Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

sumtimes wen i gun my car hard i see white smoke come out from the launch, and once after a serious trashing white smoke comes out from the exhaust for a bit n goes away when idling, but most off the time racing ders no smoke or sumtimes dark brown, (only been running ultimate n optimax)

i just bought the car n its been running at least 14psi+ on factory parts besides pod n 3'' exhaust, according to the factory hg gauge with 140000 km

any ideas guys?? could it be signs of detenation??

Link to comment
https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/99803-white-smoke-from-exhaust/
Share on other sites

brownish/black smoke = running rich

white or blue smoke = burning oil

Sounds like you have a bit of blow-by, symptoms of a leaking seal in the turbo or a tired engine. Running 14psi+ on a std turbo, i would suggest you start saving for a replacement :)

thanks guys, yea thought it could be a screwed engine, but it only happens sumtimes though, n sum guys reckon white smoke sumtimes is normal or even good for the engine, does this sound liable???

wud a compression test tell me if the engine is f*ked, if so how much wud it cost???

btw what is condensation???

by condensation i meant , for example when someone washes their car and the exhaust system gets wet...it'd burn off the water and make some smoke or steam which will look smokey....or when the car is cold etc...but yeah, doesnt sound like thats what u've got unfortunately

Condensation is when, on a cold day/night, water droplets build up in the exhaust. Then evaporates when the exhaust heats up (white stem comes out of exhaust). This only happens on the first startup of the day.

It is more likely that your turbo has a leaking seal. Any reasonable performance mechanic can do a comp test on the eng. and check the turbo for you.

I do not beleive white smoke can ever be good.

But no need to panic, get it checked out, as these things could last for months/years just like it is.

also if it has a blow by (which sounds like the case) shud i be taking my car easy n would it be possible to get this problem fixed up before it gets worst, like maybe a bottom end rebuild or isnt there much point, shud i just drive it until the engine blows, pls tell me what u guys think im lookin at here???

Things to do: (in my order of preferance)

1/ Get turbo and eng checked by a good mechanic

2/ If blow-by is not too bad, ask mechanic to fit a quality "oil catch can".

3/ Empty the "catch can" weekly and keep note of how much oil is being used. Note: Always dispose of oil and top up eng. with fresh oil of the same brand and class.

4/ If turbo seizes, then replace it. Or save up for an upgrade :(

5/ Once the engine feels tired then rebuild it, no point in doing it now if you can't afford it or if the turbo is the problem.

NOTE: Could also be the valve stem seals in the head, leaking oil onto the pistons. So don't panic and take it to a decent mechanic.

Sounds like a turbo to me.. happened to my brothers turbo-charged VTi-R honda civic. He was using a rb20det turbo, and it was tired to begin with.

Is your car running a catalyic converter? Because my brother took his out (was restrictive) and he then got the white smoke problem (only had a little blue smoke before on full boost ~ 10.7PSI)

If your not too sure, take it off and check that it hasnt been gutted... if it has, fit a standard catalyic converter back on (restricts it) and the majority of the smoke shall go away. I cant remember the reason why more smoke etc came out after he took it away, something to do with no back pressure.

This is only a temp fix, and i suggest you do start saving for a new turbo... but this might get you a little longer life out of it. Goodluck mate.

Dayne

thanks guys for all ur help, n yea its the turbo, looks like saving for me $$$, btw ne1 knos wat is the best turbo to fit to the std flange, i heard T3 are a straight fit for a good replacement?? n would i have to sav up for a fmic n boost controller too??

If you are going for a bigger turbo, and there are plenty on the market that fit in the std location, you will need to upgrade the following:

- injectors

- ecu

- fmic

- fpr (fuel pressure regulator)

- exhaust

- oil & water lines, to the turbo

May have missed a couple, but it certainly is not as cheap exercise.

All the best!

White smoke can also be coolant leaking in to the cylinder's.

The best thing to do is trouble shoot.

1. Remove your intake and check for oil around the impeller blades. Also check for shaft play. Wiggle the shaft and listen carefully for any noises or excessive movement.

2. Check your I/C piping and throttle body area for oil.

3. Remove your spark plugs and check them.

- if they are just slightly black thats good.

- if they are white, your burning coolant and it could be your head gasket.

- if they have oil, your burning that and it's probabley a valve seal.

Doing all of this should hopefully source your problem. I had a similar issue like yours with my ka-t in my 240. It only smoked under boost and I narrowed it down to my turbo being toasted. I did all of the checks though (that I mentiioned above) to pretty much 100% confirm the problem.

Good luck man and hopefully it's nothing major.

Cheers

  • 2 weeks later...

Ok, I have a blown turbo on the Stagea, I had to drive a few blocks to get some fuel, driving very sedatly, I noticed a thick white haze behind the car. Ok, now I realise i shouldnt be driving the car, but tommorow is our annual show and shine which I have a place/set booked. Is prob about 6k's from my house, if I take it very easily, will it cause any major damage to my car?

Make sure your topped up with oil, take some with you, watch your oil pres gauge and DO NOT pump on it and you'll be fine. Try your best not to make boost and no high rev's either.

Do all that and you'll be fine without causing any damage to your motor.

I had the same problem on my old 240 and drove around for just over a month and had no prob's.

Good luck at the show. :P

Cheers B)

by condensation i meant , for example when someone washes their car and the exhaust system gets wet...it'd burn off the water and make some smoke or steam which will look smokey....or when the car is cold etc...but yeah, doesnt sound like thats what u've got unfortunately

I dont know how you wash your car mate but in all the years ive owned a car thats never happened. White smoke sounds like your turbo gasket is shagged.

Only time ive ever had steam is on a cold night and when the car first starts up after not been drivin for awhile.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • The final part arrived today to un-clampify and simplify the intake Who would have though a 1/2" hose stainless bulkhead fitting designed for below waterline bilge pumps would be what I needed Test fit on a 3" offcut I had laying around to see if it would work, and it worked a treat All going well the intake will be on its "final version" tomorrow 
    • Good luck on the weekend mate
    • Must have been an absolute nightmare to drive when the power steer was out, the rack ratio/wheel size/caster is all set up for power assistance
    • Welcome to SAU, what are you looking at buying?
    • I checked the injectors again (1 and 2, since they’re easiest to access) to make sure they weren’t clogged. Even though the entire fuel system had been cleaned, I wanted to be certain. Everything looked clean, so I reinstalled and connected everything. When I started the car to confirm everything was okay, it immediately revved up high, so I shut it off straight away. I checked to see if I’d missed a vacuum hose or something, but everything was connected. On the second attempt, the car ran without the high idle, but I noticed a distinct “compressed air” sound coming from the engine bay. Tracing the sound, I pushed injector #6 forward slightly and the noise stopped — it turned out it wasn’t seated properly, despite the fuel rail being bolted down. While holding it in place, the car idled steadily without stalling and ran for over 5 minutes. At this point, I pulled all six injectors out just in case I hadn’t seated them correctly or dirt had gotten onto the O-rings. Unfortunately, I discovered that I had damaged 3 out of 6 injectors (the OEM 270cc ones) during installation. So yes, this was my fault. Since only the pintle caps were damaged, I’ve ordered a Fuel Injector Service Kit from NZEFI to refurbish them. In the meantime, I reinstalled my new injectors – the car now idles fine for over 15 minutes without stalling. I have not attempted to drive it so far. It’s not perfect yet, as it hesitates when the throttle is pressed, but it’s a big improvement. Unplugging the IACV with the new injectors idles at around 800rpm, even with the IACV screw tightened fully. But this is probably due to tune.
×
×
  • Create New...