cracked headers?

e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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#1
i live in seattle, and it's kind of rainy (understatement of the year) here. after driving for 15 mins to a half hour, i park and get out. as i walked away from my car a few weeks ago, i noticed a fair amount of steam coming from my right wheel well. is this normal? i looked at all the other cars around me that had just parked and no one had the same issue...also, visible emitions continue to come from my tailpipes well after the engine is off, whereas nobody else's car does this. wtf, mates? my mechanic said i had a crack in my headers, but when i asked him to show me the crack a few months later, he couldn't find it. any ideas?
 
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Big Daddy

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Which right wheel well, front or rear? After driving in the rain I will get some steam off my muffler on the 750iL, which is near the left rear wheel well. I am not sure how a cracked header would cause steam?
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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not sure..

i was thinking that maybe water was leaking under my hood and then falling onto the headers, although it makes no sound. it is the front wheel..sorry for not specifying. i have no idea what's up...its wierd though.
 
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epj3

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Are your windshield washer jets working? If not, the T-adapter (which has a check valve that once it's 'tripped', it needs replacing -- I think it was like $7.) and then it'll run down the hood onto the engine.
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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#6
we have a winner...

ok, you're onto something...the question now is how would water get through there if i'm not using the pump...the piece you're referring to is broken, btw
 
mrferg

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If you went through some puddles water could get splashed into the engine compartment, and it will run down onto the headers. Even after the water has been evaporated off the headers more could continue to drop on it, causing constant steam. Or maybe a bad hood gasket? Just throwing out ideas.
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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ya, i dunno...i really don't think there's any water dripping because if there were, it would be making a fair amount of noise as it hits the headers. its kinda cool looking, i guess...thanks for the help anyway.
 
jrt67ss350

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#10
I've noticed this exact same thing in my '87 after parking the car when driving in the rain. I've looked at it pretty carefully to make sure that nothing was wrong. What I found is that when turning right, the passenger front tire douses the Y pipe and catalytic convertor with road water. If you are sure it's just steam (not coolant steam or oil smoke or anything else), and it only happens when it's raining, then I bet it's just road water being sprayed onto the hottest part of the exhaust system up by the engine.
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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ouch...

mjbst111 said:
well at least we all figured out from this to never go to your mechanic (you should tell us who this joker is). you can hear cracked headers.
Click to expand...
first off, the mechanic is a good friend of mine, and does business only with family and friends-does quiet well, i might add. secondly he did hear (what he thought were) cracked headers, and what he saw was actually the "sebring" brand tag on my headers casting a shadow that, admitedly, looked like a crack. my car tends to make a strange noise and i've been told many things from loose belts (replaced them, not the problem), wrong time of fuel (upgraded, not the problem), bad valve lifters (how the hell should i know![?|] ), and the final guess-cracked headers...i really don't think it's that either. at any rate, my concern isn't about the non-existant cracked headers, its steam coming out of my wheel wells. don't mean to sound rude (if i do, in fact). I accept fault and blame for not explaining thoroughly, the situation with my mechanic. apologies and thanks.
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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jrt67ss350 said:
I've noticed this exact same thing in my '87 after parking the car when driving in the rain. I've looked at it pretty carefully to make sure that nothing was wrong. What I found is that when turning right, the passenger front tire douses the Y pipe and catalytic convertor with road water. If you are sure it's just steam (not coolant steam or oil smoke or anything else), and it only happens when it's raining, then I bet it's just road water being sprayed onto the hottest part of the exhaust system up by the engine.
Click to expand...

good call...it may be just that. however, its hard to tell if it's only in the rain cuz i live in seattle =) it's not coolant because it's on the wrong side of the car...plus i would image it wouldn't evaporate as a clean white vapor. my theory's the same about the possibility of it being oil. guess i won't worry about it. plus...it does look kinda cool[thumb] muchas gracias
 
mjbst111

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#13
my car tends to make a strange noise and i've been told many things from loose belts (replaced them, not the problem), wrong time of fuel (upgraded, not the problem), bad valve lifters (how the hell should i know! )
Click to expand...
is it a tapping noise? (and tapping gets faster with engine rev?) if so its probably valve lifters. mine are getting pretty bad and need adjusted. They are loud and sound stupid. I know they are adjustable, i just have to get around to doing it.
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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#14
it's more of a clicking sound..similar to that of the sound a bicycle makes immediately after you stop pedaling. Also, the frequency of the sound does increase with higher engine revs. I was told that it really didn't affect anything, and that realistically, they would never break. Thus, i never worried about it and sort of got used to the sound. however, there is still another sound...it sounds like a vacuum sucking with pretty high frequency, however when i rev it, the sound is so quiet i can't hear it. Frequency is probably 3-5 times per second, so when it idles, you can hear it quite clearly. i was reading something in a bmw used car guide that said a problem with the E34 525i(i think) was some sealing breaking and causing this vacuum sound. I'm 3000 miles away from my car right now, but when I get back, I'll be sure to look into all of that. My repair list feels like it's in the gigs...
 
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