the pressure caps, and there is probably one in there for testing the Taurus' pressure cap as well.

You'll want to read the instructions on how to properly fit and inflate the bladder.

And for what it's worth, Autozone requires a deposit on the tools in their Loan-a-Tool program. You basically give them a deposit for the value of the tool, then you have 90 days to use the tool and return it undamaged for a full refund. If you choose to keep the tool, you've paid for it with your deposit so you can. It's not really "rent" but rather a zero interest loan.

-Rod