Steam from the front vents??

[lug]

Now I don't want to sound naive but when it rains or has rained overnight & I then take my S1 out for a spin, when stationary puffs of steam come out of the front vents!! Now good old HR Owen assured me that this is normal as it's something to do with a valve opening and closing? To be fair it doesn't overheat but just a bit embarrassing when stuck in traffic and those around you are watching the steam in the hope that you S1 will blow up!! Anyway, is this normal or are HR Owen bullsh*tting? By the way service booked in at Sinclairs, I'll report in due course!!

[bogie]

Its normal - its just water dripping onto the rad and evaporating - goes away after a while !

[Bonce]

Yep, perfectly normal and nothing to worry about. Just strange the first time the outside of your windscreen steams up.

Oh, and the first time you drive it on a really cold day you'll hear a ticking noise from behind the passenger seat as the car warms up. This is perfectly normal too! (thought I'd save you having to post this one next month )

[dimmadan]

yup, its just water from the outside evaporating off the warm radiator.

[Gfun]

Also when jumping in puddles

[Lug]

Thanks for that, and yeah Bonce I was gonna ask about the ticking noise! Still loads to ask but I'll save it up as I'll be here all day! Hope I'll be able to give some useful info back at some point??

[Nightmare]

i've had two very concerned passersby come runing over to the car to tell me they thought it was on fire......you can get LOADS of steam sometimes - was cool!

[dragstar]

Bonce said:

Yep, perfectly normal and nothing to worry about. Just strange the first time the outside of your windscreen steams up. Oh, and the first time you drive it on a really cold day you'll hear a ticking noise from behind the passenger seat as the car warms up. This is perfectly normal too! (thought I'd save you having to post this one next month )

heard it too today (the ticking).

not worried, but iam curious as to what it is

care to enlighten us, oh great one?

[fergusd]

Does the car smell of coolant, at all, with the heater on full bung ?

Common problem that looks like condensation and exhibits the inability to clear the screen is often a leaking heater matrix . . .

The vapourised glycol in the coolant condenses on the inside of the screen and never clears . . .

If all else fails this could be your prob . ..

Fd

[wahmason]

"I've had two very concerned passersby come runing over to the car to tell me they thought it was on fire......you can get LOADS of steam sometimes - was cool!"

Me too - love it!!
Nothing better than pulling up at the lights in a haze of steam!! Grrr....