I have a ‘97 Honda Accord with 270k miles (4door, 4 cylinder, EX). I purchased the car 5 years ago, and bought it used at 100k miles. I have had the radiator, water pump, belts and hoses replaced within the last year.
I have noticed lately that when I run my AC and I am stopped, my car shakes real bad. When I feel the compressor kick in, it almost stalls the car out and from under the car a small amount of smoke rises. When I first saw this, I thought my car was going to catch on fire!
I don’t know if this is related or not, but I have seen the temp rise when I am driving every now and then. I travel a lot in this car, and on short runs (30-40 miles) I don’ see the temp change. It only changes when I drive over 100 miles+.
I have checked the level of coolant and everything looks fine. Also, my car does leak a few drops of oil when stopped.
My two questions are:
1. Why does my car shake and small amounts of smoke rise when the AC is on and the compressor kicks in?
2. Why does it overheat when driving longer distances Vs shorter distances less than 30 miles?