I have no clue if this is the right forum for this question, and if not, mods please move it.

Last night my car started having all sorts of small problems before I drove it home from a friend's house. When I started it it was business as usual; I couldn't feel anything out of the ordinary, nor did it sound bad. I drove around the parking lot and parked to take off my T-Tops. I let it run during this time and while I put them in the trunk my car filled with exhaust or smoke. I was pretty confused. The car didn't sound or feel any different, so I drove around the parking lot some more listening and I started to see smoke come from under the hood. Not a lot, just kind of wisps. I thought I heard some grinding from under the car, some rattling.

I then checked the underside for anything that would be loose or dragging, but I couldn't find anything. I popped the hood and looked around. Besides the smoke (which I couldn't tell where it was coming from) I couldn't find anything out of place or broken. I did smell something like burning plastic, however. I started the car again with the hood open and noticed a grinding sound from around the fan belt area, but still didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

Tomorrow I'm going back to check out the car, but I have no clue what's going on or what to look out for. Any suggestions as to what to look out for, or ideas regarding what it could be, before I haul it off to the dealership?

 

Sounds like to me the solenoid stayed engaged and the starter was on while the engine was running. Do you notice the starter cranks much slower now?