Does you car steam?

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01-16-2013, 08:31 PM

iMuf

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Join Date: Jan 2013

Posts: 872

Does you car steam?

Hey everyone, So I have a question for you all. Especially those of you who have a 7th Gen monte carlo. I just got mine a couple months ago, it is a 2006, and I never really payed to much attention to it except for the other day it was fairly cold out and I was letting my car warm up and it steamed a lot. I had a 96' thunderbird before my Monte and it didn't steam near as much as this. I'm sure it's normal but I'm just wondering if you guys run into the same thing.

01-16-2013, 09:44 PM

Budsjlm

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Location: Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota

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Quote:

Originally Posted by iMuf

steamed? out of the exhaust?

01-16-2013, 10:20 PM

iMuf

Thread Starter

Join Date: Jan 2013

Posts: 872

yea out of the exhaust. That looks like mine. It just shocked me that it was like a freaking sauna lol.

01-16-2013, 10:30 PM

Enzo354

STILL SLOW
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Only when I roll down the windows.

01-16-2013, 11:13 PM

MonteCarlSS

Join Date: Sep 2012

Location: Forest City, IA

Posts: 634

All of the cars around my area steam out of the exhaust in the winter..

01-17-2013, 04:41 AM

MissouriMonteSS

Join Date: Aug 2012

Location: Kansas City Missouri

Posts: 22

My 07 steams a lot when it's cold

01-17-2013, 04:59 AM

Space

Join Date: Jul 2008

Location: Beach`in Florida

Posts: 33,585

Quote:

Originally Posted by iMuf

You maybe just have a Super Hot Monte Carlo

The converter is basically not running at all for the first few minutes after the engine started since it is cold. The converter needs to heat up significantly (it can glow red in higher performance cars after a high speed run). To properly function. When you start an engine, it always runs rich (with more fuel) for a minute or so, and eventually the the mixture will lean out (less fuel). Once the cat reaches operating temps, the chemical reactions start taking place in full force, and one of the main products of those reactions is water vapor. And voila, that's how you get a steamy exhaust.

But since the cat is usually pretty close to the engine, after several minutes the whole exhaust pipe eventually heats up and "dries" up the air somewhat as it travels down the exhaust system. That is why it tends to reduce after it warms up.