Various electrical problems and smoke

[TomTomTom]

Hi everybody,

I'm Tom, I'm new here, and my 1994 Explorer XLT has been troubling me a lot lately and now broke down. Since I have a number of issues (sorry for the epic post), I do not know what to check first, and ultimately make an economical decision about the fate of GoGo. I am aware that this car probably was a scam - you can please be very frank about it, because any help is much much appreciated in this situation!

Bought the car last December for ~1500$ without an owner's manual, the odometer seems manipulated or exchanged to me, so whatever it says...

I just came back from a 1800 mile roadtrip to Arizona and Nevada where it was pretty hot - car fortunately only broke down a few blocks from home as we returned. Major issues started in April when the car would not start reliably, but jump-starting worked. Mechanic said battery - new battery. In May, starting issues again, fuel pump relay - fixed.

On this trip, white/greyish smoke suddenly came off the back of the car on the interstate near Vegas (engine coolant temp was in "NORMAL" area) and red oily stuff dripped from somewhere, I guess transmission fluid. Continued to drive slower and with heating on, went ok. Two days later, when we tried to again turn on the heating (this was at night when it was mild outside), dark smoke that smelt very burnt came out of the three ventilation outlets in the passenger seat and middle console areas, and made us storm out of the car. We continued to drive home, but about 15 hours later, GoGo started squeaking horribly in city traffic and would not start anymore later (no crank). Pushed the car around for the AAA truck to tow it - oil splashed around in the engine area. One day later, the battery was dead.

Some of the additional issues I have (had) with the car include the A/C hardly cooling at all, and that the engine would sometimes just turn off when I'd put the gears in "P". The power door locks sometimes failed for a while and would then work again, the alarm system would sometimes go on when using the key instead of the remote upon unlocking the car, and I have this blue light near (below/right) the steering wheel that would only sometimes blink when the car is parked and locked. I could not see this tiny light on any of the Explorer pics in the internet. Some cables in the engine area are kept in place with aluminum wrap, and additional electrical issues are cruise control, rear wiper, rear wiper pump, left rear speaker (all not working) and the defroster (switch and housing gone).

I really do not know where to start now, but I am happy to do anything on my own unless it's a serious hazard. Any help is much appreciated!!

Cheers, Tom

 

[Wolfie_85]

Ouch! Oil splashed all over the engine makes me wonder if the oil cap was off, or dipstick wasn't seated right. Or maybe it blew the dipstick out (serious issue)?

What color was the oil on the dipstick if you checked it when the white smoke was blowing out? That's a sign of a head gasket issue. Black smoke is a sign you're running way too rich (from the exhaust). Black smoke from the dash vents? Maybe something is burning on the blower motor resistor...

I will go ahead and assume the previous owner had no clue about any of the issues that have cropped up for you. But I get the vibe they didn't treat GoGo too nicely, either in regard to maintenance. My ideas therr are just guesses. But determining what exactly happened with the engine is what would concern me. Is she currently starting and/or running? I would say your stalling issue is perhaps your IAC, and that little light most likely isn't factory. With the factory keyless setup, you get a green "anti-theft" light that flases when the door is open and stays solid for 30 seconds when armed.

 

[natenkiki2004]

Sounds like a lot of issues but they don't sound like the end of the world.

As Wolfie said, check the cap & dipstick.

Smoke from the vents is a classic blower motor resistor issue (usually tree crud crammed in there). See this:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=293800

White smoke out the back and red fluid? Transmission for sure. Probably just overheated and spit oil out the vent tube. It probably got on the exhaust and burned, leaving white-grey smoke behind. Fill up the transmission before running it, check the dipstick and add 1/2 quart at a time.

Definitely get after that blue light, it's not supposed to be there. Shoddy wiring is almost always the cause of starting/running & battery drain issues. Gut it out.

 

[TomTomTom]

Thank you so much, guys!

What I read in the thread you posted really sounds like I'm having the same blower motor issues others experienced! I'm going to disconnect and clean it, maybe it is also what drains the battery (?). The AAA guy who towed me said he had a 1991 Explorer himself and guesses the starter would be broken. Could a broken starter drain the battery? I guess I'm going to have to disconnect and clean all of the cables I can find.

No, the battery is entirely dead. I cannot start it, no lights/sounds/reactions from the car when turning the key.

The dipstick never seemed odd to me, but I'll have another look after sunrise. Whenever I checked, it had brown oil on it. I initially thought that maybe the car does not like being pushed around, and so some oil could have been released somehow either from the brakes or the power steering (which would both be off but used during the pushing). Would that be common at all? I never noticed any of the splashing when the engine was running.

I checked the transmission fluid when the engine was hot - my guess is that it's actually a little too full. Could a poorly cooled transmission fluid and a not-cooling A/C have a connection?

That blue light makes me worry. I am starting to guess that the car initially was not keyless, and that some system was built in later. I have not noticed any anti-theft lights, nothing green anywhere. I may post pictures of the light and my keys later.

 

[natenkiki2004]

The starter wouldn't drain the battery. There's a double relay system that would have to be engaged to give power to the starter. My money is on the keyless system that is obviously aftermarket.

You'll find where the oil is coming from, maybe post pictures in the morning. All the oil systems are entirely sealed and should never leak even towing around.

It's possible that the trans was overfilled and that caused it to puke. An overheating transmission will deposit more heat off the auxiliary cooler that's located in front of the A/C condenser. I doubt that's the entire cause of poorly operating A/C, considering the age of the vehicle.

 

[2stroke]

Its funny you mention an aftermarket security/keyless start. The very first thing that came to my head when reading the first post was that you had problems with the security system. It could certainly be the cause to much of your problems. As for the smoking inside, I've even had mice nest in the airbox, and its common to be stuffed with leaves and other junk. If you're only daily driving the vehicle, no towing, then the stock radiator provides enough cooling. I would check that the lines are hooked up correctly to the radiator. I wouldn't even worry about your A/C right now, that's a whole completely different system.

 

[TomTomTom]

Again, thank you for your help!!

Not found the oil leakage yet, will have another look Wednesday. Removed the blower motor - indeed, lots of leaves in there.

As for the keyless system, the manufacturer seems to be AutoPage. Would that be aftermarket? Here are pictures, if you don't mind following the links. The little light and the remote on the first picture with the dashboard partially taken off. In fact, what kept me from taking it off entirely are the two cables that go straight to that light (second link. no clip on the cables). They "disappear" somewhere in between all of the other cables.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cvgbw97gaojhgp5/2015-08-01 18.43.36_smaller.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/yxi50wtxkb11eou/2015-08-01 18.43.56_smaller.jpg?dl=0

 

[Wolfie_85]

That's aftermarket for sure.