Rep Power: 342

It just started today. I got on my car today revving to about 5k rpms in first gear and then I shifted into second smoothly. I drove around the block normally looking for parking, and started to smell smoke. When I popped the hood, there was this faint smoke coming from my stock headers area. It looked like the smoke that comes off a candle or match when you blow it out. I waited for about 4 minutes and the smoke fizzled out but I couldn't see the source of it all. It was def coming from my headers area. Maybe there's a dead mouse stuck in there or something? Anyone have this problem?

Later today I was driving normally and the smoke smell came back, but no flames.

03 LX coupe.

 
Rep Power: 342

no help?

 
Rep Power: 358

How long has the header been on? Have you recently done anything in the engine bay? Recoated the header? Anything?

 
Rep Power: 342

My engine bay is stock. I haven't done anything under the hood.

Other than the sensor that goes down around there I can't think of anything else that would be burning other than some random foreign object from the road like a leaf or mouse or something.

 
Rep Power: 358

Hrm. . I doubt it's a sensor. Maybe something did get up in there. Unless there is a hole in your header or something?

 
Rep Power: 342

I dont think that's it but maybe? I did kind of back into a curb somewhat messing up my muffler and maybe pushing my whole exhaust piping system toward the front of the car a couple of months ago. I'd think that I would have smelled smoke earlier than that though. When I checked underneath my car after that incident, the only thing that seemed to be damaged was that my muffler wall buckled a bit to compensate for the movement.

So I'm thinking it IS something just chilling by my header between the header shield and the piping.

Does normal exhaust gas smell like burning hair if it hasn't hit the cat yet?

btw thanks for being the only one to reply pheaton

 
Rep Power: 358

Hrm. I guess I've never smelled exhaust from the header, so I'm not sure what it smells like.

If there is a mouse or something down there it sucks to be him. lol

 
Rep Power: 811

could just be some dirt or something got inbetween the gasket. i once had my whole engine bay covered in lil granules of wheat or something lol. and it was smelling bad for a while. if it doesnt come back, dont worry. also the lx is known for having the manifold clog up, does yours turn red after hard driving?

 
Rep Power: 342

lol wheat.

make some wheat krispies cereal or something.

hmm i'll drive hard one of these nights and report back to see if it's red. What to do about clogging up? You mean like deposits actually inside the exhaust manifold? Why would I get smoke unless the buildup is burning up and there is a hole of some sort?

I just don't want my whole engine bay to burst into flames one day. Or blow a gasket if i'm out of coolant or anything like that. I actually got a fire extinguisher in my glove compartment since I've been having bad luck with my car this past year.

 
Rep Power: 811

haha good idea. just keep an eye out. alot of times stuff gets in under the heat shield too and can burn up on the pipes which get very hot not being coated or anything.

 
Rep Power: 342

I don't really have the facilities to take my car apart here in Boston so I may just take it to the car wash and pressure wash my header underneath the shield. Yay rust!

 
Rep Power: 258

DUUUDE.. you probably ran over a plastic bag or something. or theres a dry leaf that flew up there and got caught.. this happend to my dads rodeo once and it freaked us out the whole day..and my buddies mustang had some dry leaves near his manifolds that burnt up and that same candle looking smoke was randomly coming up once in a while