Smoke w/ burnt smell 93 accord ex (UPDATE: rear main seal)
 

1993 Honda Accord EX

This usually happens when I first start it up and drive it for a few minutes after it has been sitting there a day. A burnt smell with a little smoke comes out of the engine compartment, not a whole bunch of smoke but enough to worry. However, as I drive it tends to only happen at very short instances at random times. It smells like kind of burnt rubber.
Belts look fine, smoke seems to be coming from front of the engine compartment, first thoughts are a leak of some sort dripping on something hot.
(BTW, I am a noob at car repair).I would appreciate any help.

[hr]
Update: Took it over to NTB. They checked everything out and said that it is the rear main seal that is leaking :( People have told me to also check out the oil pan gasket, but I read that at around the 150k that the rear main seal tends to start leaking.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

Check for an oil leak. Start with the obvious places first like oil plugs and all. You might have the oil in spark plug hole issue, pull out the plug wires and look there. If there is noticable smoke, you should be able to find the leak easily as it is probably a fairly large leak.

Also, I just remembered my dad had that problem with his car, he found out the oil change place hadn't put the filter on all the way and it was leaking from there, was smoking and stinky.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

That was my first thought, so at least I am on the right path and its not a problem where it would be too costly to fix.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

Mine had a bit of a burned rubber smell when there was just a tiny bit of oil I had spilled on it. No smoke though.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

Well I just took a look under the car and there is indeed oil dripping, I think this happened after I got the free oil change at NTB with some new tires. I will take it by there tommorow and tell them about it.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

well as you are a nOOb at car repair....
Check along the bottom of the valve cover for leakage; remember that smoke/heat rises, so look directly under where you see the smoke.
Oil Pressure sending unit above the oil filter will seep and get oil down to the exhaust pipe as well as the oil filter seeping.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

I have a 93 EX also. There are two likely places. Mine would have smoke from under the hood when I stopped or sat idle. The smoke is because there is oil dripping onto the exhaust pipe below the oil filter. The oil filter for fuel injected engines attaches to an oil cooler, about 1" in thickness. There is an O ring behind the oil cooler that becomes brittle and leaks. The second place is the oil sending unit above the oil filter. On my 93, both of these leaked. There is black cooling hose running along the back of the engine above the oil filter. If this has oil, then the sending unit is leaking.
Good luck.

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

did you check if you have ant tranny fluid leaking?

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

Can you just pop the hood and have someone start it up while you look? that should give you a much better idea of where to look, also, if it does it every morning then I would feel around on the exhaust pipe before you first start it in the morning and see if there is any liquid on it, if so then start tracing up from there

RE: Smoke w/ burnt smell coming from engine compartment, 93 accord ex
 

Update: Took it over to NTB. They checked everything out and said that it is the rear main seal that is leaking :( People have told me to also check out the oil pan gasket, but I read that at around the 150k that the rear main seal tends to start leaking.