I recently bought a 1990 Bronco II 4x4 (2.9L V6) for the winter. One of the problems it came with was a significant oil leak. I had the engine resealed by a dealer. After that, they told me their tech thinks the radiator is leaking. I decided to have them leave that alone.
When I drove the vehicle home, the engine still had white smoke flowing up from around the exhaust manifold. It doesn't smell like the burned oil smell from before I had it serviced. This only occurs after the engine has warmed up. It is not characteristic of dew or condensation that is evaporated as the engine starts.
In a different thread[1] someone suggested that coolant from a radiator leak that is could be what's burning. Based on that suggestion and the comment from the dealer about a radiator leak, I installed a new radiator last night. Since then I've driven that vehicle only about 12 miles total, but after both short trips I still saw the smoke from the same area.
I will be monitoring the coolant level over the next couple days to be sure that the new radiator and the old hoses aren't (still) leaking. I also wonder if perhaps the smoke is some remaining fluid from the old radiator's leak that hasn't yet burned or washed off. Is this possible or reasonable?
Someone else[2] suggested that "[the] modulator valve (external on the transmission) can leak and suck in tranny fluid to the intake". I looked through the Ford service manual and can't find mention of any such valve. Does it make a difference that my vehicle has a 5-speed manual transmission, not an automatic?
Any suggestions as to the cause and what I should be looking for?
-D
[1] message in alt.autos.ford [2] message in alt.autos.ford