Hi
ive had my 323F for 6 months, and I love it!!
Nothin has gone wrong until now!
I use it daily for work, and do a fair few miles in it. However, the other day i was sitting in a traffic jam on the M1 in the rain, and either steam or smoke started to come out from under the bonnet.
The traffic started moving again, and when I stopped at services, there was no smoke or steam.
It doesnt happen when its dry, only when its wet.
Any ideas??

Cheers

same thing with me, couldn't find a cause for it, but when i was in a mates car, i noticed it, he said its just cos the engines hot so the bonnet gets hot and the rain is causing the steam, so nothing to worry about.

oh sorry one more thing, have you put oil in the car recently, cos if you spill oil onto the engine, that'll create the steam effect too.

Yeah heat from the engine will of made the bonnet hot. Hot metal and rain = steam lol.

Does your car have the heat cover under the bonnet?

Cheers guys!!
I thought i might have a real problem!
By heat cover, do you mean the material on the back of the bonnet?

Yes the black stuff, its either to keep heat in the engine bay or for sound insulation. Or both!

It's for sound insulation. You don't want heat remaining in the engine bay......

Had the same thing happen, nowt to worry about

It happened to me once, only it wasn't raining, and my main top radiator hose had burst !!!

[quote="Smotter"]It happened to me once, only it wasn't raining, and my main top radiator hose had burst !!!

[/quote]

[quote="Smotter"]It happened to me once, only it wasn't raining, and my main top radiator hose had burst !!!

[/quote]

fill the man with confidence in his car why dont u?

im pretty sure my radiator hose hasnt burst!!

well im hoping it hasnt!!!

Joncarpet,
Heres [u][b]exactly[/b][/u] what happened to your car,,, whilst you were driving in the rain, your engine was being cooled normally by air moving through the radiator, hence the radiator itself would be virtually cold due to the engine thermostat limiting the amount of coolant going through it. Because it was raining the radiator would be getting soaked, ie lots of rainwater being held in the combs of the radiator fillament, however when you had to queue in traffic, the engine would not get normal cooling by the movement of air through the radiator, so your thermostat would open wide allowing boiling water (water inside an engine reaches boiling point, but does not "boil over" due to it being pressurised) from the engine to go through the radiator , turning the water on the soaked [u]exterior[/u] of the radiator to turn to great clouds of steam.
It can look a bit disconcerting , but is perferctly normal. RELAX DUDE!!!

:-s

Isnt it easier to suggest that you bonnet is hot...and when cold rain water touches it, it steams up...

Both sound theories but who cares at this time of night seriously lol

Is your rubber on the back of the bonnet still there? or maybe it is damage? You said only when you stopped so the water will rush down from your window and inside the engine bay and touch the the plennum chamber and motor.

Think i got ot sorted!!!
Had to have a new wheel bearing the other week, and yesterday was stuck in traffic in th peeing down rain. And no steam!!!
Not sure if there is a connection!

If there`s a connection I will pay for your wheel bearing myself !!!!!

I'll go halves with ya Sam