First time poster...long time viewer!! Is it normal to have steam coming off the top of the engine?...even after a quick 10 min. run around the block. It's not smoke...more like steam...like the engine is too hot. I never noticed it before but noticed it the last 3 times out. The temp gauge is normal but I thought maybe the steam was an indication that it was running too hot. Noticed it again this AM...temp outside is 75 degrees. It's a 53 bel air w/ 215 engine...all original. I don't want to cook the engine!! If not normal...any suggestions on what to check (already checked fluids) before I take it to a shop? This is probably a really dumb question (sorry) but I inherited the car from my father in law 3 yrs ago. I love the car and do all I can to keep it going but I didn't grow up working on cars so I have limited knowledge but very mechanically inclined. Any help appreciated. Thanks!!
Where is it coming from? Draft tube? Plenty of old engines smoke a little, rings could be worn, is the smoke really bad...like smoke screen bad or you only see it when you pop the hood?
If it is in fact steam, you may have a pin-hole leak in the radiator or one of the hoses and it hasn't lost enough coolant yet to see a drop when you check it. You need to pin point where it's coming from.
It's not smoke...more like steam. Kind of like what you get coming off a hot cup of coffee on a cold day, but worse. The top of the manifold cover is where it's coming from. It's not so much where I see it when the hood is closed. It's not coming from the radiator itself, but it got me wondering whether the engine wasn't getting proper cooling (plugged radiator, thermostat, etc.). Thanks
Could be just condensation cooking off, how is the humidity where it is parked? Those old 216 engines were tough but will not take abuse. Pull the valve cover and see what the rocker ***embly and valve train look like. Many years of running non detergent oil will let a lot of sludge build up.
It's more likely oil vapor coming from the vent holes in the valve cover? Take a picture of the engine after you drive it, let us see what's going on. Video would be even better. btw if there is steam coming out of the radiator then you might be overheating the engine. Also, the radiator should not be completely full, it needs a couple inches of air in the top, to let the water expand as it heats up. btw steam dissipates very quickly, but oil smoke sticks around for a little while. They both look like a white vapor.
I was going to mention something along these lines. ^^^ If it is steam ( smell it and see) it is an indication of water being evaporated. I guess it could b a busted head gasket but if it was it would smell like antifreeze. Here is an extreme example: When I was living in the rain forest it was common for humidity levels to clime above 90%. When our trucks were parked over night it would steam until all the water that condensed under the hood was evaporated. Once you got traveling it was basically unnoticeable , but setting with the motor running it could actually be a sauna under the hood for a bit.
So I just ran it pretty good for about 20 min. Half way through I pulled over to see if it was smoking...nothing. I got home and turned it off, then I started seeing the steam/smoke. I tried getting a photo but I couldn't get it to show up in the photo. So I took a video which showed it much better... http://vanikdesign.com/IMG_6609.MOV You will see it is coming from the vent holes in the valve cover. It does not smell like antifreeze. The car is stored in an attached garage. I live in Ohio and we've had a TON of rain lately...I have a gauge that puts the humidity around 50-55%. I don't run the car all that often. I try to take it out at least once a week for 15 min. Could I just not be taking it out enough and condensation needs to burn off?? I wanted to take it to the goodguys show next weekend (across town) but didn't want to go that far from home if there can potentially be an issue. Any thoughts??..can I have a potential issue or am I just being paranoid?!?! Thanks again guys!
Well, it's simple really. You got your engine in upside down. Change the valve cover gasket and/or the side pan gaskets.
Looks like condensation that has built up under the valve cover and it is burning off or evaporating once the engine gets up to temp. I would get another temp gauge and double check its not running hot. Pull the valve cover and clean any crude built up in the cover and on the head. More make sure the vent tube on the p***enger side of the block is not plunged. This should take care of the steam issue. Godspeed Mrc.
It might be coming from your vents as others have said but it looks like a film of oil burning off a hot engine to me. It's pretty hard to see an oil seep on an oily engine. Maybe let it cool, then spray a couple cans of carb cleaner around on the rocker arm cover, head, block and carburetor to clean it all off. Let it dry, then start it. See if you can see any oil or gas leaks. Then drive it about a half hour to let it get hot. You might see the oil or gas leak then. If you still don't see anything, let it sit overnight and then check it. It may have simply come from previous repairs, spills, ect., in which case you probably won't see it again after the engine has had time to burn it off. My old truck engine uses oil and sometimes I get a little on the rocker arm cover when I pour it. After it's hot, it looks just like that until it's had time to "burn off". (It doesn't really burn off, as in, "There's a fire.") It doesn't look to worrisome to me.
With the engine at running temperature, open the hood with the engine idling. You may see nothing as the fan is still moving air around the engine. Now turn the engine off and remove the oil fill cap. You'll likely see some vapor coming up out of the valve cover or wherever the oil cap is. This would be pretty normal on an older engine with some miles on it. And it might be even worse if you're only making short hauls and in-town driving. Make sure the crankcase breather isn't plugged up with gunk, or if you want to get fancy you could rig up a PCV system. That would work even better if the car isn't driven far or frequently.
We're not laughing at you. But some of the answers are funny! Like mentioned degunk the engine, remove the valve cover and decrude it, let it dry, and drive it.
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