Hi,

I am new to the forum and I have a major issue with my 98 2.3 CL.

My husband and I drove our CL to Louisiana for Memorial Day weekend. Before we left we had the oil changed and had it looked over to be sure we'd be good on the drive there from our home outside Little Rock, AR. It drove fine, no issues. We got to Louisiana, parked it and got back in it and it was fine.

We parked and drove it about 5 more times, and it increasingly sputtered and gave us trouble starting. It also eventually started emitting white smoke out of the transmission while doing so. But after about 2 minutes of running it would run smooth and quit smoking. It also drove fine, no overheating no rough idle. It finally would not start again AT ALL and is now broken down in Louisiana.

I would also mention that it had been seeming hesitant to crank before this, but my battery terminals are in terrible shape so we assumed that was the issue. Obviously not. We checked the fuel pump and it was fine. So what else could we be dealing with here?

Sorry this was long-winded. Wanted to get in all the facts.

 

Oh goodness, it has been a long weekend, out of the EXHAUST not the TRANSMISSION is where the white smoke was coming from.

 

white smoke usually means coolant in the combustion chamber...where it isnt supposto be. check your coolant level. if its low id consider a head gasket may have blown, you can confirm this by doing a compression check.

 

I had a feeling it may be the head gasket. But I was also told it may have jumped time or the crank position censor may have gone out. But both of those things do not seem to match the symptoms the car is showing.

 

another vote...head gasket