i went to refill my car AC 2 days ago and i left without any issues, i noticed at some point that the temp gauge just kept rising, then i put off the AC. by the time i checked the one of the radiator fans had stopped working. my mechanic says i have to change the fan. how is this possible, should it not be an electrical fault? please advise on what to do because i dont have an idea how much that fan will cost again.by the way i use a 1995 mazda 626

I used to have that mazda, first try to check on the return water from the radiator which is one of the major thing that makes the car to over heat.
Then check if the thermostat is still in the check but im sure it will be the first thing.
It's better to have like 2 mechanic anyway to reconfirm what the first one said and try to see if the fan is totally bad or still working as if its not really working anymore you will still need to change it.

If one of the Radiator cooling fans stopped working after your to visit to the A/C place, then the fellow that did your A/C must have touched or done something he shouldnt have. It could be that he mistakenly cut off power supply to the non-running fan or has connected something terrible that blew the fan motor.

First, how were the 2 radiator fans in your car working before the A/C incident? Do they start spinning as soon as you switch on the ignition & remain constantly on untill ignition is turned off? Or do they only start spinning after 5 or 10 mins of idling, after the engine is started? If the latter is the case, then the fans still run as factory. There factrory connections have nt been tampered with. But if they former is the case here; if they always start spinning as soon as you turn on the ignition, whether the engine is cold or not, then sorry, you have allowed the wicked rewires to sign death warrant for your car for you. Poor you!

Back to the issue. You can check that fan that have stopped running to know if its still ok, by disconnecting the wiring male plug to the fan & run direct connection from the two Battery terminals to the female connector/plug of the fan (+ & -). The fan would spin if the motor is still ok. If the fan spins, then the connection or source of the fan's trigger is the culprit not the fan.

When a thermostat in the cooling system is stuck closed, the fan maynot spin or function, since the fluid in cylinder walls are not flowing back to radiator, for the radiator sensor to sense the high temp of the fluid from engine & trigger on the fans to reduce or cool off the hot temp of the fluid. But it depends on your car's wiring system. Most Japanese vehicles cooling fans get their trigger from ECU/PCM via the function of CTS or temp sender/switch. But since one of the fans is working, then thermostat shouldnt be the culprit here, that is, if the fans are still connected as factory.

Your mechanic has no business with the electric radiator fan. Test the fan yourself like i explained above or get a good rewire (though i dont trust any of them here in Abuja) to test it for you. You will then take it from there. It could even be a relay issue. Good luck!

Ikenna.

juboye4eva: I used to have that mazda, first try to check on the return water from the radiator which is one of the major thing that makes the car to over heat.
Then check if the thermostat is still in the check but im sure it will be the first thing.
It's better to have like 2 mechanic anyway to reconfirm what the first one said and try to see if the fan is totally bad or still working as if its not really working anymore you will still need to change it.

thanks eva, my rewire first said that the fan was dead, i insisted he confirmed to me that it was dead by testing it, he was quite truthful and he told me that it was the brush that had kept the fan from working properly, he removed it and fitted it back again. along the line we noticed that a particular hose was busted, he also replaced the hose, and started the car and the temperature is back to sitting at the centre. i just took the car today from ishaga to victoria island without any issues.


@the fan motor starts from ignition and not later, i guess it was adjusted cos of our climate.

Thanks all
Thanks all

Bypassing original connection & connecting the fans to run constantly as soon as ignition is on, because of climate? Is that what they told you, the reason for killing your engine? Climate? Hmm! The same you will go back to the mechanic to rebuild your engine soon or replace it, when it start emitting blue smoke from the exhaust, as a result of engine running cold constantly, not rising to optimal engine temp whenever the engine is running. Well, goodluck with your climate belief thing.

Mind you, your fan that died was because it was running constantly, which it wasnt designed to. So, be expecting the newly replaced one to die soon. Or maybe the 2nd one.

Ikenna.

most of this local technician are just bunch of careless idiots.
Maybe the guy forgot to fix the fan connector or has carelessly fiddled with the relay that controls the fans
this is the major reason why car owners must stay with them when fixing your car.
look at what they're doing
Also, I have made it part of my morning routin to check the engine and the fans properly before moving an inch.

Ikenna351: Bypassing original connection & connecting the fans to run constantly as soon as ignition is on, because of climate? Is that what they told you, the reason for killing your engine? Climate? Hmm! The same you will go back to the mechanic to rebuild your engine soon or replace it, when it start emitting blue smoke from the exhaust, as a result of engine running cold constantly, not rising to optimal engine temp whenever the engine is running. Well, goodluck with your climate belief thing.

Mind you, your fan that died was because it was running constantly, which it wasnt designed to. So, be expecting the newly replaced one to die soon. Or maybe the 2nd one.

Ikenna.

i was not the first owner of the car, i bought it off someone and that was how i bought it. i just guessed because of our climate it was adjusted o(no one told me). is there a way it can be reconnected to run back as normal, i am asking because really and truly the car is beginning to emit this smoke though still runs perfectly, is there a way this can be corrected without opening the engine or doing anything solely mechanical?

i agree with fm7070, u need to stay with the motor mechanics if you want optimum result, also from my experience be sure not to be too bossy, let them talk more the you can sift whats not true.

MY PEOPLE PERISH FOR LACK OF KNOWLEDGE!!!!.....even my bible tells me so.

guys u shud try n educate urselfs on the workings of ur car......dont let a half wit that cudnt pass first school leaving cert or o level wreck ur car....these clowns are a real menace, they either remove the thermostat and connect the fan to work directly from the battery, which will make the fan work all the time that the car is on, making the engine not get to its optimim temp, thus making the car use more fuel as the ecm trys to get the engine to optimum temp by sending more fuel for the engine to burn to raise its tempreture to optimum [mid of guage] and also shorten the lifespan of the fan....

the check engine light was showing on a pals car and the mechanic told him that its #american spec# that its normal..that the light is used to know which car is american spec and which one isnt................very hilarious!!!...n the dude believed him

Usually, Radiator electric fans are trigered on or controlled by radiator sensor or ECU via CTS/temp sender. Peugeot use radiator sensor to switch on their electric radiator fans, while most Japmobiles use ECU to do the same. I guess yours is ECU controlled. They had bypassed the ECU connection to the fan wiring connector, for it to be constantly running. You can trace back the original/factory connection of the fans with wiring diagram, test light or if you were there when it was bypassed(by knowing the wire(s) they cut off).

When Radiator electric fan spins constantly, the engine would always run cold or it would take the engine temperature eternity to rise a little, thereby more wear and tear. If the thermostat is removed, the engine would always run cold & would always run on extreme dangerous high temperature, when the engine eventualy warms, which could blow up the head gasket.

Usually, engine will be cold every morning. For a cold engine to start, it would need excess fuel to get it started. The CTS will signal to ECU that the engine is very cold, when you switch on the ignition to start the car in the morning. When you crank the engine, the ECU (aka brainbox for Nigerians) will command the injectors to spray in excess fuel and advance timing, for the engine to be able to start. When the engine starts, it would take some or few mins for the coolant temperature in engine walls to rise. As the coolant temp rises, the cts will continue to signal to ecu the graduall rising of coolant temp, which will make the ecu to reduce the amount fuel injectors spray into the combustion chambers, as temp rises. When the engine gets to optimal/normal operating engine temp (like 90 degree celsius), the ecu will finally flatened or reduced completely the amount of fuel going into the combustion chambers. Thus, the work of CTS (Coolant Temperature Sensor), usually located on Thermostat housing.

So, if your engine is always running cold or runs cold longer than it should (because the constantly spinning fan wouldnt let the coolant temp to rise), then your car would always be running thirsty ( consuming too much fuel) & there would be more wear & tear in the engine, since the proper lubrication of the engine has been hindered. Note that everytime you start your engine in the morning, there will be a little friction that will cause some wears on moving parts inside the engine, but would soon stop as engine oil gets warmer. But if the engine continues to run cold for a long time, the oil remains cold/thicker and there wont be proper lubrication. Hence, engine failure sooner than it should. So you see what has been happening to that engine!

If you remove your cooling system thermostat, the fluid/coolant in the engine walls wont have enough time to boil/warm up to optimal temp, before it flows/push back to radiator via the work of water pump. If the car is driven for a long time in city/traffic, the coolant/water in the cooling system would heat beyond optimal temp & wont cool off, because the fluid is continuosly flowing from engine walls to radiator & back to the engine walls, where combustion is taking place, heating or getting the coolant more hot. Even if the fans are contnuosly spinning, the fluid wont stay long in the radiator to be cooled off by the fans, before its pushed back to the engine. This could lead to head gasket failure. Its the work of thermostat to regulate the flow of coolant in the cooling system. Removing it is a call for wahala. Though, it can be temporally removed and used without, if need be. But permanent removal is a call for engine replacement or rebuild.

You said your car is emitting smoke from the exhaust tail. What color is the smoke?

1. Blue smoke means your engine is burning oil (which usually is caused by improper engine lubrication,etc, as i have explained above).
2. Black smoke means exccesive fueling (one or two of engine sensors or components that controls fuelling is faulty).
3. White smoke means head gasket failure (especially when its constant).

Hope that helps or has answered your question. Or did I get you scared or confused?

Ikenna.

Ikenna351: Bypassing original connection & connecting the fans to run constantly as soon as ignition is on, because of climate? Is that what they told you, the reason for killing your engine? Climate? Hmm! The same you will go back to the mechanic to rebuild your engine soon or replace it, when it start emitting blue smoke from the exhaust, as a result of engine running cold constantly, not rising to optimal engine temp whenever the engine is running. Well, goodluck with your climate belief thing.

Mind you, your fan that died was because it was running constantly, which it wasnt designed to. So, be expecting the newly replaced one to die soon. Or maybe the 2nd one.

Ikenna.

Ikenna351: Usually, Radiator electric fans are trigered on or controlled by radiator sensor or ECU via CTS/temp sender. Peugeot use radiator sensor to switch on their electric radiator fans, while most Japmobiles use ECU to do the same. I guess yours is ECU controlled. They had bypassed the ECU connection to the fan wiring connector, for it to be constantly running. You can trace back the original/factory connection of the fans with wiring diagram, test light or if you were there when it was bypassed(by knowing the wire(s) they cut off).

When Radiator electric fan spins constantly, the engine would always run cold or it would take the engine temperature eternity to rise a little, thereby more wear and tear. If the thermostat is removed, the engine would always run cold & would always run on extreme dangerous high temperature, when the engine eventualy warms, which could blow up the head gasket.

Usually, engine will be cold every morning. For a cold engine to start, it would need excess fuel to get it started. The CTS will signal to ECU that the engine is very cold, when you switch on the ignition to start the car in the morning. When you crank the engine, the ECU (aka brainbox for Nigerians) will command the injectors to spray in excess fuel and advance timing, for the engine to be able to start. When the engine starts, it would take some or few mins for the coolant temperature to rise. As the coolant temp rises, the cts will continue to signal to ecu the graduall rising of coolant temp, which will make the ecu to reduce the amount fuel injectors spray into the combustion chambers, as temp rises. When the engine gets to optimal/normal operating engine temp (like 90 degree celsius), the ecu will finally flatened or minimise the amount of fuel going into the combustion chambers. Thus, the work of CTS (Coolant Temperature Sensor), usually located on Thermostat housing.

So, if your engine is always running cold or runs cold longer than it should (because the constantly spinning fan wouldnt let the coolant temp to rise), then your car would always be running thirsty ( consuming too much fuel) & there would be more wear & tear in the engine, since the proper lubrication of the engine has been hindered. Note that everytime you start your engine in the morning, there will be a little friction that will cause some wears on moving parts inside the engine, but would soon stop as engine oil gets warmer. But if the engine continues to run cold for a long time, the oil remains cold/thicker and there wont be proper lubrication. Hence, engine failure sooner than it should. So you see what has been happening to that engine!

If you remove your cooling system thermostat, the fluid/coolant in the engine walls wont have enough time to boil/warm up to optimal temp, before it flows/push back to radiator via the work of water pump. If the car is driven for a long time in city/traffic, the coolant/water in the cooling system would heat beyond optimal temp & wont cool off, because the fluid is continuosly flowing from engine walls to radiator. Even if the fans are contnuosly spinning, the fluid wont stay long in the radiator to be cooled off by the fans, before its pushed back to the radiator. This could lead to head gasket failure. Its the work of thermostat to regulate the flow of coolant in the cooling system. Removing it is a call for wahala. Though, it can be temporally removed and used without, if need be. But permanent removal is a call for engine replacement or rebuild.

You said your car is emitting smoke from the exhaust tail. What color is the smoke?

1. Blue smoke means your engine is burning oil (which usually is caused by improper engine lubrication, as i explained above).
2. Black smoke means exccesive fueling (one or two of engine sensors or components that controls fuelling is faulty).
3. White smoke means head gasket failure (especially when its constant).

Hope that helps or has answered your question. Or did I get you scared or confused?

Ikenna.

Hmmmmmnnnn, na wa o, there's this scary connection in my Engine I saw after I loaned my car to a friend, There is a wire coming from the Fan to the Alternator and the fan always starts running and does so continously once the engine is turned on,
I asked what happened and he told me exactly what you said earlier that he saw the Temperature at 90 and took it to "fix" the overheating.
He doesnt stay in the same city with me so I'm confused how to reverse the connection as there are so many wires in the Fan Assembly,
Any tips?

bigx:

Hmmmmmnnnn, na wa o, there's this scary connection in my Engine I saw after I loaned my car to a friend, There is a wire coming from the Fan to the Alternator and the fan always starts running and does so continously once the engine is turned on,
I asked what happened and he told me exactly what you said earlier that he saw the Temperature at 90 and took it to "fix" the overheating.
He doesnt stay in the same city with me so I'm confused how to reverse the connection as there are so many wires in the Fan Assembly,
Any tips?

90 C is the normal/optimal operating engine temperature of 99% vehicles I have come accross with. The 90 C is usually the middle of temperature guage in the instrument cluster ( or what Nigerians call dashbord).

Ikenna.

I forgot to add. A radiator electric fan, that is still factory connected, will not come on or will remain off till engine temp tries to exceed the normal operating engine temperature a little or when you switch on A/C. This can happen when you are in traffic jam/hold up or when you start your car in the morning & let it idle for more than 20-30 mins. But as long as the car is in motion (speeding more than 40 km/h), the fan(s) will not come on or spin. Let assume you drive from Lagos to Abuja non-stop, which is about 12 hrs drive, the radiator fans will remain off till you reach Abuja, unless you meet holp up on the way or while passing a town. With the factory connection, your car radiator electric fan motor would hardly fail & could last as long as the car last, due to less use.

The "climate" crap Nigerians buy makes me sick. No matter how hot a climate/weather is, the thermostat is there to regulate the cooling. That is what its there for. Nigerians are confusing it with the Nigerian assembled Peugeot 504s & 505s cooling system. They had their radiator cooling fans locked to the engine/water pump pulley, which made them very thirsty on fuel (engine always running cold). Ask many people that had owned them in the past & they will tell you number of times they rebuilt their engines (XN1 & XN1A carb engines). But all 504s & 505s assembled in Europe never had such cooling system set up. They had Viscous mechanical fan. A clutched fan coupling that works like the radiattor electric fan. It made them to conserve fuel too like the japanese cars & made their engines more durable than ours.

Ikenna.

Ikenna351: Usually, Radiator electric fans are trigered on or controlled by radiator sensor or ECU via CTS/temp sender. Peugeot use radiator sensor to switch on their electric radiator fans, while most Japmobiles use ECU to do the same. I guess yours is ECU controlled. They had bypassed the ECU connection to the fan wiring connector, for it to be constantly running. You can trace back the original/factory connection of the fans with wiring diagram, test light or if you were there when it was bypassed(by knowing the wire(s) they cut off).

When Radiator electric fan spins constantly, the engine would always run cold or it would take the engine temperature eternity to rise a little, thereby more wear and tear. If the thermostat is removed, the engine would always run cold & would always run on extreme dangerous high temperature, when the engine eventualy warms, which could blow up the head gasket.

Usually, engine will be cold every morning. For a cold engine to start, it would need excess fuel to get it started. The CTS will signal to ECU that the engine is very cold, when you switch on the ignition to start the car in the morning. When you crank the engine, the ECU (aka brainbox for Nigerians) will command the injectors to spray in excess fuel and advance timing, for the engine to be able to start. When the engine starts, it would take some or few mins for the coolant temperature to rise. As the coolant temp rises, the cts will continue to signal to ecu the graduall rising of coolant temp, which will make the ecu to reduce the amount fuel injectors spray into the combustion chambers, as temp rises. When the engine gets to optimal/normal operating engine temp (like 90 degree celsius), the ecu will finally flatened or minimise the amount of fuel going into the combustion chambers. Thus, the work of CTS (Coolant Temperature Sensor), usually located on Thermostat housing.

So, if your engine is always running cold or runs cold longer than it should (because the constantly spinning fan wouldnt let the coolant temp to rise), then your car would always be running thirsty ( consuming too much fuel) & there would be more wear & tear in the engine, since the proper lubrication of the engine has been hindered. Note that everytime you start your engine in the morning, there will be a little friction that will cause some wears on moving parts inside the engine, but would soon stop as engine oil gets warmer. But if the engine continues to run cold for a long time, the oil remains cold/thicker and there wont be proper lubrication. Hence, engine failure sooner than it should. So you see what has been happening to that engine!

If you remove your cooling system thermostat, the fluid/coolant in the engine walls wont have enough time to boil/warm up to optimal temp, before it flows/push back to radiator via the work of water pump. If the car is driven for a long time in city/traffic, the coolant/water in the cooling system would heat beyond optimal temp & wont cool off, because the fluid is continuosly flowing from engine walls to radiator. Even if the fans are contnuosly spinning, the fluid wont stay long in the radiator to be cooled off by the fans, before its pushed back to the radiator. This could lead to head gasket failure. Its the work of thermostat to regulate the flow of coolant in the cooling system. Removing it is a call for wahala. Though, it can be temporally removed and used without, if need be. But permanent removal is a call for engine replacement or rebuild.

You said your car is emitting smoke from the exhaust tail. What color is the smoke?

1. Blue smoke means your engine is burning oil (which usually is caused by improper engine lubrication, as i explained above).
2. Black smoke means exccesive fueling (one or two of engine sensors or components that controls fuelling is faulty).
3. White smoke means head gasket failure (especially when its constant).

Hope that helps or has answered your question. Or did I get you scared or confused?

Ikenna.

Ikenna351: Usually, Radiator electric fans are trigered on or controlled by radiator sensor or ECU via CTS/temp sender. Peugeot use radiator sensor to switch on their electric radiator fans, while most Japmobiles use ECU to do the same. I guess yours is ECU controlled. They had bypassed the ECU connection to the fan wiring connector, for it to be constantly running. You can trace back the original/factory connection of the fans with wiring diagram, test light or if you were there when it was bypassed(by knowing the wire(s) they cut off).

When Radiator electric fan spins constantly, the engine would always run cold or it would take the engine temperature eternity to rise a little, thereby more wear and tear. If the thermostat is removed, the engine would always run cold & would always run on extreme dangerous high temperature, when the engine eventualy warms, which could blow up the head gasket.

Usually, engine will be cold every morning. For a cold engine to start, it would need excess fuel to get it started. The CTS will signal to ECU that the engine is very cold, when you switch on the ignition to start the car in the morning. When you crank the engine, the ECU (aka brainbox for Nigerians) will command the injectors to spray in excess fuel and advance timing, for the engine to be able to start. When the engine starts, it would take some or few mins for the coolant temperature to rise. As the coolant temp rises, the cts will continue to signal to ecu the graduall rising of coolant temp, which will make the ecu to reduce the amount fuel injectors spray into the combustion chambers, as temp rises. When the engine gets to optimal/normal operating engine temp (like 90 degree celsius), the ecu will finally flatened or minimise the amount of fuel going into the combustion chambers. Thus, the work of CTS (Coolant Temperature Sensor), usually located on Thermostat housing.

So, if your engine is always running cold or runs cold longer than it should (because the constantly spinning fan wouldnt let the coolant temp to rise), then your car would always be running thirsty ( consuming too much fuel) & there would be more wear & tear in the engine, since the proper lubrication of the engine has been hindered. Note that everytime you start your engine in the morning, there will be a little friction that will cause some wears on moving parts inside the engine, but would soon stop as engine oil gets warmer. But if the engine continues to run cold for a long time, the oil remains cold/thicker and there wont be proper lubrication. Hence, engine failure sooner than it should. So you see what has been happening to that engine!

If you remove your cooling system thermostat, the fluid/coolant in the engine walls wont have enough time to boil/warm up to optimal temp, before it flows/push back to radiator via the work of water pump. If the car is driven for a long time in city/traffic, the coolant/water in the cooling system would heat beyond optimal temp & wont cool off, because the fluid is continuosly flowing from engine walls to radiator. Even if the fans are contnuosly spinning, the fluid wont stay long in the radiator to be cooled off by the fans, before its pushed back to the radiator. This could lead to head gasket failure. Its the work of thermostat to regulate the flow of coolant in the cooling system. Removing it is a call for wahala. Though, it can be temporally removed and used without, if need be. But permanent removal is a call for engine replacement or rebuild.

You said your car is emitting smoke from the exhaust tail. What color is the smoke?

1. Blue smoke means your engine is burning oil (which usually is caused by improper engine lubrication, as i explained above).
2. Black smoke means exccesive fueling (one or two of engine sensors or components that controls fuelling is faulty).
3. White smoke means head gasket failure (especially when its constant).

Hope that helps or has answered your question. Or did I get you scared or confused?

Ikenna.

[

woah..u have so enlightened me.
the smoke looks bluish white , how can i handle this?

thanks a lot ikenna.

my temp sits a bit above the middle, is this normal?

patlead: thanks a lot ikenna.

my temp sits a bit above the middle, is this normal?

It depends on how long it stays there. Electric Radiator cooling fan switches on when temp rises a little above the middle of temp guage or 90 C (thats when thermostat opens to pass very hot coolant from engine to radiator, to allow in warm coolant from the radiator with the work of water pump). Withing seconds of the fan(s) coming on & running, the needle on the temp guage will come back to the middle or 90 C & the fan will go off again (meaning the thermostat has closed), till another 5 - 10 mins & switches on again, if the car remain stationary, especially when in hold up. But as soon as the car starts moving or gaining a little speed, the fans will go off & will remain off till you meet another stop & go traffic or reach your final destination. This is only applicable to fans that are still factory connected & the thermostats are not removed from the engine.

So from your explanation, you can see that connecting the fans to run constantly does not prevent the car from overheating if the thermostat has been removed, like i have explained in my previous post. So if the temp guage needle remains constantly above middle of the guage in a traffic jam, then either your thermostat has been removed or the thermostat is stuck closed. Observe & let us know.

Ikenna.

Ikenna351:

It depends on how long it stays there. Electric Radiator cooling fan switches on when temp rises a little above the middle of temp guage or 90 C (thats when thermostat opens to pass very hot coolant from engine to radiator, to allow in warm coolant from the radiator with the work of water pump). Withing seconds of the fan(s) coming on & running, the needle on the temp guage will come back to the middle or 90 C & the fan will go off again (meaning the thermostat has closed), till another 5 - 10 mins & switches on again, if the car remain stationary, especially when in hold up. But as soon as the car starts moving or gaining a little speed, the fans will go off & will remain off till you meet another stop & go traffic or reach your final destination. This is only applicable to fans that are still factory connected & the thermostats are not removed from the engine.

So from your explanation, you can see that connecting the fans to run constantly does not prevent the car from overheating if the thermostat has been removed, like i have explained in my previous post. So if the temp guage needle remains constantly above middle of the guage in a traffic jam, then either your thermostat has been removed or the thermostat is stuck closed. Observe & let us know.

Ikenna.

Hi Ikenna,

Thanks a bunch, what i have observed is that once the engine is up and running, the temp. increases till it gets to the middle. when it hits middle it remains there all the way till i put off the engine,even if i start the engine immediately after i had switched it off, the temp will just jump back to the middle again. what can i do?

Then about the smoke from the exhaust, when i start the engine in the morning it just smokes heavily afterwards the smoke stops and the exhaust do o emit any smoke, the engine sounds fine but what i can do to stop the early morning smoke?

patlead:

Hi Ikenna,

Thanks a bunch, what i have observed is that once the engine is up and running, the temp. increases till it gets to the middle. when it hits middle it remains there all the way till i put off the engine,even if i start the engine immediately after i had switched it off, the temp will just jump back to the middle again. what can i do?

Then about the smoke from the exhaust, when i start the engine in the morning it just smokes heavily afterwards the smoke stops and the exhaust do o emit any smoke, the engine sounds fine but what i can do to stop the early morning smoke?

You dont expect the temperature of the engine to go down immediately when you switch off the engine, do you? It takes a whole lot of a time for a warm or hot engine to cool off. So it should take more than 20 - 30 mins for the temp guage to drop a little, when you switch off a hot engine that has its temp guage needle pointing at the middle of the guage.

Its normal for a car to emit whitish color smoke, like steam, when the engine is started for the first time in the morning or when weather is very cold. So, it depends on what color of smoke yours is emitting. If your engine is burning oil, the oil dipstick will be showing low oil more often.

Ikenna.