smoke in car

lazboyMember

Yesterday I went for a ride, before driving I changed the air filter for a shorter one. On the way to a friend I tried a hard acceleration - the engine ran normal till it hit something like 4k rpm. Then it stopped pulling very sudden. I tried it again with the same result.
Since the car ran fin when driving normal I figured that the engine didn’t get enough air though the new air filter.
Some hours later before driving home I removed the air filter to see if this was the problem. I started the car and drove a way but I only got a few hundred feet before the car died, I tried starting the car for 3-5 sec and then I smelled smoke in the car.
I disconnected the battery and checked if the smoke was coming from the engine compartment or the front luggage room. I couldn’t smell any smoke except inside the car (it was dark and with a flashlight I could see the smoke) It smelled like some wired has burned.

Anyone who has an idea if it is all connected - the sudden stop at 4.000 rpm and the burnt wire? I have looked at the fuses and they are all okay. Any ideas how to begin finding the problem?

5/24/1011:48 AM

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lf-tp2511Member

Wild stabs in the dark -

generally good starting points for electrical issues that can result in heat = melt = smells.

Loose connections on the back of the ammeter

electrical portion of the ignition switch

loose wiring at the ignition switch terminal strip junction - up under the dash by ignition

try tracking down WHERE the smell is coming from by sniffing around with a piece of flexible hose placed in different areas under the dash

air filter to burned wire connection? None that easily come to mind.

Larry

5/24/1012:21 PM

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huskerMember

Electric choke wire?

5/24/101:18 PM

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4nford"Live wrong and Perspire"

On two of my cars, a pink wire from the ignition switch was the burned culprit. Exact symptoms that you had. The gauge of the wire is thin for the load it carries. I just replaced it with a heavier gauge and have not had problems since

5/24/103:15 PM

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garth66"When speed is the only thing that counts"

I experienced the smoke/smell symptoms. It was the insulation on one of the ignition wires. You need a relay kit, but you also need to rebuild or replace your ignition switch. Follow the instructions here:
http://www.panteraplace.com/page125.htm

Here's a pic of my switch and why your wires got so hot and began to melt the insulation. None of these contacts should be black. They should all be bright copper. You don't necessarily need to have the contacts re-plated as Mike states in the link above. They can often be polished back to like-new condition.