Burning smell, heat on passenger side.
 

I recently purchased a used 2002 Mazda Mpv v6 3L. A friend, who is also a part time mechanic, took a quick look at it at the dealer and ok'ed it. All he said was that it would need to get the break pads changed "soon". Unfortunately he lives out in Victorville and I live in LA , I need some opinions now.

There is a weird subtle burning smell when the car runs for a daily routine and we come home and park it. It's a lot more noticeable on the passenger side. Also, when I popped the hood there was a lot of heat on the passenger side of the engine. NO smoke, just heat, a lot more than the "usual" engine heat.

There are no lights on, no error codes, no stalling or high temp signs. The car has no leaks, all fluid levels are normal... everything seems fine... except for the smell and the heat.

Car dealers used/new generally clean the engines. It might have some oil seepage from the valve covers or elsewhere. That would explain the smell. I'm not sure where you are feeling extra heat though. Obviously the radiator side of the engine will run cooler as it gets a fan. The firewall side will run hotter because the heat hardly has anywhere to go. If the engine has a plastic cover on it then throw it away. Think of it as the oven door. It traps heat and does the engine no good. Plus you want to see as much of the engine as possible to catch leaks as they pop up. You should get the van up on a lift asap to see what is really going on. Sounds like the smell your getting could be a small leak onto the exhaust.

The radiator fan seems to be running all the time
 

bad unit?