I got an oil change about 2 weeks ago and ever since then my car has been smelling funny. It has gotten a little better but not by much. Today I finally realized that the smell is actually exhaust fumes mixed with lots of steam. Whenever I gas the car, lots of steam comes out of the exhaust and some of it condenses forming water, which stays in my exhaust tip. The amount of condensed water is actually a considerable amount, and so is the amount of steam coming out of the exhaust. Since combusted gases from the motor leave the exhaust, does this mean that there may be water in my motor? Can there possibly be water from my header or cat? I didn't change the oil myself, so i don't kno what those guys might have done. I'm pretty puzzled right now, and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. BTW i drive a 2001 Prelude

 

sweet smell? if yes, possible coolant leack in combusion chamber.
stan

 

Have you noticed any performance change? Does it only happen when it's colder out?

 

Theres no difference in my performance. It runs pretty well. But 2night when i was driving....my temp gauge went up one marking above normal...i chilled off the throttle and it dropped back down. How can a coolant leak lead to water in my combustion chamber? But yet my temp gauge went up....that MAY be due to a messed up thermostat.

 

If it has a blown head gasket.

 

Or if you have a crack in your head by an intake port. (A lot less likely than a blown HG)

 

check to see if you have oil in the coolant or opposite, collant in the oil. Do this by checking for a whiteish milky fluid around the filler cap. If you do, you must likely have a blown HG

 

sounds like a head gasket to me

 

I'm pretty sure that when coolant is burnt in the combustion chamber, your exhaust would be white, kind of like when its cold out and you can see your exhaust. That may be what you think is steam.

One thing that you must remember is that water is a natural by-product of combustion. Remember from chemistry: FUEL + O2 --> CO2 + H2O

So don't worry about water comning out of the exhaust pipe unless the amount is unusually high.

 

So a blown head gasket may be causing coolant to leak into my motor and combust? I checked my coolant level yesterday and it seemed fine. Maybe i'll take another look 2morrow. Wouldn't I smell gas if i had a blown head gasket? And wouldn't my performance be compromised? How much does it cost to replace a blown head gasket?

 

You can do a leakdown test to be sure that is your problem.