Okay, so as you all know the NE got hammered this weekend by snow. My car sat all day Saturday under 4-5 inches of the shit. Sunday came and I dug her out to go watch the playoff games with some family.

When I got in and started her up some weird shit happened.

The car fired but started shuttering pretty hard. I'm like WTF? The RPM's start going haywire. They would drop down to almost 0 then would shoot up to around 2000. Then down, then up. Now I'm really getting concerned. I got out of the car to listen under the hood and I noticed a thick grey smoke screen emitting from the exhaust (not the usual steamy looking smoke that comes out when your cars cold either). By this time I'm really freaking out cuz it sounded like my baby was dying or something.

Finally, I decided I would take it for a spin around the block. By the time I reached the main road everything returned to normal and the car ran great.

Anyone know what could have been going on? If I had to compare it to something I would say the car was reacting like a car with the timing off. I am thinking about taking it to the dealership but if there is no need to be concerned then I would hold off.

 

I'm guessing it was missing due to the cold. That would account for the black/grey smoke (unspent fuel) due to the cylinder that wasn't firing. Once warm it ran OK. I would change your plugs and check them closely for any signs of abnormality (running rich or lean etc...) I would take it to the dealer if it is still under warranty and let them deal with it.

 

be safe and get it checked out