White smoke coming from under the hood - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

driving90 · 01-03-2007, 10:49 PM

Toyota Camry 1990 V6

I was driving around town today and I noticed that there was white smoking coming from under the hood. Since I was near a gas station, I decided to pull in and open up the hood and I noticed that the smoke was coming from mainly around the engine. I checked all the fluids and everything seemed alright except it looked as if the engine was low on oil, so I went in to buy a bottle of 10W-40 engine oil and filled it up. Afterwards, the smoke seemed to have disappeared and the car appeared to be going fine again.

Did I really solve the problem or should I take it in a shop to get it checked out?

For the record, the temperature guage was at around halfway, the temperature outside was around 50F, and I had driven the car about 15 minutes or so before I noticed the smoke.

atobe · 01-04-2007, 01:02 AM

did you spill anything?? i spilled oil on my exhaust during an oil change and it was smoking for awhile with a burning oil smell... could be an oil leak somehwere ?

driving90 · 01-04-2007, 01:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atobe

did you spill anything?? i spilled oil on my exhaust during an oil change and it was smoking for awhile with a burning oil smell... could be an oil leak somehwere ?

i didn't spill anything...not that im aware of; I had a mechanic do the oil change for me, which was last month.

i know the car is leaking oil as there's a oil spot on my driveway, but I don't think it can leak through a few quarts of oil in one month (can it?)...

Kingdom934 · 01-04-2007, 01:23 AM

It could be possible the leaking oil is dripping on the exhaust pipe, thus, leading to smoke.

I would keep an eye on the oil level. My Uncle's old Accord used to go through a quart a week or two from the severe oil leak it had.

Unco · 01-04-2007, 03:00 AM

when you opened the hood, did you smell any burning oil? if not, it was probably a coolant leak. have the cooling system pressure tested and check for leaks.

IvanHoe · 01-04-2007, 07:16 AM

Could be the EGR valve tube. On my former Mercury, the tube broke and exhuast smoke would leak from it.

timebuilder · 01-04-2007, 08:19 AM

These are all good suggestions.

Recently, I checked my oil one morning and failed to completely stuff the oil dipstick down into the tube where it lives.

25 minutes later, I pulled into a parking lot with stinky smoke coming from under my hood. I carefully opened it (could have had something buring under there) and found that the engine looked damp in the front.

Blowby had been spewing a film of oil over the front of the motor, and smoke was being formed on the highway-hot surfaces, including the exhaust heat shiled. I put the dipstick frimly into the tube, and stopped by the self-serve car wash to give the engine a quick cleaning.

driving90 · 01-04-2007, 02:46 PM

thank you for everyone's suggestions.

a few things:
1) I did a closer inspection today and found this from a hose leading out from the engine --

could this be causing the smoking?

2) yes, there was a funky smell when I opened the hood

3) when I found the cracked hose, I also checked the oil levels and realized I poured way too much motor oil in last night --

since I'm going to get that hose checked out in a shop, should I might as well get them to drain the oil (unless that's still in the overfilled-but-still-safe-area...)?

timebuilder · 01-04-2007, 03:16 PM

Overfilling with oil has a couple of consequences. Traditionally, they include foaming (and the crank whips it up if the level is that high, like an egg beater) and blowing excess oil out the draft tubes. Cars no longer have draft tubes (small airplanes do) but they now have positive crankcase ventialtion instead, a way of sending piston blowby and atomized oil back into the combustion chamber to be burned and then treated by the cat.

The hose you have pictured (from what I can see) is a breather hose that allows crankcase vapors (via the valve cover connection) to be routed to the intake ahead of the throttle valve. It's hard to imagine this being the cause of your complaint.

Is there smoke today? How is your coolant level?

driving90 · 01-04-2007, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by timebuilder

Overfilling with oil has a couple of consequences. Traditionally, they include foaming (and the crank whips it up if the level is that high, like an egg beater) and blowing excess oil out the draft tubes. Cars no linger have draft tubes (small airplanes do) but they now have positive crankcase ventialtion instead, a way of sending piston blowby and atomized oil back into the combustion chamber to be burned and then treated by the cat.

The hose you have pictured (from what I can see) is a breather hose that allows crankcase vapors (via the valve cover connection) to be routed to the intake ahead of the throttle valve. It's hard to imagine this being the cause of your complaint.

Is there smoke today? How is your coolant level?

there wasn't smoke today and my coolant level is full.

timebuilder · 01-04-2007, 03:50 PM

Sounds like this may have been a one-time problem.

I'd correct the oil level and keep an eye on things. It might have just been a little spill on the motor.

Kingdom934 · 01-05-2007, 06:30 AM

That looks like a little too much you got in there. Good spot I go is right at the 'F' on the stick.

TBayToyotaBoy · 01-06-2007, 01:16 AM

I found the same problem just last night, and found my rad is shot. Crap.

If you find you DO have an oil leak, I recommend the following gasket set:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/TOYOTA-88-91-CAMR...QQcmdZViewItem

I just bought it from these guys before Christmas and it's a pretty damned good deal. It has every gasket and seal you could ask for (it even has copper washers for the brake calipers!). I inquired at the dealer before buying it, and they would have charged roughly $650 for all the stuff in this kit.

Oh yeah, and don't drive the car if you can avoid it until you've drained some oil...the ONE AND ONLY time I ever took it to a quick-lube place, they overfilled it and BOOM it seems like every oil seal on the block is leaking now. Coincidence? I think not.

timebuilder · 01-06-2007, 07:42 AM

Here is a similar gasket set for the four cylinder guys like me:

http://tinyurl.com/ycerr3

Yes, seals can be ruptured on overfilled engines.

While we are mentioning seals, take note. If you are in a cold climate, warm up the engine and let the trans fluid be heated by the hot radiator (via the trans cooler coil in the radiator tank) to keep the trans seals from being blown. Cold, pressurized fluid and inflexible seals can mean disaster for an auto trans. Remember the first time you heard the words "O-rings?" It was a cold day on the launch pad, and the o-rings could not respond because they were cold and inflexible.

driving90 · 01-07-2007, 10:16 PM

thanks for everyones' comments and suggestions.

I went to the mechanic yesterday (a family owned place, not franchised) and he drained the engine oil back down to Full. As for the cracked hose in the picture, he said not to worry about it but the main culprit that's causing the steam is a leaky hose hidden by the top of the engine...it's dripping oil onto something hot which causes the steam.

His rough estimate: $300-$400

I also found out why it would steam on some days and on other days there's nothing...the steaming action depends on the weather outside and how hot the engine is running...my unscientific findings show that if the temp guage is anywhere below halfway, it wont steam and if it's too cold outside, there won't be steam rising from the gaps in the car hood (but you can smell the oil..).