Sounds like you're overheating the engine to me.... Which could be that the thermostat is shut closed, or you have a coolant leak and are low on water.
Anyways... quit driving it, you're gonna kill/warp the engine. In fact, you probably already have irreversible damage to the engine. In that, you never drive a car that is overheating, especially one that has an aluminum engine.
At a guess you are burning oil. Al; I can say is that I think it is expensive
Take it to a mechanic.
Is there enough engine oil and coolant in it? That would be the first things I'd check, but wait until the engine has cooled down before checking
I have a 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse with about 62,000 miles. Recently whenever I drive for longer than about 10 minutes, I see smoke coming out of the hood of my car (whenever I pull over and pop the hood, the smoke blends with the wind so I can't see where it is coming from - although the engine and all the parts around it seem very very hot - I can feel the intense heat coming off of it).
That is not all: I do not have my AC/Heat turned on (it is set at zero), yet there is gusts of hot air coming through my AC vents. If I switch and actually put the AC on, cold air comes out, but it is accompanied by a burning smell.
I don't know much about cars, and would really appreciate any help. I plan on taking it into a mechanic, but I would like to know what may be wrong (bad part, etc.) so I can know going in.
THANKS EVERYONE.
