JTravinski

I don't know if anyone remembers my previous posts about getting white smoke from my exhaust whenever I rev the car before its fully warmed up, but I made a little progress in diagnosing it. I had a guy with an emissions tester look at it and he said that a sure-fire way to tell if I was burning coolant is to test for hydrocarbons. So what he did was he brought the car up to average running temperature and then opened the radiator. He then used his tester to sample the fumes coming from the hot coolant. ZERO hydrocarbons. He said that if there are any then it is a sure sign of burning coolant, but I'm not! So that appears to be one possible culprit ruled out. Now, is the only thing it that could be, oil? If so, I haven't been burning enough to notice a change in the level when I check it every week or so. Is there anything else it could be?

NickS

Again....what does the smoke smell like? It may be water vapor...

JTravinski

The thing is, if you saw the smoke you would know that it is not water vapor. It's too thick! It's not wispy, it's clouds of smoke! My dad is very knowledgable about cars and he agrees that it does not look like your average water vapor.

I hope it's water! That would mean I have nothing to worry about!

Nick Gustas

Try a different gas station? maybe the particular blend at your station creates a lot of H2O.

JTravinski

I have... I used to go to a Sunoco, but I moved and now I go to a Mobil nearby. No change

NickS

Oil will smell like oil, coolant will smell sweet and water vapor will smell like nothing or like the exhaust normally smells.

Todd/A.W.E.

and it would have to be a bad one to allow combustion gasses into the coolant while also letting coolant into the combustion chambers.

If your turbo coolant seals were leaking, you'd be burning coolant too.

However, if you are not losing any coolant as measured @ the expansion tank, you're not losing coolant, and the vapor must not be coolant!

Gunny to you maggot!

I still think it is vapor. There are many times I have seen pure water pour out of tail pipes. Besides if it were a coolant leak it would exist constantly not just when it is cool.

JTravinski

Black soot? I have that, but not tons. Just on the inside of the tips & little around the very edge.

Audiboy

Oil will give you a much higher reading of HC's. So rule that out too.