[hwa786]

Hey guys, noticed an issue today as noted in the title.

Background info: changed my brakes about 6k miles ago, and this is when my mechanic told me after he took the front right wheel off - there is a small leak coming down on to the steering rack. I overlooked it and 6k miles later, I had to jump start one of my other cars in the garage, so I started my car and popped the hood to use the battery terminals in the right and noticed light smoke in that area which made me recall what my mechanic had said. Car currently has 87k miles and is driven daily and I've never witnessed smoke or any kind of weird smell from the car and I just drove it this morning before noticing the smoke. For the first time about 1 month ago the car started to burn oil (5 year ownership this year), and I took it to the dealer and they just topped off the oil.

So, the question is, what can be the issue? What is on the front right side that can cause smoke? What needs to be addressed? As you can tell, I'm not much of a handyman and get all service/repairs/maintenance done from the Dealer or the mechanic. I am going to Chicago next weekend (250 miles one way), and wondering if it's safe to take the car.

Apologies if this is in the wrong section.

[Efthreeoh]

I think you mean the mechanic took the left front wheel off. The driver's side of the car is the left-side, and the passenger side is the right-side of the car. It helps to follow this standard industry practice to avoid confusion when speaking about diagnosing problems.

If there is oil on the steering rack, it could be coming from anywhere. You need to determine if it is engine oil or some other oil. But my first guess is the oil filter housing gasket is leaking and needs to be replaced. You can search on OFHG and find all you need to know about the repair and how much it costs.

[hwa786]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I think you mean the mechanic took the left front wheel off. The driver's side of the car is the left-side, and the passenger side is the right-side of the car. It helps to follow this standard industry practice to avoid confusion when speaking about diagnosing problems.

If there is oil on the steering rack, it could be coming from anywhere. You need to determine if it is engine oil or some other oil. But my first guess is the oil filter housing gasket is leaking and needs to be replaced. You can search on OFHG and find all you need to know about the repair and how much it costs.

It was definitely the passenger side

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by hwa786

It was definitely the passenger side

Oops. I read steering rack but thought steering column. So being on the right side. It seems as of there is a valve cover leak dripping on the exhaust manifold.

[Madcat]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Oops. I read steering rack but thought steering column. So being on the right side. It seems as of there is a valve cover leak dripping on the exhaust manifold.

Mine has a small weep in the valve cover gasket and did similar after it sat for a month when the PO started it up for me.

[hwa786]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Oops. I read steering rack but thought steering column. So being on the right side. It seems as of there is a valve cover leak dripping on the exhaust manifold.

How serious could this issue be?

[Meeni]

It is not very serious. Have it fixed whe n convenient. You want it repaired as it will get worse and it is a vacuum leak