Car problems, I need advice from people who know about cars?

OK, BEFORE SOMEBODY TELLS ME TO TAKE IT TO A MECHANIC, I AM VERY BROKE I CAN'T DO THAT RIGHT NOW, SO IF THAT IS ALL YOU ARE GOING TO SAY ON YOUR ANSWER, IT'S NOT HELPFUL. OK, FOR A LITTLE WHILE NOW A LITTLE BIT OF WHITE SMOKE HAS BEEN COMING OUT OF MY HOOD LIKE FROM UNDER THE ENGINE OR SOMETHING. I DROVE IT TODAY AND TURNED IT OFF. I TURNED IT BACK ON AND IT STARTED KINDA TREMBLING AND SHAKING AND DRIVING ROUGH AND LOST A LOT OF POWER AND THE WHITE SMOKE STARTED INCREASING AND MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON A LOT BUT IT STARTED BLINKING ON AND OFF, I COULDN'T HARDLY MAKE IT UP A HILL. I STOPPED BY A SHOP TO SEE IF THEY COULD JUST LOOK AT IT AND HE SAID IT NEEDED A TUNE UP, I JUST CHANGED THE FUEL FILTER BUT NOT THE SPARK PLUGS, COULD THAT BE CAUSING IT? AND IS IT DANGEROUS FOR ME TO DRIVE IT LIKE IT COULD CATCH ON FIRE OR MY ENGINE BLOW UP?Car problems, I need advice from people who know about cars?
I agree with Captain A, YOU SHOULDN'T BE DRIVING YOUR CAR UNTIL YOU GET YOUR PROBLEM FIXED!!! Firstly, if your ';Check Engine'; light FLASHES before it comes on, and stays on constant, it means your vehcle's PCM (powertrain control module) has detected a problem, more specifically a problem that WILL cause catalyst damage ( an EXTREMELY expensive component). If you don't have money to fix the problem now, PARK IT until you do. Continue to drive it, and the problem will get worse (and MUCH more expensive to fix, if it isn't already). You didn't state the year, make, and model of your vehicle. But the smoke coming from the hood, means you have a fluid that is leaking onto a hot engine part (eg. exhaust manifold). It can either be coolant, or engine oil. Simply changing spark plugs, wires (if equipped), probably isn't going to fix the ROOT CAUSE of your problem, by the symptom you describe though. Hope this helps.Car problems, I need advice from people who know about cars?
Blown head gasket. $$$
when it does this do you smell like a sweet smell if you do its antifreeze white smoke is oil dripping on the pipes a lot of the time ,about it missing this may not be connected with the white smoke,it could be plugs,wires,coil,intake gasket bad good luck and shop around.
sounds like water leak.do you want a tempory fix till you get back on your feet and can afford it?well go to the parts store and get some bars-leak and put that in it and start it up and let it circulate through the system.bars will seal about anything.it could be a freeze plug leaking,if so then bars will stop that too.
there are dozens of things that could be wrong. did you change the air filter? is it smoke or steam coming from under the hood? if you have white smoke coming from the exhaust it could be water getting in the cylinders. if so you have bigger problems than you probably will be able to fix yourself. take one spark plug out at a time and examine them. if they are wet or fouled you can try replacing them. you might as well replace the wires too. (assuming it is a conventional ignition system). hope things go well from here.
i had a simmilar problem with my 1992 Ford Laser a couple of weeks ago, the heat gauge on the dash started to heat up-increase in temp and I had to limp it back to the local airport and mum and dad had to come and help me drive it home-around 100KM.....it turned out that some pipes under the bonnet had burst and a head gasket too caused this, costs us $455 australian dollars.





thanks and I hope this helps in some way





Mitch
You may have a leak in your cooling system, creating the white steam that you are seeing. If it's bad enough, it may be spraying coolant on your engine. If it gets the ignition sysetm wet, it will cause the rough running you describe, and very likely the ';check engine'; light to blink.





It's possible that the reason this happened after you shut the engine off and restarted it is because when the engine shuts off, so does the cooling system, causing a spike in engine temperature. This will cause a rise in cooling system pressure, which will aggravate any leaks you may have.





Bottom line: check your cooling system for leaks. When the engine is cool, open the hood and look for any wet areas or puddles of fluid. If you see any and can't tell where they might be coming from, then it is time to have a shop pressure test the system. Don't worry; it's not an expensive procedure.





Good luck.
What model car is it? How many miles do you have on it? When the check engine light comes on it is usually emissions related,that is not a big problem. If the light starts flashing then you have serious problems. The white smoke is the rad. it is probably overheating, or you have a leak. Does the heater work? Check your coolant level. It may be the thermostat as well. It's easy to say you need a tune up which you might but you also need to make sure your fluids are replaced every so often. Coolant should be changed every 2-3 years. If you are very broke I would suggest a different mode of transportation for your safety. You shouldn't be driving a car with a smoking engine and a check engine light that is flashing. Good Luck, but your really need to take it a mechanic or someone you know who can help you.
It don't need a tune up... the head gaskets have apparently blown.. the white smoke is the engine trying to burn the water and coolant. the light flashing means it's detecting a misfire (read as spark ain't sparking like it should) to the point it can do damage to that cat convertor... and explains everything else.





It is dangerous to drive as you don't have the power like you used to and the fact that the engine is destroying it self more and more till it will finally blow up and it will cost even more (actually if you blow the motor, the engine cost is more than the value of the car)





Hyundai has the repair manual online to fix your car but only expereinced shadetree mechanics and above should attempt a head job on this car as one missed step and the engine will blow up if repaired wrong





So you are gonna hate me, but you will have to take it to a mechanic or a friend who knows cars that you trust as this is proabably way over most people's knowledge when it comes to cars...
I know what it is like to be broke. Frist i would check you water level when cold. If it is low you would have a leaking hose or fitting causing it to overheat and loose power. It is most likley more serious however and really sounds to me like a blown head gasket. Check for water in you oil (engine oil) Wish i had better info for you.
How long has it been since you put water in your car? Check the easiest thing first,Check the water level if it is full then go to the thermostat and waterpump.





and you really should change your plugs when you do a tune up.
See if you can find anything here: http://www.faqfarm.com/Q/FAQ/471
Sounds like your engine is over heating, the white smoke is most likely steam from your radiator, you should try checking your thermostat, and maybe replace your water pump. What ever the problem, it will cause more damage to continue driving the vehicle. Also the white smoke could be oil leaking from your valve covers, check your oil, if it is low look and see if there is fresh oil on any outer surfaces of the engine. Oil leaking onto an exsaust pipe can start a fire under the hood.